Every year around this time, I have a tendency to get sucked into watching even more spooky Halloween and horror films than usual. Earlier today, stumbling on Cinemassacre’s yearly “Monster Madness” segment, I started reflecting back on some of the horror classics in particular, from the Universal monster movies to the British Hammer Horror revivals. In October more than any other time, I find watching old horror movies incredibly satisfying, and “satisfying” really is the proper word for how they make me feel. I’m not even sure why it is exactly, because it’s not as if they’re all great works of art. They don’t even “scare” me per se, as very little on screen does. It’s just some combination of the atmosphere, classicism and aesthetic that has always appealed to me as “pure cinema.” Due to the faulty wiring in my brain, I will always draw more enjoyment from “The Curse of Frankenstein” than I do from a great John Ford western.

This enjoyment is only compounded when I’m able to see these sorts of movies on the big screen, which means that every October I’m always looking for opportunities to see horror films new and old in theaters. And sure, although there are always a few new horror movies released in multiplexes this time of year, they’re usually pretty stupid or banal entries into franchises I have no interest in. See: recent years and the “Saw,” “Paranormal Activity” and “Final Destination” franchises.

So if you live in Decatur, what are your options? Well, this year there are three notable places you can catch some good “Halloween” cinema in Central Illinois: Decatur’s Avon Theater, Champaign’s Art Theater and the Normal Theater in uptown Normal. I’ll break down everything they’re showing below.

The Avon: Our hometown theater has five shows that run a range from family to adult fare.

Oct. 11, “Hocus Pocus”: Displaying a strong local fondness for 1990s nostalgia, this Disney witch movie was the most successful of last year’s Avon series according to operator Skip Huston. I mostly remember it as being the most attractive Sarah Jessica Parker ever looked.

Oct. 12, “Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein”: The most famous of Universal’s horror-comedy crossovers, this is a movie I’ve wanted to see for a long time but have never managed to catch. You’ll likely see me at this one.

Oct. 18, “The Nightmare Before Christmas”: Maybe the best all-ages Halloween movie ever? Spectacular music, awesomely macabre stop-motion animation, and Tim Burton’s imagination harnessed into its coolest and least annoying form.

Oct. 19, “The Frighteners”: The most interesting and least conventional Avon selection this year is this 1996 black comedy/horror flick by Peter Jackson (who would go on to direct “Lord of the Rings”), starring Michael J. Fox in one of his last big feature film roles. I’ve always felt this one was a little underrated, displaying a very off-kilter sense of humor that is nonetheless familiar to horror fans who have seen some of Jackson’s earlier work. It turns down the gore of his earliest horror movies in favor of CGI visuals that were nonetheless effective. Also: Jake Busey’s face is worth at least 10 extra horror points.

Oct. 25, 26 “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”: I honestly never think of this movie as being a “Halloween” picture, nor have I ever been a big fan, but plenty of people love it nonetheless.

Champaign Art Theater: The Art Theater’s month-long “Shocktober” series has already started (I was there for “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” episodes), and there’s some good stuff here as you would expect. My only wish is that there were fewer public domain movies. That just feels like cheating, to me.

Oct. 9 (That’s today!) “Misfit Heights”: It’s a zombie puppet musical? I have no idea where it was made, but I think there’s at least some Central Illinois connection. I wanted to get excited about this kind of premise, but the trailer looks pretty rough.

Oct. 10, “John Carpenter’s The Thing”: Oh lord. One of the scariest films ever made in my estimation, featuring probably my favorite all-time practical effects in a horror movie. The film was made in 1982 and a lot of these practical effects have still never been topped.

Oct. 11, 12, 17, “The Cabin in the Woods”: Tim Cain will tell you he thinks this movie sucks, but don’t listen to him. It’s really a very neat little deconstruction of all the clichés established throughout the history of the genre that gives a reason to why those same elements of storytelling play out over and over — to serve a greater purpose! It was marketed on TV as a regular horror flick to try and entice an audience, but this movie is truly meant for geeks who love the genre.

Oct. 12, “White Zombie”: This film is remembered today as the first film to ever use the term “zombie,” and we are not talking Romero ghouls. We’re talking Haitian voodoo zombies controlled by Dracula himself, Bela Lugosi. Being that this is public domain, though, you can see the full thing on YouTube.

Oct. 16, “Carnival of Souls”: Also in the public domain, but a more interesting movie to view today than “White Zombie.” Something of a minor cult classic of 1960s cheapo B-movie modern horror, cited as a large influence on George Romero. Also available on YouTube.

Oct. 18, (all week) “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”: Like I said, people really like this movie. I am not one of them.

Oct. 19, “Haxan”: This was the only film in the series I wasn’t at all familiar with, but it sounds very interesting. This 1922 Swedish production is a documentary of sorts about how the study of superstition could lead to witch hunts, but also contains dramatized segments to illustrate. Very curious about this one—a silent horror film faux documentary? Who would have thought such a thing even existed?

Oct. 23, “The Craft”: Judging from the reaction I’ve seen to this announcement, it seems that a lot of people remember this 1990s teen witchcraft movie more fondly than I would have expected. I mostly remember how good-looking the girls were, with the possible exception of evil Fairuza Balk.

Oct. 25, (all week) “The Wicker Man”: It’s the legitimately creepy 1973 British original, not notoriously terrible Nicholas Cage remake. That means no bear mask and no bees. It’s playing from a gorgeous 40th anniversary new restoration, so if you’ve never seen this one, this would be the time. I probably will.

Oct. 26, “House on Haunted Hill”: Perfectly cheesy late 1950s American horror with Vincent Price, and it does not get any better. I could watch this movie 100 times and never get tired of it. It’s the best of all the William Castle cheesy horror flicks thanks to Price, the kind of movie that theater popcorn was invented for. To watch it without popcorn is almost insulting.

Oct. 30, “Hausu”: It’s practically impossible to describe this 1977 Japanese horror film other to say that it is absolutely insane. One of the weirdest, trippiest films ever made as an evil house comes to life and devours its inhabitants. It is totally ridiculous. Go with a large group of people and marvel at it.

Normal Theater: Uptown Normal’s theater isn’t devoting much time to this theme in October, but they’re still playing a couple of movies that qualify.

Oct. 24, 25, “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir”: A ghostly love story from 1947, if you can believe that. A woman falls in love with the ghost of an old sea captain after having him dictate his memoirs to her.

Oct. 26, 27, “Young Frankenstein”: The classic Mel Brooks comedy with Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman never goes out of style. It’s good to watch at any time of year and is just as funny today as it was in 1974.

And so, I hope to see you at some of these flicks. Clearly, there are plenty of spooky features to enjoy in October.