Movies that go ‘boo!’ in the night
With Halloween on a Wednesday, Milwaukee movie theaters are getting to the holiday, um, spirit early.
First-run movies got a jump on the holiday, with “Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween,” “The House With a Clock in Its Walls” and the 40-years-later “Halloween” sequel haunting local movieplexes.
But in the days leading up to Halloween, there’s plenty more where those ghouls came from, ranging from cult classics to family-friendly frights. Here’s a look at some of the Halloweenthemed second-run fare showing at Milwaukee-area theaters this week.
“Hocus Pocus”: Disney’s wacky witch comedy, starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy, returns to theaters for its 25th anniversary. It’s showing at 1, 4 and 6:30 p.m. Friday through Wednesday at AMC Mayfair Mall 18, 2500 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa.
Info and prices: amctheatres.com/ movie-theatres/milwaukee/amcmayfair-mall-18
“The Nightmare Before Christmas”: Everybody’s favorite stop-motion animation Halloween/Christmas movie mashup gets a weeklong run at Marcus Theatres starting Friday. Showtimes vary (see website for details) at Bistroplex Southridge and Hillside, Majestic, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, South Shore and Southgate cinemas. $5.
Info: marcustheatres.com
“The Exorcist”: There’s the devil you know, and then the longer version. This is the extended-cut edition of the 1973 horror classic with Linda Blair, Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow and Beelzebub. 11:59 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Landmark Downer Theater, 2589 N. Downer Ave. $8.50.
Info: landmarktheatres.com/milwau kee
“The Blair Witch Project”: Believe it or not, there was a time before horror movies looked like found-footage documentaries. This 1999 low-budget thriller started that whole thing, and it’s still scary stuff. 9:45 p.m. Monday through Wednesday at Avalon Theater, 2473 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. $5.
Info: avalonmke.com
“Donnie Darko”: After a horrible accident, a young Jake Gyllenhaal is haunted, sort of, by a giant, creepylooking rabbit in this 2001 cult favorite, showing in a director’s-cut, 4K restoration. 7 p.m. Wednesday at UWM Union Cinema. $5. free for UWM students and Union Cinema members.
Info: cinema.uwm.edu
“The Rocky Horror Picture Show”: You can do the Time Warp again in Tosa, with this bit of camp horror comedy making its seasonal return to AMC theaters. 10 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Wednesday at AMC Mayfair Mall 18, 2500 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa. $5.
Info: amctheatres.com/movie-thea tres/milwaukee/amc-mayfair-mall-18
“The Night Before Halloween”: A collection of “spooky, scary, gross and otherworldly” films by students from the UWM Film Video Animation and New Genre Department. 7 p.m. Tuesday at UWM Union Cinema. Free.
Info: cinema.uwm.edu