Halloween Nights of Future Past

Before we were spooky cinephiles, we were sugar-starved gremlins in plastic masks that smelled like burning tires. Childhood Halloween was pure chaos: sprinting across lawns, breathing through a pinhole mask, and trying not to barf after inhaling three mini Snickers in a row. Then came teenage Halloween - suddenly we were “too cool” for trick-or-treating, yet somehow still roaming the streets, sneaking into haunted houses, and ending up at a bonfire wearing eyeliner we pretended wasn’t eyeliner. Now as adults, we pour way too much effort into costumes, buy candy no kids ever show up for, and stay up way past our bedtime watching movies we used to have to sneak. Turns out we never outgrew Halloween - we just swapped the plastic fangs for spirit gum and the pillowcase for a tote bag with bats on it.