Anna Paquin in Trick 'r Treat, about a small town that takes its Halloween celebrations very seriously.

Creepy, crazy, scary and funny, Michael Dougherty's Trick 'r Treat re-invigorates the Halloween horror season.

No American filmmaker since John Carpenter, with his now-legendary slasher classic Halloween, has had this much effective fun with the ghoulish traditions of this holiday.

Trick 'r Treat is set in a small town that runs amok with Halloween celebrations. Some turn deadly as practical jokers goof off but real ghastlies roam.

Dougherty also gives a new twist to sex-and-violence with Anna Paquin dressed as Little Red Riding Hood.

This movie boasts other name talent, too, from Dylan Baker to one-time Hannibal Lecter Brian Cox as a curmudgeon who hates kids and candy.

Suddenly, it's cool to kill -- or be killed.

Trick 'r Treat indulges in the genre's bloody extremes but doesn't take itself seriously.

The movie's quality also begs the question: Why did it take Warner Bros. two years to unleash it? Studio execs must have buried their heads in pumpkins. Still, better late than never.

The DVD offers the animated short, Season's Greetings, that gave birth to the feature. The Blu-ray explodes with more extras, including a doc on Halloween lore.

Dougherty's film is not the only new DVD and/or Blu-ray serving up horror gore. It just happens to be the most specific to Halloween. We offer highlights about other recent releases designed to spread terror and occasionally inspire sinister laughter this weekend:

Dead Snow (DVD and Blu-ray)

Tommy Wirkola's Norwegian zombie movie is completely nuts and a lot of grisly fun. It plays in Norwegian with English subtitles. Wirkola obviously loves the American zombie genre, as well as horror in general, yet he manages to twist it into something fresh and rotten. While the setting is now, his fast zombies are German Nazis left over from a Second World War occupation force. After a terrific slow build, the Nazis battle it out with medical students. It's great stuff for genre freaks. The DVD and Blu-ray have identical extras.

Orphan (DVD and Blu-ray)

Jaume Collet-Serra takes another old saw -- the demon child -- and turns it into a superior American thriller rife with complex characters and creepy psychological twists. The story, superbly set up by actors Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard, concerns a troubled married couple adopting an orphan child (Isabelle Fuhrman) who appears perfect, if eccentric. As bad things begin to happen, only the new mom sees the truth, but her mental instability makes her an unreliable witness. It's a great premise and well executed. The DVD has an alternative ending while the Special Edition Blu-ray ramps up the creep factor with a look at the history of killer kids in movies.

Night of the Creeps: Director's Cut (DVD and Blu-ray)

Fred Dekker's 1986 movie featuring body-snatching alien slugs is intact, with its original ending. It is now finally restored and released for home consumption. Fans have been clamouring for this to appear on DVD for a decade. With good reason. Dekker's comic touch, oddball characters and old-school theatrical effects turned Creeps into horror happiness. It tanked in its initial theatrical release but became a true cult classic as fans began to discover its "Thrill me!" charms. The DVD and Blu-ray have different cover art but the same extras inside.

Tales From the Darkside: The Second Season (DVD)

The popular 1980s series returns to DVD, this time with the 1985-86 season of horror stories. The three-disc set conjures up 24 episodes along with one bonus doc that visits with beloved schlockmeister George Romero.

Stan Helsing (DVD and Blu-ray)

Intended as a horror spoof and featuring a clutch of horror anti-heroes from Freddy to Pinhead, Bo Zenga's so-called comedy is just awful. Perhaps even so bad people might eventually think it's good. For now, it's just unwatchable, especially because Leslie Nielsen is in ridiculous makeup and a dress, playing a waitress in the bar from Hell. Nielsen, a genuinely funny fellow, has never had it so bad. The DVD and Blu-ray both offer the same extras, including an on-set visit with Nielsen, who praises Zenga for no reason.

The Hilarious House of Frightenstein: Bats, Bones and Creepy Poems (DVD)

Many of the Frightenstein episodes have already come to DVD. This time around, Vincent Price's contributions to the cultish Canadian comedy series are excerpted in a 67-minute highlights package. Price came to the Great White North in the twilight of his career, deliciously sending up his horror persona -- and it's distilled here.

Other titles to consider, all new on DVD in October: Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead; iMurders; Nightmare; The Seamstress; Staunton Hill; Offspring; Children of The Corn: Uncut and Uncensored; Happy Birthday to Me; and (for old-timers) a two-disc box set devoted to two blasts from the past, Karloff & Lugosi Horror Classics. The Boris Karloff movies are The Walking Dead and Frankenstein 1970. The Lugosi entries are You'll Find Out and Zombies on Broadway.

On Blu-ray, also new in October: Check out Wrong Turn 3, The Children, The Craft, Dracula 2000, The Hitcher (the re-make), Cursed, The Faculty, Wolf, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.