Trick ‘r Treat

So if you caught a preview for this and are curious, it’s basically Creepshow: 2009—five loosely interwoven horror tales that I would call “She Should Have Listened to Tahmoh Penikett,” “The Principal is Insane,” “Revenge of the Short-Bus Kids,” “Anna Paquin’s Red Riding Hood,” and “Brian Cox vs. the Halloween Midget.”

“Short-Bus Kids,” a morality play about the perils of mistreating special-needs children, is the best (and most tasteless) of the bunch, though that’s not really saying much; overall the film is a lot less fun than the trailer suggests. “Cox v. Midget” is the biggest disappointment—it ought to be scary, but it’s not, and it goes on way too long (although the “Grinch Who Stole Halloween” denouement almost redeemed it for me).