Connect with us
Mr. Boogedy Mr. Boogedy

Editorials

10 Forgotten Childhood Halloween Specials

Published

on

When it comes to television, Halloween isn’t quite what it used to be, especially from the late ‘70s to the early ‘90s. Halloween specials were a regular staple of fall television, and often offered Emmy Award worthy programming. While Disney reigned supreme when it came to releasing great Halloween specials, nearly every major studio tried their hand at releasing fun holiday-themed shows. Though you can find re-airings of classics like It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown annually on TV or revisit newly deemed classics like Ghostwatch and The Worst Witch on streaming services, there’s a number of forgotten Halloween specials worth revisiting. Here are 10 of the best forgotten favorites:


Once Upon a Midnight Scary

Once Upon a Midnight Scary

Made for the CBS Library TV series in 1979, this Halloween special features three abridged tales of terror based on popular novels all narrated by Vincent Price. The tales, “The Ghost Belonged to Me,” “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “The House With A Clock In Its Walls,” were told in a sort of cliff notes fashion- the goal of the special seemed to be to more interested in getting children to read, so segments end abruptly with Price telling kids if they want to know how it ends, they should read the book. More nostalgic than truly great, the real reason to watch this one is for Vincent Price, towing the line between ham and menace.


The Crown of Bogg

The Crown of Bogg

Before Paul Fusco created beloved ‘80s sitcom Alf, he created a Halloween special on par with Jim Henson levels of puppetry in 1981. The special was made for Showtime, featuring a cast of puppets and live-actors, and follows the kingdom of Bogg, where King Mildew plans to retire his crown to his son, Milo, until Mildew’s brothers issue a challenge for the crown. Full of one-liners and silly songs, The Crown of Bogg is a great Halloween-themed rival for The Muppets, but sparse screenings on Showtime and no proper home video release meant this one remains largely forgotten.


Halloween is Grinch Night

Halloween is Grinch Night

The lesser-known sequel to beloved Christmas special How the Grinch Stole Christmas sees the Seussian Grinch seeking to steal another holiday, this time Halloween aka Grinch Night. Instead of sweet Cindy Lou Who, its little Euchariah, blown into the Grinch’s path by the “sour-sweet wind,” that must save the holiday. Inside the Grinch’s wagon, Euchariah is confronted by a terrifying sequence that features monsters and surreal imagery and must gather courage, not heart, to win. More refined than its predecessor, this Grinch special is lost in the shadow of Christmas.


The Midnight Hour

The Midnight Hour

An ABC television movie that was set on Halloween but actually aired the day after, in 1985, this special follows a group of teens as they break into the local witchcraft museum on Halloween night, and accidentally raise the dead; a witch bent on revenge and a ‘50s cheerleading ghost that helps the teens right their wrong. On paper, it sounds an awful lot like a popular Disney Halloween movie from the ‘90s. Yet, this special is much more rooted in its time period, with a fantastic soundtrack and a climax that’s one big high school dance party. It blends cheesy humor with actual moments of spookiness, like when the dead rise from their graves. The special includes just about every popular monster; ghosts, zombies, witches, vampires, and even a werewolf. Part self-aware zombie comedy and part sappy love story where a ghost only gets one night to find love, it’s a shame they don’t make Halloween specials like this anymore.


The Halloween that Almost Wasn’t

The Halloween that Almost Wasn't

Also known as The Night that Dracula Saved the World, this Halloween special was a Disney channel staple since 1979 up until sometime in the ‘90s. On Halloween night, Count Dracula (Judd Hirsch) gathers together all of his mild-tempered monsters to deliver an ultimatum- either they get their acts together and become scary again or leave his Transylvanian castle permanently. It strangely ends in a disco, fitting of its time I suppose, but the performances and makeup were so fantastic that the special was actually nominated for four Emmy Awards and actually won one for its makeup.


Witch’s Night Out

Witch's Night Out

A 1978 animated special with no existing ties to any other properties or toys, Witch’s Night Out follows a disgruntled witch who stirs up trouble all for the sake of getting people to take the holiday seriously again. This includes turning children into actual monsters. Distinctly ‘70s with its monochromatic characters with names like Tender and Rotten, its memorable aesthetic is bolstered by memorable voice-acting by SNL-cast members Gilda Radner and Catherine O’Hara. Clever writing and pacing make this one transcends its time period, but it’s increasingly hard to find.


Claymation Comedy of Horrors Show

Claymations Comedy of Horrors Show

From the studio of Will Vinton, the man responsible for coining the term “Claymation” and the iconic (and creepy) California Raisins, this Halloween special failed to capture the fan base that he previous works did. Perhaps one of the biggest reasons is that this obvious Halloween special was dumped on the air in May of 1991, not the Halloween season. The 30-minute special featured two original characters, Wilshire Pig and Sheldon Snail, who find a map to Dr. Frankenswine’s lab. They spend the runtime poking about the castle, building toward a climax featuring a giant monster. Visually amazing and intended to launch a series around the original characters, this special never quite gained the momentum needed.


The Last Halloween

The Last Halloween

Aired in 1991, when the popularity of televised Halloween specials had begun to wane, animation company Hanna-Barbera took a stab at it by creating a live-action special centered around space aliens, a rarity. Set in the classic small-town decked in Halloween décor, the plot follows four CGI-animated aliens who crash land on Earth in search of candy to bring back to their home planet. The visual effects and animation were provided by Industrial Light and Magic and Pacific Data Images, and won an Emmy Award. Funny and cute, though saddled with another “save Halloween” plot, this special marked the only time Hanna-Barbera departed from their trademark traditional animation.


Mr. Boogedy

Mr. Boogedy

Aired in 1986 as an episode of The Disney Sunday Movie, during a decade where Disney was king of great Halloween specials, Mr. Boogedy earns the rare distinction of being a Disney special that actually caused nightmares in the youth it was geared toward. Set in the New England town of Lucifer Falls, a novelty salesman moves his family into a house with supernatural incidents that grow increasingly troubling. At first, everyone thinks it’s the father’s pranks, but soon learns the house is haunted by The Boogedy Man. A great balance of silly and spooky, Mr. Boogedy has two major flaws; it wasn’t long enough and it’s out of print on DVD.  It also was originally intended as a pilot but failed to catch on.


Cry Baby Lane

Cry Baby Lane

An obscure made-for-television Halloween film that aired once on Nickelodeon, on October 28, 2000, before being relegated to obscurity, Cry Baby Lane plays like a fantastic episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark? Featuring a surprisingly dark plot for a children’s Halloween movie, it follows two brothers who enjoy listening to ghost stories by an Undertaker (Frank Langella). One night he tells them of Siamese twins, one good and one evil, whose father cleaved them in two upon their death and buried them separately. The smart brothers hold a séance where they’re buried, and the elder brother becomes possessed by the evil twin, leaving it to the younger brother to save everyone in town. Deeply rooted in fears of puberty and sexual awakening, wrapped in a creepy ghost tale of possession, it’s no wonder Cry Baby Lane has the reputed reputation of being banned.

Horror journalist, RT Top Critic, and Critics Choice Association member. Co-Host of the Bloody Disgusting Podcast. Has appeared on PBS series' Monstrum, served on the SXSW Midnighter shorts jury, and moderated horror panels for WonderCon and SeriesFest.

Editorials

‘Immaculate’ – A Companion Watch Guide to the Religious Horror Movie and Its Cinematic Influences

Published

on

The Devils - Immaculate companion guide
Pictured: 'The Devils' 1971

The religious horror movie Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney and directed by Michael Mohan, wears its horror influences on its sleeves. NEON’s new horror movie is now available on Digital and PVOD, making it easier to catch up with the buzzy title. If you’ve already seen Immaculate, this companion watch guide highlights horror movies to pair with it.

Sweeney stars in Immaculate as Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Cecilia’s warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside gets derailed soon enough when she discovers she’s become pregnant and realizes the convent harbors disturbing secrets.

From Will Bates’ gothic score to the filming locations and even shot compositions, Immaculate owes a lot to its cinematic influences. Mohan pulls from more than just religious horror, though. While Immaculate pays tribute to the classics, the horror movie surprises for the way it leans so heavily into Italian horror and New French Extremity. Let’s dig into many of the film’s most prominent horror influences with a companion watch guide.

Warning: Immaculate spoilers ahead.


Rosemary’s Baby

'Rosemary's Baby' - Is Paramount's 'Apartment 7A' a Secret Remake?! [Exclusive]

The mother of all pregnancy horror movies introduces Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), an eager-to-please housewife who’s supportive of her husband, Guy, and thrilled he landed them a spot in the coveted Bramford apartment building. Guy proposes a romantic evening, which gives way to a hallucinogenic nightmare scenario that leaves Rosemary confused and pregnant. Rosemary’s suspicions and paranoia mount as she’s gaslit by everyone around her, all attempting to distract her from her deeply abnormal pregnancy. While Cecilia follows a similar emotional journey to Rosemary, from the confusion over her baby’s conception to being gaslit by those who claim to have her best interests in mind, Immaculate inverts the iconic final frame of Rosemary’s Baby to great effect.


The Exorcist

Dick Smith makeup The Exorcist

William Friedkin’s horror classic shook audiences to their core upon release in the ’70s, largely for its shocking imagery. A grim battle over faith is waged between demon Pazuzu and priests Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow). The battleground happens to be a 12-year-old, Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), whose possessed form commits blasphemy often, including violently masturbating with a crucifix. Yet Friedkin captures the horrifying events with stunning cinematography; the emotional complexity and shot composition lend elegance to a film that counterbalances the horror. That balance between transgressive imagery and artful form permeates Immaculate as well.


Suspiria

Suspiria

Jessica Harper stars as Suzy Bannion, an American newcomer at a prestigious dance academy in Germany who uncovers a supernatural conspiracy amid a series of grisly murders. It’s a dance academy so disciplined in its art form that its students and faculty live their full time, spending nearly every waking hour there, including built-in meals and scheduled bedtimes. Like Suzy Bannion, Cecilia is a novitiate committed to learning her chosen trade, so much so that she travels to a foreign country to continue her training. Also, like Suzy, Cecilia quickly realizes the pristine façade of her new setting belies sinister secrets that mean her harm. 


What Have You Done to Solange?

What Have You Done to Solange

This 1972 Italian horror film follows a college professor who gets embroiled in a bizarre series of murders when his mistress, a student, witnesses one taking place. The professor starts his own investigation to discover what happened to the young woman, Solange. Sex, murder, and religion course through this Giallo’s veins, which features I Spit on Your Grave’s Camille Keaton as Solange. Immaculate director Michael Mohan revealed to The Wrap that he emulated director Massimo Dallamano’s techniques, particularly in a key scene that sees Cecilia alone in a crowded room of male superiors, all interrogating her on her immaculate status.


The Red Queen Kills Seven Times

The Red Queen Kills Seven Times

In this Giallo, two sisters inherit their family’s castle that’s also cursed. When a dark-haired, red-robed woman begins killing people around them, the sisters begin to wonder if the castle’s mysterious curse has resurfaced. Director Emilio Miraglia infuses his Giallo with vibrant style, with the titular Red Queen instantly eye-catching in design. While the killer’s design and use of red no doubt played an influential role in some of Immaculate’s nightmare imagery, its biggest inspiration in Mohan’s film is its score. Immaculate pays tribute to The Red Queen Kills Seven Times through specific music cues.


The Vanishing

The Vanishing

Rex’s life is irrevocably changed when the love of his life is abducted from a rest stop. Three years later, he begins receiving letters from his girlfriend’s abductor. Director George Sluizer infuses his simple premise with bone-chilling dread and psychological terror as the kidnapper toys with Red. It builds to a harrowing finale you won’t forget; and neither did Mohan, who cited The Vanishing as an influence on Immaculate. Likely for its surprise closing moments, but mostly for the way Sluizer filmed from inside a coffin. 


The Other Hell

The Other Hell

This nunsploitation film begins where Immaculate ends: in the catacombs of a convent that leads to an underground laboratory. The Other Hell sees a priest investigating the seemingly paranormal activity surrounding the convent as possessed nuns get violent toward others. But is this a case of the Devil or simply nuns run amok? Immaculate opts to ground its horrors in reality, where The Other Hell leans into the supernatural, but the surprise lab setting beneath the holy grounds evokes the same sense of blasphemous shock. 


Inside

Inside 2007

During Immaculate‘s freakout climax, Cecilia sets the underground lab on fire with Father Sal Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) locked inside. He manages to escape, though badly burned, and chases Cecilia through the catacombs. When Father Tedeschi catches Cecilia, he attempts to cut her baby out of her womb, and the stark imagery instantly calls Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s seminal French horror movie to mind. Like Tedeschi, Inside’s La Femme (Béatrice Dalle) will stop at nothing to get the baby, badly burned and all. 


Burial Ground

Burial Ground creepy kid

At first glance, this Italian zombie movie bears little resemblance to Immaculate. The plot sees an eclectic group forced to band together against a wave of undead, offering no shortage of zombie gore and wild character quirks. What connects them is the setting; both employed the Villa Parisi as a filming location. The Villa Parisi happens to be a prominent filming spot for Italian horror; also pair the new horror movie with Mario Bava’s A Bay of Blood or Blood for Dracula for additional boundary-pushing horror titles shot at the Villa Parisi.


The Devils

The Devils 1971 religious horror

The Devils was always intended to be incendiary. Horror, at its most depraved and sadistic, tends to make casual viewers uncomfortable. Ken Russell’s 1971 epic takes it to a whole new squeamish level with its nightmarish visuals steeped in some historical accuracy. There are the horror classics, like The Exorcist, and there are definitive transgressive horror cult classics. The Devils falls squarely in the latter, and Russell’s fearlessness in exploring taboos and wielding unholy imagery inspired Mohan’s approach to the escalating horror in Immaculate

Continue Reading