10 Scariest Horror Movies Set At Halloween

For a movie that truly celebrates Halloween in all its spooky glory, look no further than Michael Dougherty’s dark comedy-horror anthology Trick ‘r Treat in which a seemingly picture-perfect mid-American town sets the scene for five interwoven tales that unfold over one particularly eventful Halloween night.

A wealth of actorly talent help craft a fantastically fiendish film including Dylan Baker as a seemingly normal school principal who turns out to be a child-murdering psychopath, Anna Paquin as a supposedly virginal college student in a segment that slyly riffs on Little Red Riding Hood and Brian Cox as a grouchy old dude whose murky past and contempt for the holiday are about to come back and bite him on the behind.

Overseeing the festive evildoing is Sam, a misleadingly cute little creep clad in footed pyjamas with a burlap sack for a head who’s there to make sure everybody abides by the rules of Halloween… or he kills them. He’s basically like the Santa of Halloween except a lot less jolly.

There’s a distinctly fairy tale-like ambience to Trick ‘r Treat but far more in the violent vein of the Brothers Grimm than any twee, Disneyfied fable. Add to that a comedic streak of the blackest variety, a healthy level of bloodshed, and a director with a firm understanding of the creep factor, and you’ve got the perfect Halloween movies for horror fans who like to mix their gore with giggles.