Summary
Ghosts have always been a phenomenon of intrigue for humanity over the centuries. Sometimes, it was a way for people to cope with the loss of a loved one by imagining a fragment of them remaining on the earth, but mostly, it is a source of fright. The idea of a deathly, pale white specter roaming the hallways of a home, which should be a safe haven, is a trully terrifying idea.
As a reliable source for scares and tragedy, many horror movies are home to the spirits of the deceased. Countlessgreat ghost movieshave risen like specters in a graveyard, and it is time to exhume the best among them by paying homage to these ghostly tales of delight.
10The Innkeepers
A Scary Story Of Suspense In A Run-Down Hotel
Beforebecoming widely acclaimed for theXTrilogy, Ti West was know for relatively lesser known movies that only those deep down the horror rabbit hole might have heard of. One of those movies wasThe Innkeepers, a movie about the closing down of a hotel, where staff members Claire and Luke are on their final shift before it shuts its doors for good. There are only a couple of guests staying and a few who have not checked in at reception, as they have been here for a long time.
The two staff members also have an interest in ghosts, and the haunting history of this hotel has their attention. This interest quickly wanes when they find themselves face to face with the horror ghosts can bring. The main ghost, Madeline O’Malley, is a particularly frightening one, still wearing her wedding gown and veil, but wearing a new pale and bloody visage at the same time. Even the most steel-nerved ghost hunters would find it hard to keep a brave face around this ghastly woman.
9The Sixth Sense
An Iconic Mystery Thriller With A Shocking Ending
M. Night Shymalan loves a good twist in the movie’s twelfth hour, and that is exactly what he delivers withThe Sixth Sense. In this movie, a young boy named Cole Sear struggles with his ability to see dead people, a secret he entrusts to child psychologist Malcolm Crowe. Though reluctant to believe him at first, he then decides to trust in what Cole says, and suggesting that the child attempts to reach out to the ghosts. The twist ending in question is that Malcolm has unknowingly been a ghost all along, allowing him to move on to the next life.
One of the most notorious twist endings in a movie, it has become public knowledge, so even those who have not seen the movie will unfortunately know how it ends. But it is definitely still worth a watch. The creepy yet tragic spirits of the departed all around Cole and the unfolding of the revelation simply must be seen first-hand.
8Pulse
Ghosts Invade The World Of The Living In Unusual Fashion
Pulseis just one of the many Japanese movies thatreceived an American remake, but the original simply could not be outdone. Ghosts have began crossing into the world of the living through the Internet, which is a new and novel approach to the mythos surrounding ghosts and spirits. New arrival to Tokyo, Mich is trying to carve out a life for herself in her new apartment, working in a plant store, until her colleagues start dropping like flies following encounters with the eerie and paranormal.
The movie absolutely does not fail to deliver with its scares, crafting some very impressively disturbing scenes such as Taguchi’s hanging body and the ghostly apparition at the end of the hallway, which resulted in one of the most effective jump scares to emerge from an early 2000s ghost movie.
7Lake Mungo
This Horror Mockumentary Has One Of The Most Chilling Scenes In Cinema History
After 16-year-old Alice Palmer’s corpse is found in a lake, the Palmer family struggle with their grief and with several strange occurrences to throw into question whether Alice is still present even after death. Footage emerges courtesy of her older brother Mathew, suggesting that Alice’s ghost is haunting the house and the lake. This is later confirmed to be fake, but there is real footage of Alice coming face to face with the visage of her own water-logged ghost.
This one scene of the protagonist facing her own death isshort yet incredibly impactful. It is the moment viewers will remember the most, and it is the part that will make them want to recommend this film to their friends. The ghostly version of Alice, even if it was just trying to warn her of her impending death, is still something absolutely terrifying to behold.
6Ring
Sadako Remains One Of Cinema’s Most Disturbing Entities
Being handed the deadline of seven days left to live is an unimaginably horrifying scenario, but it is the reality of many unfortunate souls in the movieRing, in which the malevolent spirit of Sadako possesses a cursed tape that will kill its viewers in a week unless they show the tape to another person. A horrifying and very real take on chain letters, Reiko finds herself in the unfortunate scenario of being cursed and enlists the help of her ex-husband. They uncover the tragic truth behind Sadako and discover her remains at the bottom of the well.
One of the most famed Japanese horror movies,Ringis truly one of the mostdisturbing movies to emerge from the 90s. Sadako is truly a terrifying ghost to encounter, and she would make anyone wary of watching a VHS tape for fear of what it could contain. The tape itself in the movie is a series of flickering images - surreal, disturbing, and almost voyeristic in nature. It truly feels like a cursed video that no one should ever watch.
5Crimson Peak
A Gothic Tale Of Romance, Betrayal, And Ghosts
Guillermo Del Toro has become the masterof crafting gothic masterpieces, and whileCrimson Peakmay not be his magnum opus, it is an impressive work of art nonetheless. Set in the Victorian era, aspiring author Edith Cushing is swept off her feet by English baronet Thomas Sharpe and taken to live with him and his sister Lucille in Allerdale Hall, which is otherwise known as Crimson Peak, something a ghost told Edith she should be aware of. Exploring the mansion exhumes the dark history of the Sharpe siblings and Thomas’s previous wives.
The crimson ghosts that haunt this movie are nothing short of terrifying, from their red and twisted appearances to the way they shamble and lurch forward, immediately freezing the blood of any who would behold them. And yet, these ghosts are just the unfortunate past victims of the Sharpe’s, who Lucille feeds poisoned tea to lead to their eventual demise. While the ghosts are a strong focus in the movie, they aren’t the true evil, which is a clever and underused twist in ghost movies.
4The Night House
In This Movie, Nothing Is Something To Be Very Afraid Of
Death is very hard to come to terms with, especially for those who have had close brushes with it themselves or have lost a loved one. These are the struggles Beth lives with after her husband commits suicide and leaves her a puzzling note about how she is saved from ‘Nothing,’ which is exactly what she said she witnessed when she was declared clinically dead for four minutes. In the wake of his death, Beth discovers a puzzling photo of a woman who looks exactly like her, leading her to believe her late husband was having an affair. The truth is far more complex than this - and far darker. She one day finds a mirror image of her house across the lake inhabited by the ghosts of women bearing her resemblance and her husband’s.
The Nothing she saw is actually a spirit that has now come to collect, which is a clever and surprising twist, and though invisible, Nothing is by far one of the scariest ghosts in cinema, a testament to the writing and visual direction ofThe Night House. An unpredictable and new approach to ghost movies, this one is a must-see for those who may feel a little fatigue setting in from the normal tropes and story, as it offers a refreshing and terrifying take on the genre.
3The Conjuring
A Terrifying Ghost Story Purportedly Based On A True Story
The first movie inThe Conjuringloosely follows the story of Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were real paranormal investigators for the better part of 50 years in the 20th century. By far their most notorious case is that of the possessed doll Annabelle, who does have a brief appearance at the start of this movie. This particular tale is one about the Perron family, who move in to a beautiful countryside house only for strange occurrences to happen, each becoming increasingly worse than the previous. They enlist the help of the Warrens, who confirm this house was once owned by a witch named Bathsheba who still haunts the premises.
The Conjuringbecame an instant hit thanks to its roots in reality and the sheer terror of the film. Bathsheba is one of themost unsettling ghosts to grace screens, and the scares she is responsible for throughout the movie are nothing short of heart-stopping, such as the excellent hide and clap scene. Annabelle might be their most famous work, but when looking for a good ghost movie to scare someone senseless, it does not get much better thanThe Conjuring.
2The Others
An Unpredictable Ending That Will Shock Viewers
In a remote house in Jersey, Grace lives with her two children who suffer from extreme sensitivity to light, and thus, the house is dark at all times. This sets the oppressive and eerie mood for this movie, especially when she begins to hear footsteps and disembodied voices, all the classic telltale signs that there are ghosts inhabiting the house. And this is correct, but ina shocking twist that floored audiences, it was Grace and her children who were the ghosts haunting this home.
The movie is somewhat of a slowburn, as it won’t constantly shove terrifying ghostly visages and jumpscares in the viewer’s face. Instead, it will guide them through the family’s struggles, culminating in a twist and one particularly horrifying scene of child with the face of a very old woman.
1Poltergeist
A Ghost Movie With Its Own Haunted Production
One cannot possibly discuss ghost movies without mentioning one of the most seminal ghost movies of all time:Poltergeist. This classic story has become an influential staple of the ghost movie genre, telling the tale of the Freeling family and the horrors they face in the house they live in as part of a planned community. Their younger daughter Carol-Anne exhibits strange behavior by talking to a static-filled TV, and that is the prelude to what the family would endure.
Multiple ghosts haunt the property and terrorize the family in numerous ways, one of which includes an infamous clown doll that remains absolutely terrifying to this day, giving many viewers a healthy suspicion of clown-themed toys. Themovie production in itself was met with horrorand tragedy when the two girls who played the daughters of the family both passed away. Heather O’Rouke, the actress for Carol Anne, died due to misdiagnosis of an abdominal obstruction, and Dominique Dunne, the actress of older sister Dana, was strangled by her ex-boyfriend. Though the tragedy of their loss looms over this movie, it will forever serve as a tribute to them both.
