What scares
Andrew Goodridge?

He’s giving us a month to find out.

     Follow along with Andrew as he plans to get into the spirit of his favorite holiday by watching a different horror movie every day in the month of October.

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Introduction: October 1

You ain’t afraid of no ghost, but I am

     I don’t understand the appeal of being scared.

     Maybe that’s why I’m so fascinated with Halloween. I understand Thanksgiving: turkey good. Christmas is easy, too: presents good. Columbus Day: completely unnecessary paid day off work good. And though I love Halloween, its dependence on scares – and my reluctance to willingly be scared – makes the holiday a mystery.

     I’ve never been one to get a thrill from, well, getting a thrill. I suppose I understand the attraction in concept. There’s some visceral, primal draw to allowing ourselves to feel fear (which is probably the most visceral and primal of emotions). But that desire to be scared – that thirst for adrenaline – just isn’t in my makeup. I don’t like heights, so I stay off roller coasters. I don’t like bugs, so I skip the insect house at the zoo. I don’t like deranged, sadistic crazies, so I stay out of politics.

     But scary movies? That I can do. And what better way to get into the swing of all things scary than by watching horror movies for the entire month of October? I’ll write my feelings, thoughts, fears, and ramblings on each movie the following day.

     I’ve been planning for months to have a Horror-Movie-A-Day Festival. I’ve spent hours and hours making spreadsheets and databases to find just the right choices. I think I done good, kid.

     I’m particularly fond of 80s-era horror, and the HMAD Festival will certainly be nostalgic for the scary movies of my youth (“The Howling,” “Pumpkinhead,” “Critters”). But my wonderful girlfriend, Lindsay, will be my seatmate for the entire month-long filmic festivities, and she has helped to temper this list with a few lighter choices that may give a bit of respite from weeks of otherwise uninterrupted scares (“Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown,” “The Black Cauldron”).

     The list will date back to the silent era (“Nosferatu,” 1922) and run all the way up to the present (“Frozen,” 2010). Some I’ve seen and know to be great (“Bride of Frankenstein,” “Return of the Living Dead”); others, I’ll be watching for the first time and hoping to be horrendous (“Motel Hell,” “976-HELL”).

     Aside from “The Wolf-Man” (1941), which I’ll watch Oct. 22 to coincide with the full moon, we’ll be selecting the order of movies based on the whims of the day (and availability; there will likely be a bit of a backlog as Netflix customers flock to the virtual horror aisle as Halloween draws near). I’ll try to include an “Up Next” at the end of each column, though no promises.

     So, as October begins Friday, you can look for the first column to be posted some time Saturday. I look forward to reading your own thoughts on any movies I include in the HMAD column, and I’d love to hear about spooky movies you’re watching. For those of us who really love Halloween, it always seems to come and go so quickly. I’m hoping this will prolong the season.

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     Andrew Goodridge likes movies so much that he married one. He teaches Audio/Video production, Filmmaking, and Film & Television History in Fort Worth, Texas. He would one day like to have a Pug, or maybe a Bulldog.

Andrew Goodridge can be reached at goodridge@everythingnac.com