Top 10 Nostalgic Disney Halloween Treats on Disney+

It’s October! Get into the Halloween spirit by going on a nostalgia binge of the best movies and shorts this season offers! Let’s take a trip back in time with our Top 10 Nostalgic Disney Halloween Things To Stream on Disney+!

Our list is in no particular order.

#1 Hocus Pocus (1993)

At my spouse’s insistence, her favorite Halloween movie had to be at the top of the list. Personally, I never liked this one. I saw it in theatres in ’93 and left only thinking about how hard Sarah Jessica Parker’s corset was working to make it look like she was more voluptuous than she really is.

In retrospect, there are several things to like and also riff on Hocus Pocus. Bette Midler and Kathy Najimy sell the characters of Winifred and Mary Sanderson. There’s a bit too much ’90s attitude, and the number of times the term “virgin” is brought up is odd for a family movie.

However, I cannot deny that this movie is many people’s favorite. So, it makes the list.

#2 The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993):

Oh, you knew this one was going to be on here. Whether it is Christmas or Halloween, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas is the perfect viewing for both holiday seasons. Henry Selick’s film brings Burton’s artistic style to life with outstanding stop-motion animation. Filled with music from Danny Elfman, the film is perfect all the way around.

#3 The Haunted Mansion (2003):

That’s right. I said it. The terrible Eddie Murphy vehicle from the early ’00s is on this list. Why? Because it was a nightmare to sit through.

Yes, those who loved the classic Disney ride were rightfully upset as the macabre atmosphere was replaced with Murphy’s foolish antics, and Edward Gracey’s story took a back seat through much of the runtime.

However, all of that can be forgiven by Terence Stamp’s excellence. Watching Zod put up with an early 2000s Eddie Murphy is a lot of fun. Stamp should have been the main character in a much darker version of this film.

#4 & #5 Mr. Boogedy & Bride of Boogedy

The Disney Sunday Movie was the short-lived alternate title for The Wonderful World of Disney in the mid-to-late 1980s. With it came several odd made-for-TV films like our subjects for this article.

Mr. Boogedy had all the right things to entertain ’80s kids: practical jokes, Benji from ALF, Bud Bundy, and Gomez Addams! The story and atmosphere were pretty dark. Remember, this was the era of slasher villains like Freddy and Jason, so Disney couldn’t play it too safe if it wanted to keep our attention throughout the commercial breaks.

#6 Silly Symphony: Skeleton Dance

Ub Iwerks’ Skeleton Dance is my favorite animation ever produced by Disney. As a longtime horror fan, one of my first introductions to the macabre was this 5 minute short from 1929.

It’s simple and effective at being funny and creepy. It’s just some skeletons coming out to dance and play after midnight. It has become a staple for Disney’s Halloween offerings that sections of the Skeleton Dance are often used in marketing and at the parks during Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.

#7 Trick or Treat (1952)

It has the best of my favorite things: Donald Duck and Halloween! Huey, Dewey, and Louie are out trick-or-treating when they come to their Uncle Donald’s house. Of course, Donald does what he does best: being a total jerk.

The nephews’ plight is witnessed by Witch Hazel, who then uses her magic to get revenge on Donald. The short also has one of the catchiest songs for the season: Trick or Treat for Halloween.

#8 Lonesome Ghosts (1937)

Only one of this list’s two entries features Disney’s iconic rodent! Lonesome Ghosts features Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy as ghostbusters for the Ajax Ghost Exterminators agency.

The trio is tricked into coming to a haunted house by a group of ghosts. Once inside the decrepit home, the silly specters prank each ghost hunter. Much like the Skeleton Dance, Lonesome Ghosts introduced imagery and characters that would become staples in Disney’s Halloween media for nearly a century.

#9 The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

Technically, we’re only talking about Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but the two classic literary characters came bundled in this 1949 film. The second part of the film features a truncated and loose retelling of the story of a quiet New York town.

Narrated, voiced, and sung by Bing Crosby, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow captures Irving’s ability to richly describe the surroundings of Tarrytown and its newest schoolmaster, Ichabod Crane. The story of the scholar’s contest with Braum Bones for the hand of Katrina Van Tassel is quite entertaining, and Bing’s Headless Horseman Song has been in my music library ever since I discovered MP3s.

The film’s finale has one of the best action scenes Disney ever put to celluloid. Not only is it a thrilling chase scene, but the lead-up to the reveal of the Headless Horseman is full of fantastic sound design and atmosphere.

#10 The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror IV

This is cheating a bit, but Disney now owns these Fox properties, so they’re fair game. Also, what’s more nostalgic than the yearly Halloween offering from Springfield’s residents?

The fourth installment of Treehouse of Horror aired in 1993. It lampooned the recently released Coppola’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, The Devil and Daniel Webster, and the Twilight Zone episode “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.”

The three stories remind me of how fantastic The Simpsons used to be, but The Devil and Homer Simpson has always been my favorite entry from these special episodes. Revealing Ned Flanders to be the Devil and watching Homer being unsuccessfully punished in Hell gets me every time.

The Honorable Mention:

I wanted to add one more Mickey Mouse short, but Disney has yet to put it on Disney+. The Haunted House (1929) sees Mickey trapped inside a dilapidated haunted home as he seeks refuge from a storm. There’s lots of creepy imagery, and some animation from the Skeleton Dance is reused.

The short may never appear on the platform for one reason. The lights go out in one scene, leaving just Mickey’s white face and gloves visible. In this moment, he looks into the camera and gives a short performance inspired (for all the wrong reasons) by Al Jolson’s Jazz Singer.

We’ll include the short below from YouTube.

[Source: Streaming Media on Disney+]