One of my favorite parts of Halloween (besides the trick or treating, the costumes, and how every channel runs horror movies back-to-back) is The Simpsons’ annual “Treehouse of Horror” episodes. Easily the most popular episode of the year, each one contains three story segments, and sometimes a wrap-around segment. Though they are sometimes wholly original stories, most of the time, they are spoofs of movies.
I have narrowed down ten of the best segments based on movies. With thirty-one “Treehouse of Horror” episodes currently (XXXI airs this Sunday), that is almost 100 segments to choose from.
It was not easy, but I do it all for you.
Treehouse of Horror IV – “Bart Simpson’s Dracula,” a spoof of Bram Stoker’s Dracula
Based on the Francis Ford Coppola movie, the Simpsons head to Mr. Burns’ house for dinner. Lisa is the only one who suspects he is a vampire, despite all the evidence (such as Mr. Burns asking everyone to wash their necks before dinner, and discovering Mr. Burns’ autobiography, titled “Yes, I Am a Vampire”). The next day, Lisa discovers everyone in her family is now a vampire, in a scene that is reminiscent of The Lost Boys.
Treehouse of Horror V – “The Shinning,” a spoof of The Shining
In one of my favorite “ToH” segments, Homer is hired by Mr. Burns to be his winter home’s caretaker, and Bart is the one with the “Shinning.” Mr. Burns takes away beer and television, and promises that if this is the thing that caused previous caretakers to go crazy, he will buy Smithers a Coke. Homer does go crazy, and reenacts the infamous “Here’s Johnny!” scene – several times. The segment ends when Homer gets ahold of a portable TV (“Teacher! Mother! Secret lover!”) which momentarily calms him down; until the Tony’s come on, and the family is frozen in the snow and can’t change the channel.
Treehouse of Horror VI – “Attack of the 50 Foot Eyesores,” a spoof of Attack of the 50 Foot Woman
Instead of a giant woman running amok in Springfield, a lightning strike causes the humongous advertising statues to come to life. Initially, the eyesores follow Lard Lad, who wants his giant donut back after Homer steals it, but after he gets his donut back, the advertisements are enjoying their time alive. Lisa figures out that ads go away if you don’t pay attention to them, so she enlists Paul Anka to create a jingle to get everyone’s eyeballs off the ads.
Treehouse of Horror VI – “A Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace,” a spoof of A Nightmare on Elm Street
If you are going to do a spoof on a crazed janitor who kills kids, who better to cast in this role than Groundskeeper Willie? Willie becomes the charred man of nightmares after Homer disregards his note on the furnace. The heat goes up, Willie is set alight, and all hell breaks loose. Instead of using a razor glove, Willie uses tools of his trade: a rake, hedge clippers, a lawnmower. Maggie saves the day with her pacifier.
Treehouse of Horror VIII – “The Homega Man,” a spoof of The Omega Man
Mayor Quimby insults France, so France launches a nuclear attack on Springfield. Homer had been examining bomb shelters at the time, so he was safe from the blast. The rest of his family is safe, too – the layers of lead paint in the house created the perfect bomb shelter. Not everyone in Springfield died, though: some were turned into horrible, murderous mutants. For some reason, I find Homer’s complete oblivion to the deceased around him hilarious.
Treehouse of Horror XIII – “The Island of Dr. Hibbert,” a spoof of The Island of Dr. Moreau
The genius of this episode, which sees Dr. Hibbert as a mad scientist who turns the people of Springfield into human/animal hybrids, is how every character is turned into an animal that suits them. Marge is a cat. Homer is a walrus. Bart is a spider (who can write “eat my shorts” in his webbing). Flanders is a cow (who asks Homer to milk him in the most disturbing scene in the segment). Chief Wiggum is a pig. Professor Frink is a turkey. Homer initially tries to get the “manimals” to join him in revolt, but when he realizes that all animals do are eat and sleep and mate, he succumbs to the pleasures of being turned into an animal.
Treehouse of Horror XXI – “War and Pieces,” a spoof of Jumanji
Jumanji isn’t really a horror movie, but I love this segment of “ToH.” Marge makes Bart and Milhouse play a board game to get them away from violent video games. The game Bart chooses is Satan’s Path. (“Hey, it’s gotta be good for Satan to put his name on it!”) It sends Bart and Milhouse into the world of the game – not just Satan’s Path, but every game. It includes copyright-safe versions of Hungry Hungry Hippos, Scrabble, Chutes and Ladders, Candy Land, Yahtzee, Monopoly, Kerplunk, and Mouse Trap.
Treehouse of Horror XXIV – “Freaks No Geeks,” a spoof of Freaks
This one gets major props from me if only because Tod Browning’s 1932 masterpiece, which utilized authentic carnival “freaks” in the cast, is not well known amongst the general public. The Simpsons’ version features Homer as the muscle man, Marge as his lover, and Moe as the freak whom Marge marries in order to get ahold of an expensive ring. In this version, it is Homer who is the victim of the freaks’ revenge, and it ends with an ode to How I Met Your Mother, which kind of kills some of the creepiness.
Treehouse of Horror XXV – “A Clockwork Yellow,” a spoof of A Clockwork Orange
This segment is so dense with in-jokes it is hard to keep up. Moe runs a gang of droogs consisting of Homer, Lenny, and Carl. Homer leaves the gang to start a life with Marge, and a reformed Moe is victimized by a new generation of “glugs.” They reform the gang for “one last bit of noggin-boggin.” Moe and his gang speak in a similar style to the original A Clockwork Orange, and there are numerous references to other Stanley Kubrick films (except, ironically, The Shining).
Treehouse of Horror XXVIII – “Coralisa,” a spoof of Coraline
When Lisa determines she is with the wrong family, she discovers a secret door that leads her into a claymation-style world with a family that is like a dream… except that they have buttons sewn over their eyes. After weighing the options, she decides she wants to stay in the claymation world. The rest of her family decides the claymation world is better, so they join. Things go bad when claymation Marge turns into a spider, and Homer takes everyone back to his two-dimensional world. “Coralisa” includes a voice cameo from novel author Neil Gaiman as Snowball, the Simpsons’ talking cat.