This New to Netflix Movie Is the Perfect Rom-Com for Spooky Season

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Halloween season is filled with beloved traditions, from candy, costumes, and, of course, movies. Naturally, there are countless horror films to create chills throughout October, but some of the greatest spooky season flicks are actually whimsical. Tim Burton’s catalog is filled with family-friendly Halloween classics, and Hocus Pocus continues to be the season’s masterpiece. While sequels to said projects have provided audiences with nostalgic returns to the fanciful genre, the style has become more and more rare in modern times.

However, that changed with Netflix’s Girl Haunts Boy. Based on Cesar Vitale’s novel, it offers a modern spin on the genre and tackles complex themes in a way only a Halloween movie can.

‘Girl Haunts Boy’ Is a Unique Twist on Halloween Films

Girl Haunts Boy contains all the elements needed to make a great Halloween picture, from ghosts to curses. However, it is far from a Burton-esque rip-off. It follows Bea (Peyton List), a 1920s teenager with a mischievous side. While on a museum field trip, she comes across a two-piece ring and takes half. Separating the ring places a curse on Bea, which kills her and dooms her to haunt her family home for eternity. In the present day, she meets Cole (Michael Cimino), a teenage boy grieving the loss of his father.

The friendship between a teenager and a supernatural being is a classic set-up for the genre, but Girl Haunts Boy quickly puts its own spin on it, as the two fall in love. While this is reminiscent of the Halloween classic, Casper, there’s a depth to Cole and Bea’s relationship. They each have new knowledge to offer, counsel each other through their own respective griefs and, all around, make each other better people. From Bea expanding Cole’s understanding of a life long ago, and teaching him to live life to the fullest, to Cole helping Bea feel seen for the first time in a century, and giving her the freedom she’s longed for, their story is so delightful and satisfying to watch.

This New to Netflix Movie Is the Perfect Rom-Com for Spooky Season

Peyton List Materializes in Michael Cimino’s Bedroom in ‘Girl Haunts Boy’ Sneak Peek [Exclusive]

The young adult romance movie is now available on Netflix and VOD.

But the very nature of their relationship adds high stakes from the start. Given how good they are for each other, it’s hard not to root for them, but given Bea’s supernatural existence and the added intrigue of the curse that keeps her earth-bound, there is a constant state of anxiety about whether the lovers can truly have a happy ending. While one may not necessarily go into the film expecting any sort of intensity, Bea’s desire to break her curse mixed with the fragility of those involved should she succeed, adds such a raw intensity, one that comes to a head thanks to the skill of Cimino.

Michael Cimino Brings Cole’s Complexities to Life

Michael Cimino is no stranger to the subjects presented in the mash-up genre of Girl Haunts Boy. After all, he already battled demons in Annabelle Comes Home and found young love in Love, Victor. But Cole allowed the actor to explore deep complexities that he mastered and, in doing so, solidified the picture’s deeper meaning. While the mystery surrounding Bea’s curse is what drives the film, it’s Cole’s deep grief that creates twists and turns and ultimately delivers its message.

Cole’s obvious despair about his father’s death automatically makes him a character for whom audiences want to root. His self-imposed isolation and rejection of his former passions reveal a deeply broken soul, and the joy Bea brings into his life is so special. Cimino plays the contrast so naturally, despite the film’s relatively short runtime. He doesn’t bother with the typical Disney Channel-esque charm that often plagues YA films, instead relying upon a sense of reality to create both Cole’s depression and his happiness. It helps ground even the film’s most extraordinary scenes and almost makes you forget you’re watching a Halloween film centered around a ghost, which creates a greater sense of relatability.

There are plenty more complications for the character, even beyond those previously mentioned. When Cole finds out he can break Bea’s curse by reuniting the ring she stole with its other half, as it’s up for public auction, he decides not to tell Bea about it and initially dooms her to remain a ghost. It would be easy for Cole to come off as nothing more than immature and selfish, but Cimino once again subverts expectations, by taking Cole into an even darker place. The performance is so sympathetic that viewers really understand why Cole can’t let Bea go. Audiences don’t want to see Cole lose her, even though she deserves her freedom.

The film has a surprisingly melancholy ending for an otherwise joyous film with Bea and Cole parting ways after sharing one last loving kiss. Of course, this only serves Cole’s character, as he realizes that “it’s better to have loved and lost,” which ultimately helps him learn to live with his father’s passing as well. Cimino hits every mark with his heartfelt farewell to the life he thought he’d have, and it’s—in no small way—thanks to that performance that the film’s message really resonates: You never get over the loss of a loved one, you just learn to live with it, and remember them well.

Girl Haunts Boy is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.