R.I.P. Halloween ’14

Ah, November: the month after. No more aisles filled with masks or carved pumpkins on doorsteps. No more costumes to plan or haunted houses to visit. *heavy sigh*

Photo by MThurber via Flickr.

Well, take heart, Halloween lovers: nothing says you can’t extend October’s spookiness for another week or two. Plus there are some major candy sales going on right now. Soon we’ll all be distracted by the winter holidays. And there are plenty of year-round Halloween websites to keep our spirits up. The next thing you know, it’ll be October 2015. And the Skeleton Key will be here.

As usual, this blog is taking a hiatus until next fall. Thank you all for spending some time here this season. Can’t wait to spook you again next year!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

October 31st is here!!! It’s our big day, and I hope yours is filled with frights and fun, or parties and costumes, or mischief and magic, or candy and roasted pumpkin seeds…any and every thing you love about the holiday.

Here are some spoooooky black and white gifs to set the mood. Happy haunting!!

Gifs found on Tumblr.

Haunted Overload

You guys. What if I told you there was an artistically crafted haunted attraction with large-scale, handmade exhibits like a 30-foot carved skull, rickety shacks, and a wooden train that has veered off elevated tracks? Not to mention costumed actors, perfect lighting, fog, and real carved and lit pumpkins? All set deep in a New Hampshire forest?

Well, that place exists, and it’s called Haunted Overload.

To enter, visitors must walk into the mouth of an enormous rotted tree.

Oh, just a clown … that’s two stories tall.

You have to see this place to believe it. A camera can’t capture the breathtaking enormity of the installations, which tower overhead when you’re standing in front of them.

Astounding in its beauty and terrifying in its scares, Haunted Overload is truly one of a kind. And I just discovered (thanks to Bean!) that it won ABC’s competition “The Great Halloween Fright Fight.” The victory is well-deserved.

All photos from Haunted Overload’s website.

Almost Heeeeere

This week as our holiday fast approaches, I’ve been seeing a veritable zombie’s horde of Halloween-related funny images online. Here are a few to make you smile! Enjoy.

Shop Til You Drop

And now for some abandoned shopping malls that both creep me out and remind me of everything I like about Romero’s Dawn of the Dead….

I always thought malls were ugly places, but I guess I took their pristine cleanliness and constant maintenance for granted. Because looking at these images, I find it jarring to see these fantasy worlds just left to rot, and with their “perfect” veneer just crumbling from neglect.

All photos from the (aptly and cleverly named) “Black Friday” gallery; see the rest here.

Dream Director

I think David Lynch would be the perfect director for a horror film. All his work (which, though definitely creepy and haunting, would be considered more “art film” than pure horror) is imbued with a sense of eerie dread that would be extremely effective in a scary movie.

Check out the short clips below and you’ll see what I mean.

The Black Lodge from Twin Peaks:

The videotape in Lost Highway:

The infamous “man at the party” scene from Lost Highway:

This bizarre Inland Empire “rabbit scene”:

Eraserhead (and, let’s be honest, the only thing that keeps this film from being straight-up horror is that it makes no real sense):

His movies are beautiful and full of atmosphere, but as narratives they can be frustratingly perplexing. (Or just very symbolic, depending on how much you want to trust his artistic vision.) Regardless, Lynch’s fever-dream style of directing would be incredible if applied to the horror genre.

Yes, I realize this is just wishful thinking on my part. But in related news, Lynch will be directing a Twin Peaks reboot next year! That’ll tide me over until he decides to take my advice.

Quiz Time

I know, I know; they’re everywhere: “Which cookie are you?” “Which Jane Austen character are you?” “What is your spirit animal?” Online personality quizzes have taken over everybody’s Facebook pages.

Even though we’re all sick of ‘em, I just couldn’t resist. I’ve made a quiz just for you, the readers of this blog. Yes, you love Halloween, or you wouldn’t be reading this. But exactly how obsessed are you with the holiday?? Just answer these questions to find out!

 

GIF from the 2007 film Trick R Treat.