This was the not the first title I had in mind for this piece. But when I dug into Clint Eastwood's life and career, it seemed particularly apt -- and not even close to an overstatement.

My own personal exploration into the movies that petrify me most inspired me to compile a fresh list of skin-crawling entries that in my view do full justice to the spirit of Halloween.

On the first of this month, Walter Matthau, who left us just a decade ago, would have turned ninety. Ruminating on this unnoted milestone made me consider anew what a unique and gifted screen actor he was.

Wayne's persona -- its bigness, roughness, but also its decency -- literally came to define our heritage. And to a surprising degree, it still does.