As the leaves in the mountains start to turn beautiful oranges and yellows and the air grows a little crisper, it's time to make a cup of cider and put on a good scary movie—or a super cheesy one. This October, I will be watching 31 horror movies, including rewatching some old favorites and discovering new frights.

Audition, dir. Takashi Miike (1999)

This is my second Miike film since I loved Ichi The Killer so much; one of the things that has stuck with me since film school is the idea of watching three movies by a director before you can form a solid opinion on their work...So, one more this month? Audition is gory in a much different type of way than Ichi. Throughout the film, you know something is wrong but there isn't much to prepare you for the last thirty minutes of it while Ichi throws you right into the ultra-violent landscape.

The Possession of Joel Delaney, dir. Waris Hussein (1972)

This film predates The Exorcist by a year and the ending has a similar vibe. Possession films weren't exactly new at the time but they hadn't fit the big screen with such an impact until the William Friedkin film. Perry King and Shirley MacLaine work together to hold up this film while the majority of it falls flat. I've seen people discuss the ending and how gruesome it is (ie. forcing a child to eat dog food) but after watching Audition the night before it didn't hit me hard at all.

The Mask, dir. Julian Roffman (1961)

This film was recommended to me a while back by a patron of the theatre. I always have my little sign up that says if you can recommend me a movie I haven't seen before you will win a button. It's not really that difficult to stump me and usually I give them a button for trying but every once and a while someone comes up with something wild. I enjoyed this one since it reminded me of the films of William Castle; when it was released in theaters, audiences received their own "mask" which were decorated 3D glasses. The experimental dream sequences were a highlight of this set of movies.

Scary Stories, dir. Cody Meirick (2018)

Like many children who grew up in the early 2000s, I checked out a well-loved copy of Scary Stories to Tell In The Dark from my school library. Also like many others, the set of three folk-tale books was my introduction to horror. I honestly can't remember any prior exposure to the macabre and grim; those books predated any online creepypastas I read or any spooky movies I rented from Blockbuster. I knew I wasn't alone in this experience and this 2018 documentary covers both the history behind the attempt to get these beloved books banned from school libraries and the influence it had on many small artists. While it was good at talking about those aspects, I was more invested in the time glimpses it gave in to the origin of some of the folk tales.

The Tell-Tale Heart, dir. Ted Parmelee (1953)

The United Production of America (UPA) is mainly known for their series of Mr. Magoo cartoons and motion pictures. They have a very unique animation style but this adaptation of the classic Edgar Allen Poe short story stands out as a more experimental entry in their film library. The short is narrated by English actor James Mason and his voice and the sound design accompany the animation perfectly. The 8-minute run time seems a little too short, and I would have loved to see this at double the length with more lingering shots and suspenseful silence.