Alice in Wonderland - Halloween

Surprisingly, for anyone who has read the book or seen any film/series version of the story, there is very little Halloween merchandise. Even more odd, Alice seems to be an endless source of inspiration for Easter merchandise...which makes me think, the people in charge of creating new items at Disney have never actually seen the film. OK, there's a bunny and flowers...
So here's my tiny collection

Halloween Cheshire Cat lamp from Japan

Cover of a US magazine from 1950

Not really made for Halloween, but creepy enough, Alice and the Cheshire Cat figurines  from the American McGee video game

Not really an Halloween item either, but close enough, a double face Cheshire Cat keyring from Disneyland Paris

There are some Halloween themed pins from Disney but I am only showing you pieces I actually own.

The Mothman Prophecies

The Mothman Prophecies, miniature book by LDelaney, Etsy

 During this Halloween week, I thought it’d be fitting to introduce you to my favorite creepy/scary book: the Mothman Prophecies by John A. Keel. 

Mothman patch by MaidenVoyageClothin

 John Keel was an American author and journalist who investigated strange events around the world. He was a real mix of Tintin and Indiana Jones, going as far at Tibet to look for the Abominable Snowman, India and Egypt where he almost died at the hands of fake mummy makers.

In November 1966, when he heard of the strange sightings occurring in a small town in West Virginia, he couldn’t not go. 

Cryptozoologynews.com

 Point Pleasant is located on the River Ohio and on the border of the state by the same name. There were nothing special in that place, other than a huge bridge crossing the river and a deserted zone called the “TNT area” where explosives were stored in dome shaped bunkers during WWII. The place had become popular with teenagers.

Mid November, strange reports started pouring in from that small quiet place. People had strange frightening encounters with a dark tall creature that had huge moth like wings and glowing red eyes. Encounters that usually left the witnesses scared out of their wits and with strange sunburn marks.
During the course of the following months other strange occurrences were reported, lights in the sky, poltergeists, pet disappearances, mysterious phone calls and numerous visits by the Men in Black.

Now Men in Black are part of our folklore, thanks to Will Smith, but back in the 50’s and 60’s, Men in Black were strange beings , often showing  non-human characteristics, who enjoyed harassing UFO (and other supernatural phenomena ) witnesses.  It is little known that John Keel was almost single handedly at the origin of all that MIB folklore, being the only journalist willing to investigate.

cryptomundo.com

 The whole situation climaxed on December 15^th of the following year, when the huge bridge collapsed into the Ohio River leaving 46 people dead. 2 bodies were never found.

Cryptomundo.com

 No explanation was ever found either. So was it a case of mass paranoia or was the Mothman an omen of things to come?  In any case the legend lives on…and makes a quite entertaining read if you enjoy staying awake at night ;)

T-shirt, MaidenVoyageClothing

Patch MaidenVoyageClothing

The book: The Mothman Prophecies by John A.Keel. A French translation is now available under the title: La Prophétie des Ombres. I mention it as the translation is quite good and the edition has a bibliography which is usually missing from the English versions.

The film starring Richard Gere (not exactly a masterpiece, loosely based on the book)
The museum.
Point Pleasant now has an annual festival celebrating the Mothman.
There’s no shortage of videos on the topic on Youtube. I recommend this one.

My top 5 scary Halloween movies

Here's another selection to scare yourself out of your wits for Halloween.

While putting this list together, I realized that what scares me the most are claustrophobic huis-clos...as 4 out of 5 movies fit  in that category ... no, make that 5 out of 5 ...

5. Poltergeist

©MGM

 The 1982 version obviously. Officially directed by Tobe Hooper, many still think that Steven Spielberg (the producer) was at helm. Indeed, other than the final 10 minutes that indeniably have the Hooper gory touch, the rest of the film has the Spielberg's marks all over it.

4. In the mouth of darkness

 © New Line Home Entertainment

A generally underrated masterpiece by John Carpenter. Bizarre, unsettling, incongruous, it is a difficult movie to summarize. What is scarier than  starting to doubt your own sanity?

3.Signs

 © Buena Vista

 I love M. Night Shyamalan's careful and detailed movie making style which reminds me a lot of Hitchcock's. So when he decided to make a movie on a topic I love (ufology), I was thrilled...and not disappointed. Though I have to admit that all the clever references to the ufology field will be lost on anyone not into the topic, the film still works well as a claustrophobic thriller.

2. The Thing

 © Universal Pictures

 Huh, yes, another John Carpenter's film. A remake of a B movie from the 50's, this huis-clos set in an arctic base is...chilling ;)  There are some awesome pre-CGI monsters/creatures too.

1. The Haunting

 © Paramount Pictures

Directed by Robert Wise in 1963, this is probably the best ghost movie ever. It is also a lesson in movie making. With no special effects, no monsters, no blood...it is a film that will haunt you long after you've watched it.

So, what are your favorite scary movies?  I could have added some others to the list like Alien, World War Z, some more Carpenter's films and George Romero's Night of the living dead. I am not much into gory/slasher films, I usually find them gross and not very scary...

My top 5 Halloween not so scary films

To get in the mood for Halloween here's my list  favorite films and cartoons I like to watch in October.

The not scary list:

5. The adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad.

© Disney

A cute double feature from Disney golden era. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow segment wonderfully captures the atmosphere of fall in New England...and it's funny and sweet too.

4. Beetlejuice

© Geffen Company

Well, who hasn't seen Beetlejuice? Shake, shake, shake, senora....

3. The Mark of the Vampire

© MGM

You've probably heard of Bela Lugosi, if you've never seen him in a film, this is the one to pick. Though made in 1935, this movie is oddly modern and classic at the same time. The director, Tod Browning, a big name in Hollywood silent era, oddly disappeared from the scene after making 3 films that are now considered masterpieces ( Mark of the Vampire, Dracula and Freaks).
A perfect baroque/gothic mood setter.

2. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

© UFS

Another great cartoon capturing the Halloween spirit perfectly. Bittersweet and charming...

1. The Nightmare before Christmas

© Disney

#1 of course. Tim Burton and Henry Selick's masterpiece. A little gem of perfection.

Next time, my top 5 of scaaaaaryyyyy movies...