“A Tale of Two Witches” is a weird special in that it involves Mickey telling the story that becomes the center of the entire short. There’s no reason why we have to keep jumping back and forth from Mickey telling Pluto the story, and getting to the story. I don’t know why this couldn’t have been just a stand alone Halloween tale. In either case, “A Tale of Two Witches” is a fun and simple Halloween special that has a good time celebrating the holiday.
Category Archives: Halloween Horror Month
Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021)
I’m quite surprised that the Muppets have never really been about Halloween in all their time on screen. They’ve mostly been about Christmas and Thanksgiving which is a shame, because they’re fitted well for the holiday. I’d love it if the Henson company allowed for yearly Halloween specials, but at this point it’s probably wishful thinking. Nonetheless, “Muppets Haunted Mansion” does a good job mixing the Disney attraction with the Muppets.
Spirit Halloween: The Movie (2022)
It truly pains me to see that “Spirit Halloween: The Movie” is a genuinely terrible movie, in spite of its best intentions. I love “Spirit Halloween,” I love the whole spirit of their stores, and their charity work, but “The Movie” is a misfire on all cylinders. It’s a boring, poorly concocted adventure film that, shocking enough, doesn’t know how to utilize the Spirit Halloween setting all that well at all. The best way to describe “Spirit Halloween: The Movie” is that, at best, it feels like mid-tier straight to video fodder from Charles Band circa 1994. Even the script feels retro-fitted from probably a screenplay that was finished in the late 90’s.
For Better or for Worse: The Good for Nothing (1993)
It’s weird how “For Better or Worse” never actually took off as an animated series. Comic strips like “Charlie Brown,” “Garfield” and even “The Boondocks” hit big as series, with the former two offering up their own iconic Halloween special. “The Good For Nothing” is a Halloween special mostly in spirit as the central conflict is set primarily on Halloween. That doesn’t make “The Good for Nothing” bad. It just never quite rises to the occasion to be as good as “The Great Pumpkin.”
DTV Monster Hits (1987)
I admittedly was a tad too young to really savor “DTV Monster Hits” as around 1987 I was four. But years later I was able to check out the VHS copy from a cousin, and I’ve been fascinated by this compilation ever since. Although “Monster Hits” is meant to celebrate Halloween, and the long history of Disney being some twisted people under the skin, it’s also a fun compilation of some huge eighties hits. And this was 1987, the peak of the decade where Michael Jackson reigned supreme. And it’s not a surprise that the artist that leads this small compilation is Michael Jackson whose massive hit “Thriller” plays over segments of a lot of Disney animation.
LEGO Star Wars Terrifying Tales (2021)
I have never really been a big follower of the LEGO movie verse over the years, I’ll admit. I loved “LEGO Batman” and “The LEGO Movie” but that’s as far as it’s ever gone. LEGO and Star Wars have teamed up for a while to deliver prime kid content and this time they merge to offer up a Halloween themed movie that’s great for the holiday but also good for the young Star Wars fan. “Star Wars” isn’t exactly known for their spooky stories, but I think they do a very good job mixing their mythology with some horror themed elements. A lot of it proves to be actually quite clever.
Headless Horseman (2022)
Take two cups of “Ghost Rider,” one cup of “Spawn,” a dash of “The Crow,” mix it up with only a fraction of the budget, and you have Jose Prendes’ “Headless Horseman.” The Asylum’s newest mockbuster watches like an off brand comic book movie from the late nineties. It feels like something from a studio that couldn’t afford Marvel’s “Ghost Rider,” so they opted for a character from an obscure indie label. If it seems like I’m just mocking “Headless Horseman,” I’m truly not. I was surprised at how much I didn’t hate it, as while the movie borrows from the aforementioned series’ wholesale, it amounts to some cheesy, charming fun.