Enjoy these top 10 haunted house movies
By Glenn Kay
For the Sun
Halloween is here, which means it’s time to get into the spirit of the season by checking out some creepy movies. I’ve been asked to share some of my favorite “haunted house” pictures. While a couple of these efforts aren’t specifically set in homes, I’ve attempted to note several solid features involving a setting filled with eerie entities.
One classic that everyone should check out is The Haunting (1963). Robert Wise (The Day the Earth Stood Still, West Side Story) directed this tale of a paranormal investigator and small group (including a psychic and a woman who claims to have encountered a ghost as a child), investigating spiritual activity in a house with a tragic history of death and despair. The black and white photography, production design and groundbreaking camerawork feature wide lenses, extended hallways and low-angle shots that really make a lasting impression, as does the story’s nice sting at its close.
If you’re looking for a similar type of picture from that era, William Castle’s House on Haunted Hill (1959) is fun. Vincent Price plays a millionaire who rents a supposedly haunted house. He offers five individuals a large sum of money if they can endure a night in the place. When the wealthy individual’s wife is found dead, the group suspect one another of murder and start to panic as strange events unfold. This entertaining B-movie features amusing elements like a vat of acid, a scenery-chewing Price and another clever script twist during the climax.
One of my favorite pictures that doesn’t get the attention it deserves is The Legend of Hell House (1973). To me, this British production feels like The Haunting hopped up on steroids. The story involves a stuffy physicist and skeptic who is hired to spend a week investigating the former estate of a wealthy sadist who murdered many within its walls.
The man, his wife, a medium and the only survivor from a previous party who ventured inside meet with an angry and violent spirit . This one is very atmospheric and features extreme close-ups, skewed tilts and punchy editing. The excellent cast to help sell the jolts and menace.
The late 1970s and 1980s were a prime period for these types of pictures, with The Amityville Horror (1979) becoming a massive hit after selling itself as a tale “based on a true story” (as it turns out, it was all a hoax). It’s a decent enough feature, but I prefer The Changeling (1980) with George C. Scott. The actor plays a composer making a new start after the tragic death of his wife and child in a car accident. He rents an old mansion, only to be tormented by strange phenomena. This includes a rubber ball bouncing down the stairs, suggesting something terrible occurred to a youngster who used to live there. Once again, this film has some incredible atmosphere and the imagery involving the deceased child is both haunting and threatening.
That same year, one of the most famous horror pictures of all time was released. The Shining was Stanley Kurbrick’s adaptation of the hit Stephen King novel. Set in a snowbound hotel with a sordid past, the movie is more interested in the lead character’s psychological breakdown than it is with spirits. Still, when the entities do appear, they make a lasting impression. This includes the woman in the tub in room 237 and the bizarre sights witnessed during the climax. Those images stay with the viewer long after the credits roll.
Another picture that made an impression on me as a child was Poltergeist (1982). Steven Spielberg produced (and was heavily involved behind the scenes) on this tale from Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) about a suburban family who discover their house was built on a site that should have been left alone. The oddly excited behavior of family members experiencing paranormal occurrences early in the film is difficult to fathom. But the movie features several sequences, including a threatening doll and tree, a horrifying bathroom vision and a poolside finale, that are iconic among horror film enthusiasts.
On a lighter note, you’ll find some laughs with Beetlejuice (1988) Tim Burton’s feature about a husband and wife who die in a car wreck and find their spirits trapped in their house. When a new family moves in, the couple must not only adapt to their new lives but figure out how to scare away the new arrivals. This leads them to get involved with a less-than-helpful individual who may not have anyone’s best interests at heart.
It’s an amusingly eccentric effort that benefits from wild visuals and a manic Michael Keaton performance. And while its scope extends much wider, I am even more enamored of the recent follow-up Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024). It combines laughs and underworld shenanigans while depicting three generations of a family left behind and coping with grief after the deaths of loved ones.
The sensation Stir of Echoes (1999) should also be noted. It was passed over by audiences during its original release, because it arrived only a month after the exceptional The Sixth Sense (1999).
Yes, it does jump around locations a bit but features several chilling moments within the extended family’s Chicago-area abodes. Kevin Bacon plays a dad who becomes distressed after having visions of a teenager who disappeared from his neighborhood. He ends up digging holes in the backyard and tearing up his house in the process.
The movie contains solid performances, a physical threat for its protagonist, and a chilling basement reveal. And writer/director David Koepp recently wrote the Steven Soderbergh haunted house film Presence (2024), which is also worth a watch. Shot entirely from the point of view of a ghost, the movie requires viewers to watch a lot of domestic family drama but pays everything off in its striking and unique finale.
Another small feature worth checking out is Session 9 (2001). The story involves a crew working to remove asbestos from a closed-down psychiatric institute. They begin hearing voices and then find a series of audio tapes recorded by a patient convicted of murder. The inmate insists that a spirit was responsible for her crimes. When a worker goes missing, a few start to believe that the entity might still be in the building. The movie was shot on video in the dilapidated Danvers State Hospital, and this real asylum locale adds to the already spine chilling mood. It’s another title that sticks with you.
The same year, The Others (2001) arrived at cinemas. This is an eerie, period effort about a conservative mother and her children living on the Channel Islands. Their solitary existence is upended when jarring noises begin rattling them. Nicole Kidman stars in this picture as a frightened parent trying to protect her kids from unseen forces. Again, the eerie atmosphere drives this picture, which features long periods of quietness, followed by startling sounds and appearances by strange figures.
Those who like international cinema should also give Dark Water (2002) a try. This Japanese effort involves a divorced, financially strapped mother who moves into a rundown apartment with her young son. Bizarre water stains begin appearing on the ceiling and the pair learn of a youngster who disappeared on the property. The water motif is unique and visually striking, particularly during the climax which features a wave crashing out of an elevator.
Stephen King was mentioned earlier, and he wrote a short ghost story that received a decent adaptation in 1408 (2007). John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson star in this effort about a man who specializes in debunking so-called haunted houses. When he sets out to prove that a famous, New York hotel room is not all that it is claimed to be, he finds himself trapped inside. The movie does a lot with its seemingly small locale, transforming it unsettlingly (the lead must contend with unexpected heat, waves and even snow) and delivering creepy moments as the room itself encourages the protagonist to take his own life.
Finally, I’d also like to recommend The Woman in Black (2012), a British period chiller about, well, a darkly clad spirit tormenting a young lawyer widower (played by Daniel Radcliffe) visiting a marshland estate on business. As it turns out, this ghost primarily targets children, which makes it a particularly threatening presence. This well-performed and scary effort featured a wonderful location and wisely keeps its antagonist in the shadows. The few times she does pop out are incredibly starting as a result and leave a lasting impression.
Of course, there are other efforts worth your while, like the original Paranormal Activity (2007), as well as the underrated, independent Ti West feature The Innkeepers (2011) and smash hit The Conjuring (2013). If you’re looking for a “haunted house” movie, you have an almost endless supply to send chills down your spine over the next week.
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