It’s Halloween! But just before we scare ourselves silly, Rand has slipped in his take on a title released to tie in with that other big event happening in the next few days…um, oh yeah, the Presidential Elections! One thing’s for sure, it won’t be anyone from Charles Schultz’ celebrated Peanuts gang sitting in the White House, as You’re Not Elected, Charlie Brown: Remastered Deluxe Edition proves. Actually, Charlie’s not even up for election in this classic 1972 special, which is as Rand says, ridicules more “the political process in general than it does to offer any more timely criticisms”, but is “a DVD that is worthy of your vote, as well as your purchase”.

To All Hallow’s Eve next, and a bunch of reviews that we’ve stockpiled up on to celebrate. Released in August, it seems to make much more sense to look at Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: Collector’s Edition (or NB4X in today’s talk!) around this time of year, so here’s my take on the double-disc set that finally does justice to this truly wonderful film on DVD (and Blu-ray, don’t forget). Fans with the previous LaserDisc and standard edition DVD will certainly want to check this out, as it features a wealth of material not featured anywhere else in addition to what you may have seen before. Best of all, the Blu-ray Disc preserves the definitive version of the film itself, looking stunning in both regular disc and hi-def flavors. Nightmare is genuinely one of my favorite animated pictures ever, and I was ready to pounce on this edition: that I’ve come away happy as a Christmas elf is saying something indeed! If you’ve not grabbed it yet, it’s perfect Halloween viewing, or slip it in your stocking in a couple of months for a Christmas treat!

I should also remember to point out that our own Jeremie Noyer spoke with a pair of Nightmare‘s crew when the DVD was released earlier this year, so please do catch up on his conversation with storyboard artist Mike Cachuela and a discussion with director Henry Selick, as they reminisce on the making of this true contemporary classic.

Rodney Figueiredo’s back, too, with a look at the original friendly ghost and his pal in Casper And Wendy’s Ghostly Adventures, a collection of fourteen Famous Studios shorts dating from between 1951 and 1962. Despite a total lack of extras (that’s Classic Media for you!), the disc sounds like it provides some spooky fun for under ten bucks. Rodney delves even further back to present his comments on Winnie the Pooh: Frankenpooh/Spookable Pooh, a now out of print double feature of two TV episodes from 2002, which may be worth your tracking down if you’re a dedicated fan of the Hundred Acre Wood.

And don’t forget our backlog of more ghoulish titles’ reviews: creep around our old crypt and you’ll find some ancient words on some of the ghostly and ghastly movies, shows and specials we’ve come across that might make spooktacular viewing if you find yourself at a loose end. Here are just a few…

• Mad Monster Party – the original stop-motion spook-fest!

• Monster House – dare you knock on the door?

• The Adventures Of Ichabod And Mr Toad – a classic slice of scary Disney!

• Mickey’s House Of Villains – the House Of Mouse gets all shook up!

• Dungeons & Dragons: Complete Series – great for costume ideas!

• Corpse Bride – Tim Burton’s still sitting through the graveyard shift!

• It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: Deluxe – Snoopy gets spooked!

Happy Halloween, and enjoy what will no doubt be a frightfully fun weekend! – Ben.