The biggest, scariest Halloween parties may be heading our way next weekend, but adult-oriented frights already loom over our collective heads — or, should we say, lumber toward us like an infected zombie?
Halloween has become practically a monthlong affair, in fact, infused with pop culture and providing outlets for full-grown bouts of creativity. So it’s not too soon to get ready for the spooktacle that will be unfolding over the next few days. (Check our Halloween Calendar following this feature for costume sales to help you prepare; the calendar will also haunt you with family-friendly events … to die for.)
Let’s begin with some scary movies, which illustrate how our love of fright has infiltrated our habits and nightmares.
Hawaii Theatre’s Tim Burton Film Festival this weekend provides an early opportunity to experience chicken skin. Four horror-fantasy-comedies from the filmmaker will be screened over three evenings: “Beetlejuice,” the story of a family of ghosts who try to scare off the new residents of their home, at 8 p.m. today; “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,” about a boy who gets pulled into a time warp at a home for children with unusual powers, at 2 p.m. Saturday; “Edward Scissorhands,” about an artificially made man trying to integrate with society, at 8 p.m. Saturday; and “Corpse Bride,” about an engaged man who accidentally marries a dead woman, gets taken to the Land of the Dead and then tries to escape and return to his fiance, at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $7-$12. There’s no rule against costumes, though real scissors would likely be frowned upon. Visit hawaiitheatre.com or call 528-0506.
Dole Cannery can get you in the Halloween mood with its Horror Fest 2017 series, which continues Monday with a 7 p.m. double bill featuring the 1982 version of “Cat People,” the story of a young woman who discovers that she turns into a panther after having sex. It stars a luminous Nastassja Kinski and predictably stony Malcolm MacDowell (“A Clockwork Orange”), and features David Bowie’s evocative title song. Then there’s 1983’s “Videodrome,” about a TV station executive who broadcasts a show featuring violence and torture, starring James Woods and Deborah Harry of Blondie. ($10 for both films)
If that’s not enough, Dole Cannery also will serve us ocean lovers an extra gulp of fear Tuesday with “Jaws,” starring a murderous shark, and then “The Shining,” about a family of caretakers who move into a haunted hotel during the lonely winter months. It’s perhaps the ultimate psychological thriller, combining the filmmaking skill of Stanley Kubrick and scary storyline of Stephen King, on Oct. 30-31. Those films screen at 7 and 10 p.m. each night. Cost is $5 for each screening. Visit regmovies.com/promotions.
Do the time warp again with “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” screening at 8 p.m. Thursday and Oct. 27, 7 p.m. and midnight Oct. 28 and 8 p.m. Oct. 31 at The Arts at Marks Garage. Since 1975, “Rocky Horror” has taken on a life of its own as an interactive party film, with fans devoting days or weeks to re-creating the costumes and makeup as seen on screen, and rushing the stage to sing, dance and emote along with characters such as sweethearts Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon) and the mysterious Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry). Head over early for snacks and buy a $5 box of appropriate props — rice for the wedding, newspapers for the rain — then sit back and let an interactive show with a full cast of characters unfold in front of you. Drag queen Tita Titsling hosts. Costumes are encouraged. $20-$25. Visit 808ne.ws/2yFxucI.
Consolidated Theatres continues its “Hitchcocktober” series with Hitchcock’s first feature film, “Rebecca,” about a newlywed woman dealing with the deceased ex-wife of her husband, on Tuesday, and then his classic “Psycho,” about a young woman who checks into a hotel run by an odd proprietor, screening Halloween night. The films screen at 7 p.m. at Kahala Theatre. “Pyscho” also will be shown on Olino Theatres’ huge Titan Luxe screen in Kapolei on Halloween night. $10. Visit consolidatedtheatres.com.
And then there’s the “annotated version” of “Night of the Living Dead,” the original zombie flick, with hilarious commentary by the “Mystery Science Theater 3000” guys: Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett. It screens at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Dole Cannery as part of a nationwide cinecast. $13. Visit fathomevents.com.
HALLOWEEN CELEBRATIONS keeps getting bigger and bigger, and the people enjoying it are getting … taller? Well, at least older. And many of Honolulu’s Halloween attractions are suitable only for those old enough to get into a beer garden or bar.
Hallowbaloo floats between the worlds of adults and children. The festival and club crawl is set for Oct. 28. With construction ongoing at the Hawai‘i State Art Museum, this year’s event has reverted to a street fair format, with staged performances and entertainment held on Nuuanu, Smith, Hotel and Pauahi streets, said Jonny Mack, one of the organizers.
“We’re basically bringing it back to its roots, where you can walk around Chinatown and drink and participate in the street,” he said.
A special focus of this year’s Hallowbaloo will be the growing craft beer scene, with an exclusive Oktoberfest-like party at the corner of Nuuanu Avenue and Pauahi Street. For $55, VIPs can taste five of the featured 22 brews and take home a glow-in-the dark, collector’s edition beer stein (while they last). The stein also allows VIP partygoers to levitate past the lines at eight nightclubs, known collectively as Club Hallowbaloo: Downbeat Lounge, Nextdoor, Manifest, Bar 35, Ong King Arts Center, The Arts at Marks Garage, Scarlet Honolulu and Square Barrels.
Regular admission to the Club Hallowbaloo sites is $30, which gets you into all venues starting at 9 p.m.
Hallowbaloo includes three stages of music and entertainment, food trucks, a costume contest with $1,000 in prize money and a drag show. Miss Vamp Hawaii will appear for some dark-hearted enjoyment, too, accompanied by burlesque and aerial performances. And expect a purple haze from a Jimi Hendrix tribute band performing on the Nuuanu Street stage.
Action on the street officially begins at 5 p.m., but you can go a bit early and catch a bite to eat, with Square Barrels, Hawaiian Fresh Farms, Istanbul Restaurant, Olay’s Thai Express and others setting up pop-up diners.
General admission to the street fair is $15, and tickets always sell out. The event usually draws about 20,000 people into Chinatown, while the maximum capacity at the eight nightclubs is about 3,000 people, Mack said, adding that the craft-beer party will be limited to 1,200 to 1,500 VIPs.
Visit hallowbaloo.com for details.
ADULT-THEMED Halloween parties will rage elsewhere around the island, as well. Sky Waikiki, the rooftop club at the Waikiki Business Plaza, gets a jump on things Oct. 28 with the first of two costume contests. At stake (in the heart, if you’re a vampire) will be $7,000 in cash prizes: $4,000 for the first night, which starts at 10 p.m., and $3,000 for the second night, which begins at 8 p.m. on Oct. 31. Costumes will be judged for best overall and sexiest.
Hula’s Bar and Lei Stand will haunt, er, host a two-night Halloween celebration, which this year has a “Little Shop of Horrors” theme. Singing drag queen Candi Shell gets things going at 10 p.m. Oct. 28, while its Oct. 31 party includes a costume contest at midnight.
Up on the North Shore, Surfer, the Bar at the Turtle Bay Resort celebrates Halloween early with a party on Oct. 28, including a costume contest. DJ Daniel J presides over the decks. Doors open at 7 p.m.
On Halloween night, Oct. 31, Waikiki is the place to roll out your best costume. In addition to the Sky party, Stripsteak Hawaii on top of the International Market Place plans a “Thriller Night,” featuring a “Gangs of New York” and zombie costume contest. Prizes includes a fully paid trip for two to Las Vegas. Tickets are $150, and a portion of the proceeds goes to the American Heart Association.
Buho Cantina’s “BooHo Spooktacular” includes a costume contest offering $3,000 in cash and prizes. The celebration starts at 10 p.m. with DJs XL & Compose and guest MC Tantra providing entertainment at the Latin-themed restaurant on the rooftop of the Waikiki Shopping Plaza.
At the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa, superheroes and villains are invited to “League Up!” for a costume party that celebrates superhero films. Up to $2,000 in cash and prizes will be available to winners of the contest, which starts at 8 p.m. VIP admission ($20) will be available for those who want to skip the lines; they’ll also get a glow stick and a bag of candy.
HALLOWEEN EVENTS
All events 21+ except for Hallowbaloo street fair, which allows children with adult supervision.
HALLOWBALOO
>> Where: Chinatown
>> When: Street festival, 5-9 p.m. (street festival); 9 p.m.-2 a.m. (Club Hallowbaloo at Downbeat Lounge, Nextdoor, Manifest, Bar 35, Ong King Arts Center, The Arts at Marks Garage, Scarlet Honolulu and Square Barrels)
>> Cost: $15-$55
>> Info: hallowbaloo.com
SKY WAIKIKI
>> Where: Waikiki Business Plaza, 2270 Kalakaua Ave.
>> When: 10 p.m. Oct. 28 and 8 p.m. Oct. 31
>> Cost: $25 (Oct. 28); $10 (Oct 31)
>> Info: 979-7590, skywaikiki.com
HULA’S BAR AND LEI STAND
>> Where: Waikiki Grand Hotel, 134 Kapahulu Ave.
>> When: 10 p.m. Oct. 28 (Candi Shell); midnight Oct. 31 (costume contest)
>> Cost: $5 (Oct. 28); $10 (Oct. 31)
>> Info: hulas.com
SURFER, THE BAR
>> Where: Turtle Bay Resort, 57-091 Kamehameha Hwy.
>> When: 7 p.m. Oct. 28
>> Cost: $10
>> Info: turtlebayresort.com
STRIPSTEAK WAIKIKI
>> Where: International Market Place, 2330 Kalakaua Ave.
>> When: 8 p.m. Oct. 31
>> Cost: $150
>> Info: Stripsteakthrillernight.eventbrite.com
BUHO CANTINA
>> Where: Waikiki Shopping Plaza, 2270 Kalakaua Ave.
>> When: 10 p.m. Oct. 31
>> Cost: $20
>> Info: buhocantina.com or 922-2846
HYATT REGENCY WAIKIKI BEACH RESORT AND SPA
>> Where: 2424 Kalakaua Ave.
>> When: 8 p.m. Oct. 31
>> Cost: $10-$20
>> Info: 216-4298, events.racesauce.com
