To get in the Halloween spirit, I watched two of the hottest scary movies over the weekend. Liked the one I expected to dislike; disliked the one I expected to like.

Zombieland (R): Having seen many zombie movies, I always wondered whether there was an art to eliminating these pesky flesheaters. Surely, there was. Also, no one seemed to have any fun knocking them off. Having watched Zombieland, I gotta say I no longer dread the day the zombies arrive. I learned a lot from Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin, and I especially appreciated the creative Zombie Kill of the Week. It was also cool to see Jesse's character make a stop in Garland and then have to work his way out of Dallas-Fort Worth on what looked like a wreck-strewn Central Expressway. Strange to see a cameo from a Ghostbuster, but it's of little surprise considering another Ghostbusters sequel is on its way.

Paranormal Activity (R): You've heard the buzz. This movie is a suburban version of Blair Witch Project. So, the preferred method of viewing, of course, is a late-night screening in a theater full of over-reactive people who've apparently have never seen a scary movie. I saw it during a mall matinee (who's going to pay non-matinee admission these days?). Over-reactive people were there, but they seemed to ruin it by jumping at every movement.  My advice: Rent this when it comes out on DVD, see it at midnight with all the lights off.

Next scary movie: Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant.