At any given time this week, you could find me watching tv at the side of an extremely handsome, buff, and German boytoy.
And by boytoy, I mean hound dog.
And by hound dog, no, I do not in this instance mean a metaphor for men; I mean an actual hound dog – German pointer hound, to be precise – and two of them. The two pointer brothers vying for who will cuddle with me on the couch is nothing compared to the love triangle vying it out on screen via “Dawson’s Creek” season three (which yes, I have re-watched from its beginning as of Monday, do the math on that one).
Which got me to thinking: with the holidays upon us, that means good ole down time relaxing in front of the tv with hot cocoa in one hand and a remote in the other. And, what with working long hours during peak season combined with the veritable American holiday triple threat (Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas) the increasingly cold weather makes it nice to sit down with a pair of faithful hound dogs and couch travel, too. So, if you’re in the mood (like me) to travel via the tv screen when not traveling via plane at the moment, you can still take a ride and have an adventure by proxy.
So whether traveling abroad and tryna catch a bit of home, or spending time with family and wishing to spend some time in escapism, here are my top 10 recommendations for couch traveling over the holidays, starting with Halloween, and subsequent holidays soon.
Movies: The Book of Life; The Village; The Day After Tomorrow; Super 8; Doctor Sleep.
Audiobook: Oracle and Oracle 2: The Dreamland Murders.
Series: Over the Garden Wall; The Twilight Zone; Fringe; The Haunting of Hill House; La Porta Rossa.
The Book of Life (2014)
Disney’s Coco was a movie I assumed I would dislike (no idea why), but ended up loving. Miguel’s journey to the underworld during Dia de los Muertos brought together good music, good animation, and genuine feels as he discovers the meaning of family and what they mean to him. Twentieth Century Fox released an animated lesser-known( though not lesser in quality) movie in 2014, The Book of Life. The entities of Death and Xibalba, rulers of the Lands of the Remembered and Forgotten (respectively) have a wager over true love, betting on the love triangle of two toreros (bullfighters) and a beautiful girl.
While similar in theme and culture surely, what The Book of Life lacks in original music, it makes up for in sheer worldscape: the realm of the dead is fleshed-out (so to speak) and the protagonist, once bitten and killed by a snake, must journey across the underworld in order to make it back to the land of the living for the sake of saving his true love. The time period we are given is somewhere between 1800 and 1900, offering an interesting glimpse into the antiquated village of San Angel in the bullfight-loving era of rural Mexico. The animation itself is highly stylized and culturally significant, hearkening back to classic puppet shows of muñecos, a cultural oral and visual style of storytelling that is an integral part of Mexican culture. With Guillermo del Toro as one of the producers, it’s no wonder the fable-like children’s tale was the guise of something more.
Featuring the voice talents of Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, and Channing Tatum.
The Village (2004)
What’s both more frightening and esoterically American than the Amish? M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village draws on the anti-transcendentalist forest-phobia and shows us a world of quiet Quaker-like religious people in their isolated village. Plagued by monsters in the night, two lovers find out the truth about the scary creatures in the dark, as well as deal with the darkness within. The soundtrack is honestly one of the loveliest I have heard to date, and we have James Newton Howard to thank for the juxtaposition of delicate violins against some seriously nerve-wracking monster scenes. The twist in the end I could give away, it being an aching 20 years later from the spoiler (hot damn, is it really???) but I’ll let you enjoy the eerie ambience and walk into the dark woods with this Shyamalan classic.
Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Dallas Bryce Howard, Sigourney Weaver, and William Hurt.
The Day after Tomorrow (2004)
Remember all those world-cataclysm movies of the late 90’s and early 2000’s? Armageddon had the coolest theme song, Deep Impact the craziest destruction scene, but TDAT takes the cake for frigid expectations of impending doom becoming our 2023 reality. Who knew, right?
Autumn marks the beginning of the end – temperature and depression-wise – and nothing makes the nearing bleakness of winter more visceral than a killer snowstorm on the rampage. For some reason trashing NYC in epic proportions became a trope, and this movie is no exception. Notwithstanding, in some sick kinda Poseidon Adventure kinda way, the movie is pretty fun. The real moral of the story I’d say, besides all that global warming pandemonium, is if in an emergency where you need to make endless fires for warmth, choose geeks to post up with. Their high school quiz bowl knowledge might just save your life.
My favorite line: a large group of refugees hole up in the public library. A kid finagles with an old radio, trying to get a signal. He asks the kid if somebody more qualified shouldn’t be looking at it.
Kid’s response: Sir, I am president of the Electronics Club, the Math Club, and the Chess Club.
Now, if there’s a bigger nerd in here, please… point him out.
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Emmy Rossum, and Dennis Quaid.
Super 8 (2011)
Journey to the podunk town in Midwestern America that has a gang of kids making a zombie movie to enter a film festival. Oh, and while they film, they stumble upon a government conspiracy with a bona fide monster. An homage to movies like ET: The Extra-Terrestrial, The Goonies and the more recent Stranger Things, it’s an underrated JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg collaboration that takes kids and adults on a monster hunt, the good old fashioned way: with super 8 film.
Starring Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning, and an ensemble cast.
Doctor Sleep (2019)
Nothing says Halloween quite like a Stephen King story. A sequel to the more infamous The Shining, the story follows young Danny as an ex-alcoholic adult. He finds a way to use his psychic shine for good, helping the dying ease into the next life. He finds an unlikely friendship with a young girl named Abra, who has the knack for the Shine herself. But when she learns psychic-killing vampires are on the hunt for her, it’s up to Danny to face his own ghosts – real and otherwise – to save the girl.
While references in the third act do refer to characters and actions in The Shining, this movie works as a standalone. It also takes the theme of haunting to another meaning: the haunting of grief, guilt, and childhood trauma become the real haunted house, one that never ends. Unless, of course, you find a connection with others that just might save your life, from within and without.
Starring Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, and Henry Thomas.
Oracle (2021) and Oracle 2: The Dreamland Murders (2023)
But alright, I admit: this one isn’t a movie, it’s an audiobook. But it is performed by none other than “Dawson’s Creek” alumnus Joshua Jackson himself, and it is about a ghost psychic, so enough said in my book.
While perusing Audible for some stories to listen to during work, I stumbled upon this title. With me having to know what happens ASAP, and all that ADD jazz, I listened to both audio performances in about 4 days, it was so intriguing. Written by the novelist Andrew Pyper, Oracle centers around Nate Russo, a man haunted (in all senses of the word) by the supernatural occurrences of his childhood home. Imbued with psychic gifts from his encounters, he uses his abilities to work with the FBI solving murders. His most recent case brings him back into his hometown, up close and personal with the literal ghosts of his past.
Gotta tell ya, this one got me. While working on a quilt in my room alone at night, I had to push pause. The backstory in the haunted house and Nate’s childhood encounters with the dead were the stuff of nightmares, including a skeleton hand reaching from underneath a couch (aaaand that’s about where I called it quits for the night).
Pyper takes the audience back to a setting in upstate New York, placing the action right in the middle of an unassuming, average suburban town in eastern America. The opening scenes allude to connections to the Amityville horror house, hitting home the theme that haunted houses and trauma can be anywhere, even a picturesque town.
The sequel Oracle 2: The Dreamland Murders was more like listening to a film, with the addition of other actors and substantial sound effects. The story was still good, though quite different from the first. This one takes place in a small town with a history not unlike Salem of The Crucible. And yes, this town does center around witches, its own grisly trials, and lingering troubles from long before English colonists arrived.
Oracle 2, while not perfect, is a fun ride, and deals with the mysterious horrors of the past catching up with the contemporary. The very name of Dreamland has native American roots, being the term used by certain tribes to describe the land of modern-day America. Indeed, the Boneman and Lady in the Red Dress are horror villains that draw from the First Nations peoples wendigo: a malevolent spirit that could either encourage others to unspeakable crimes, or to cause a kind of madness. The Boneman’s appearance draws from certain descriptions, of gaunt flesh stretched over bones. From an anthropological standpoint as well, ancient cultures with their stories and traumas are always present, haunting native lands, whether we realize it or not. And how they can influence our future, well, that’s one of the many things I was left to think about, long after the episodes were done.
Halloween aside, there’s something to be said for mystery stories and autumnal settings. The crunching of leaves, the rustle of branches in bleak winds, the very smell of rotting leaves is the perfect ambience for a murder mystery. And while the author doesn’t necessarily see a need to describe the season, October fits like a glove, in my opinion.
Featuring the voice talent of Joshua Jackson.
P.S. – There’s a lot I liked about this series, though I have some specific grievances about breaking the rules of one’s world. I say this with a background in science-fiction and fantasy novels, though I think the lingo and principle likewise applies in the horror genre, too. My problem? I have have hard magic expectations for abilities that are inherently soft magic. . .but it also comes down to I genuinely wish I had a bit more explanation. That, or frustration the protagonist doesn’t use his abilities wisely. If you’d like specifics (which would contain substantial spoilers) feel free to message me. I may add a more in-depth review for the series if there’s enough interest.
That, or if I can’t hold in my internal rant any longer.
Whichever comes first.
Over the Garden Wall (2014)
The Cartoon Network certainly had a grab bag of tv shows. Between Courage the Cowardly Dog and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, one can’t say the network was short on imagination. But one particular miniseries of the past decade stands apart: lost in the woods, step-brothers Wurt and Greg try to make their way home. Past nefarious beasts in the dark and colorful characters, the pair meets friends and dangers alike along the way. Rich in mythology, the autumnal setting is something from Appalachian ghost stories like Washington Irving’s Sleepy Hollow. Indeed, the main villain draws basis from the native American horror figure of the wendigo. That being said, the show never strays too far into the horrific, keeping it, for the most part, light-hearted. Yet like del Toro’s children’s works, it touches on the deeply meaningful and analogous to our modern lives even while delving into the richness of a faraway, though not-unfamiliar, whimsical world.
Featuring the voice talents of Elijah Wood, Christopher Lloyd, and Melanie Lapynsky.
The Twilight Zone (1959)
The classic anthology needs no introduction. Episodes like “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” have cemented themselves as pop culture legends, while episodes like “The Living Doll,” “Eye of the Beholder” and “To Serve Man” have similarly stood to influence the horror genre all around. Each episode is a standalone, and surprises the viewer with sometimes a voyage into the outer reaches of space, a deserted highway, a retail mall, and occasionally future dystopias.
Fringe (2008)
Speaking of odd mysteries from other dimensions. . .
Fringe was, I think, JJ Abrams’ hidden gem. Lost got a lot of spotlight, Alias had Jennifer Garner’s boobs, and Star Trek and Star Wars had all the Hollywood fanfare. But Fringe has a fandom all its own, lasting long after the show’s five season run.
Based on the concept of “fringe science,” the FBI investigates cases of the unbelievable and impossible on a daily basis. Headed by Agent Olivia Dunham, their home base of Boston becomes the breeding ground for odd cases all the way up to New York City. The episodes are usually case by case, with tie-ins to longer story arcs of each season. It’s not as frightening as the similar X Files, though I dare say it’s what actor John Noble describes “as a love story”: the relationships of the fringe team become a kind of misfit family. The romantic tension between the two leads are phenomenally written and acted, with the exploration of how far someone would go to save a loved one, the answer spanning across times, universes, and veritably all seasons.
The fandom holds strong with fanfiction and fanart to this day, and with good reason. Check it out. You won’t regret it.
Starring Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, and Jasika Nicole.
The Haunting of Hill House (2018)
This series takes you what could seem on the outside the average American family. I mean, if that American family lived in a haunted house and had the Shine. Five siblings reminisce on their childhoods in one unfortunate mansion, whose ghostly ties haunt them long into adulthood, bringing them back together for what can only be described as ghost-inspired group therapy. While the series has frightening moments (just the name the Bent-Neck Lady should give you an idea of the downright creepiness in store, though by far the Bowler Hat Man, while sounding more innocuous, made my skin crawl on every one of his appearances) the story is, at its heart, about a family re-connecting over past trauma. Somewhere along the way they forgot the trauma that bonded them, and in the last episode, it’s that love that saves them, individually, and together. The reveals about the little neighbor girl and the mother will surprise you, and yes, you will weep at some point, out of feeling and fright.
Starring Michiel Huisman, Henry Thomas, and an ensemble cast whose names I’m way too ADHD to google right now because if I do I will never finish this article in a timely manner.
La Porta Rossa (2017)
A ghost, refusing to go into the light and cross over, stays behind to solve the mystery of his murder and protect his left behind love. If you guessed this is the plot to the movie Ghost, you are correct. If you guessed this is the plot for an Italian ghost-centric soap opera. . .you would also be correct.
I found this series having just finished 3 Caminos and wanting to see more works with the talented Italian actor Andrea Bosca. While he is a central character – a fellow ghost hanging around with more mysteries made around him than actually solved – the story follows an equally talented and extremely handsome Italian. With the ghost of Jonas (Bosca), Inspector Leo Cagliostro walks the streets of Trieste, looking for clues. With the help of the medium Vanessa, a girl who can see his ghost, they undertake the dangerous task of solving the murder before more can take place. The setting of the seaside city of Trieste offers a chilly though pretty seaside escape to anyone looking for a foreign getaway via film. The series was co-written by a murder mystery novelist, so expects red herrings, false motives, and more than one twist and turn. Highly recommend this one, it did not disappoint. Season two is also good, delving more into Jonas and why he was astral projecting in the first place (no spoilers here I’ll leave it at that).
Starring Lino Guanciale and Andrea Bosca.
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Stay tuned for more couch-traveling recommendations for holiday flicks, with Thanksgiving and Christmas editions coming soon.