Fantastic Fest 2024 – Every year, thousands of people converge upon St. Helens, Oregon to celebrate Halloween. Documentarians Bradford Thomason and Brett Whitcomb‘s The Spirit of Halloweentown focuses on the small town outside of Portland during spooky season, showcasing a cast of characters and their preparations for the big event.

St. Helens became such a tourist destination during autumn because it’s where the Disney film Halloweentown was filmed in the late 90s. The town decided to embrace it, and over the last few years, celebrations increased immensely. This led to a major boon for businesses, but not every citizen is happy with their hometown’s explosion in popularity. Whitcomb and Thomason’s documentary includes interviews with business owners, happy to partake in the festivities, and a few folks enraged that the town goes all out for Halloween.

In fact, one of their interviews features a woman claiming that Halloween is the devil’s holiday, and the festivities have destroyed her town. It’s hard to take the woman seriously, especially after she accuses one of the organizers of being an evil warlock.  The documentary would have benefited from another interview with citizens generally concerned about the strain on resources the festivities cause. That’s a legit argument.

In another sequence, a tavern owner faces blowback after rudely responding to a customer complaint. Due to the stress the season brings, he brushes her off, but his response spreads across social media. This perspective from a small business owner is fascinating. It shows that while October may rake in a lot of money for the town, it does come with challenges. He also faces pushback from his staff, who rightfully gripe about how he handled the customer complaint.

The documentary’s main fault is that it’s a bit uneven. With several perspectives offered, not all of them gel into a more cohesive narrative. For instance, a portion of the doc focuses on ghost hunters exploring The Klondike. While showcasing the building’s history and broader relationship to the town is interesting, the ghost hunting bits feel too out of place. These segments detract from the broader narrative about the town’s relationship to Halloween. This film works best when it underscores why exactly the season is so important to some residents. For instance, one woman confesses that she lost both her mom and job recently. The season and its numerous celebrations give her joy.  It’s one of the film’s strongest, most human moments.

Whitcomb and Thomason do succeed in making St. Helens feel like a character. They feature shots of kids knocking on doors for candy, pumpkins adorning lampposts, and creepy costumes posed in front of the camera, center frame. These shots work well enough to get anyone in the mood for spooky season.

Though a bit uneven in its focus, The Spirit of Halloweentown is an enjoyable watch for this time of year. More than anything, the documentary showcases varying characters and their true feelings about their town’s transformation into a major tourist destination and Halloween hotspot.