Cam here.

It’s Halloween time.  To most, it’s just another holiday that became an afterthought the second you were too old for trick or treating.  A burden that comes every year and urges you to buy a costume you don’t want for a party you don’t care to attend.  But to me, it’s something else entirely.  It is quite simply the most wonderful time of the year.

For anyone who has ever spent more than five minutes in the same room with me, there are a few things you pick up on almost instantly.  I am alarmingly attractive, I get really excited about dumb things, and I am unabashedly and completely obsessed with horror films.

The strange thing is, if you were to ask me why I felt this way towards this black sheep genre of cinema, I couldn’t give you a straight answer.  It’s something that has always been with me.  Perhaps it was all those terrible movies I was exposed to as a kid growing up with satellite TV.  Maybe it was the fact I had two older sisters whose idea of a good time was chasing me around the house wearing scary masks until I cowered in my bed for hours.  Or maybe it was simply that SCREAM came out at the exact right moment in my puberty stricken life that it imprinted my mushy middle school brain forever.  Regardless, all I know is when I was in 6th grade, my Mom bought me a copy of Stephen King’s THE SHINING and it didn’t leave my backpack for three years.  I was hooked.

Ask any of the other SHAIMUS guys, they know.  They’ll tell you about all the horror movies I’ve forced upon them in past years.  The ones they liked (LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, SLITHER) and the ones they didn’t like so much (HELLRAISER II, HATCHET).  And though our perception of what makes a film “good” or “bad” may be different, my band mates have been very understanding of my extracurricular activity, even if they don’t share the same feelings towards zombie disembowelment as I do.  (NOTE: Lou loves horror movies.  Forget his guitar playing, that’s how he got my vote!)

So what was I talking about again?  Ahh yes, Halloween.  For this holiday, which I believe to be the ENTIRE month of October, it seems the rest of the world catches up to people like myself.  For just a few short weeks, people embrace the dark world of the macabre.  A place where nightmares seem a little more fun than truly scary.  A place where you can carve pumpkins while you drink your pumpkin flavored coffee or beer.  People begin to view the world in the same light as I do year round.  Yes, it is an amazing time to be alive…or undead.

Instead of making some Top 5 list, I’m going to keep things simple.  Here are my two MUST WATCH Halloween films.

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS

When I was a kid, this movie was the reason I fell in love with Halloween.  The story is fantastic, the characters are memorable, and the music is damn near genius.  It doubles as a Christmas movie, but to me, it will always be about the magic of Halloween.  Long live the Pumpkin King.

TRICK ‘R TREAT

Though filmed several years ago, this film was just released on DVD this month.  It is without a doubt the ultimate Halloween film.  A ghoulish love letter to the holiday that bleeds black and orange.  Four short stories intertwine throughout, showcasing what happens to those who don’t adhere to the rules of Halloween.

Hold up.  I know what you’re thinking.  “Cam, what about HALLOWEEN??”

HALLOWEEN is a classic.  It perfected the slasher formula and basically turned it into an art form.  Problem is, it has little to do with the actual holiday.

I am the way I am.  I can’t help enjoying the things I do. I don’t make fun of you for liking crappy romantic comedies.  I think it’s best we just agree to disagree.

So this Halloween, don’t be a grinch.  Buy that costume, hand out that candy, watch some scary movies, and do it with a smile.  After all, it’s more fun to be scared than you might think.

- Cam