The third annual Halloween-A-Thon featured a pumpkin carving contest, a hell of a lot of folks cosplaying as Michael Myers, and six horror films that are centered on the spookiest day of the year.
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| Show banner designed by Andrew Kern |
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| Show poster designed by Justin Miller |
The first movie on Friday night was the 1978 film that kicked off a franchise; Halloween. This is my fourth time seeing on the big screen at the Mahoning. This is going to be a trend throughout this post, and very likely throughout many of my future posts about the drive-in. I've been coming here for five years and spent at least three nights a week on the lot for the past two seasons, so there are going to be a lot of repeat screenings. I may not have as much to write about without repeating myself, but my experience in seeing classics like Halloween on this screen are just as incredible the fourth time as it was the first time.
The 1956 Loony Tunes short Broom-Stick Bunny was screened during the first intermission. I've seen this print at the Mahoning at least two times before. It might be more than that, but I haven't kept up with a list of all of the 35mm cartoons shorts that I've seen here the way that I've kept track of the movies. I might have to go back and see if I can put a list together.
Halloween II was next, and like the first film in the franchise, this was my fourth time seeing it at the Mahoning. Unlike most horror sequels, or movie sequels in general, this film picks up at the exact moment that the first film ends. It's an intense follow-up that ramps up the violence and was intended to be the final Michael Myers movie when it was filmed.
The first two Halloween movies fit together so seamlessly that they've been combined to produce a 2 hour and 34 minute fan-edit called Halloween: The Night That Never Ends which I highly recommend. This fan-edit cuts about a half hour from the two films to preserve the continuity, most of which is taken out of the sequel, and it's an interesting way to experience this story.
The final film of Friday night was the 1982 slasher Trick Or Treats. There have been a lot of horror movies that use some version of "trick or treat" in the title, and it's been a bit challenging for me to keep track of which one is which. This was my first time seeing this film to the best of my recollection, and it's a lot of fun.
The movie starts off with a seemingly untroubled man named Malcom being taken away from his home by two orderlies from a mental asylum while his wife Joan watches on with approval. I'm not sure if I'm right, but the film gave me the impression that there was nothing wrong with the man at the start of the film and that his wife made arrangements to have him committed to get him out of the way so that she could leave him for a man played by David Carradine. The story then picks up a few years later with Malcom breaking out of the asylum to take revenge on his wife and to find their son, Christopher, who is an absolute bastard who tortures his babysitter with magic tricks and practical jokes. It's a cheesy black comedy, but an enjoyable one, and an excellent way to end a Halloween-themed triple feature.
The first film on Saturday night was also from 1982. Halloween III: Season Of The Witch is my second favorite film in the franchise with only the original 1978 film ranking higher. I've seen this one at the Mahoning in 2023 and 2024. As far as I'm concerned, they could show this movie every October and I'd be happy to come out and see it.
Saturday night also featured a cartoon during the first intermission. This time, it was the 1960 UPA short Magoo Meets Frankenstein, which features the near-sighted protagonist mistakenly entering the castle of Dr. Frankenstein thinking that it's a Hilton hotel. It's a fun cartoon for the season. It's available to stream from several channels on YouTube including this recording from an occasion that it aired on Boomerang.
The second film on Saturday night was the 1986 film Trick Or Treat. I've seen this at the Mahoning once before when it was screened on the final Saturday of the 2022 season.
Trick Or Treat is a horror flick that's centered around rock and roll and the goofy Satanic Panic fad of the 80's that had uptight parents and school board members whipped up in a frenzy that was entirely a product of their imagination. It's a hell of a lot of fun, and it features Ozzy Osborne in a cameo role as a televangelist who rants and raves about the evils of rock music.
The final movie was Satan's Little Helper. This 2004 film tells the story of a young boy who unknowingly befriends a deranged killer thinking that he is the Satan character from his favorite video game. It's a twisted horror comedy that's enjoyable overall, but it has so many inconsistencies and plot holes that it's hard to watch it without picking it apart. I'm not overly supportive of the concept of film remakes, but this one could probably benefit from another person taking a crack at it at some point down the road.
And that's a wrap on Halloween-A-Thon III.
