The horror genre is currently filled with incredible filmmakers such as Jordan Peele, Robert Eggers, Ari Aster, Leigh Whanell, James Was, the list just keeps going. One name I don't think gets enough credit is Mike Flanagan, the magnificent filmmaker behind films like Hush, Doctor Sleep, and Gerald's Game and the incredible horror show The Haunting of Hill House. Flanagan and some of the Hill House cast are back for The Haunting of Bly Manor, based on the stories of Henry James. I'll have a review of the new series up sometime this weekend, but for now I wanted to mark the occasion with a list of my all time favourite ghost movies. The hype for this new show has had be watching a ton so there's some recent watches on this list that I'm very excited to talk about. I also want to note that I'm only including films I consider ghost movies, so since I see Candyman as a slasher I won't be including it, and films like The Exorcist, Paranormal Activity, or The Conjuring as those all feature something more sinister than ghosts.
15. Oculus
Speaking of Mike Flanagan, here is one of his earlier films that I absolutely love. My friend Jake who you should all subscribe to on Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC52cHFF8N7F-Cy1AYzpRprQ) suggested this to me a while back and I'm so glad he did. On the surface it looks like a fairly basic modern horror, but Flanagan so brilliantly intertwines the past and present that it stands out among the rest. Karen Gillan gives a great performance, and the way they approach the idea of the haunting they face is really exciting. It has an insane ending and a great buildup and I'd highly recommend to those who haven't seen it.
14. The Ring
I sometimes forget that this a ghost movie because of how damn freaky Samara is. But it is a ghost movie, and it's an amazing one. It is limited at times by the general style and tropes of the early 2000s, but it manages to remain pretty terrifying to this day. The video footage in its bizarre images and strange editing is scary enough on its own, but what it brings along is even worse. This tackles ghost stories in a way that doesn't really connect with me on an emotional level the way other approaches do, but as a pure horror movie holy moly I'm a big fan of this one.
13. The Changeling
Grief is a theme in film that I love watching explored. This film along with another coming up on this list use the ghost story as a means for portraying grief. The Changeling suffers a bit from what I find to be a bit of a disappointing second half, but the film is bookended by one of the best openings to a horror movie I've ever seen as well as a great ending. Additionally the way grief is portrayed throughout the first half is really magnificent.
12. The Haunting
Based on the same novel as The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting has its fair share of differences as there is no family here, but there is still a lot of great things about this one. It features a cast of fun characters and creates an atmosphere that I absolutely loved. The house itself is stellar, but the unexpected way the story unfolds is what makes it well worth the watch.
11. Don't Look Now
Don't Look Now is the other film that directly tackles grief on this list. While The Changeling is driven by a whodunnit sort of narrative as it goes on, this film focuses more on the grief as the lead character John believes he is seeing his deceased daughter all around Venice. This film has a wild ending, but its the thematic storytelling and clever motifs throughout that allow it to leave it's mark. This is a truly haunting film and one I really want to watch again soon.
10. Sleepy Hollow
I honestly forget that this is a ghost movie at all, but it is, and it's a great one. I haven't seen it in a while, but the atmosphere Tim Burton creates and the looming presence of the headless horseman still linger with me. This could have been just dower and dreary but Tim Burton's energy makes it much more fun and perfect for the Halloween season. The headless horseman is one of my favourite monsters whether he be in movies or books or anything, so this is a movie I enjoy a lot.
9. A Ghost Story
David Lowery is one of the most interesting filmmakers working today in my opinion, and this is my favourite of his work. This is the most unique film on the list, it isn't a horror movie or horror comedy, but rather a meditative piece on time and space and life after death. This is shot in a beautiful aspect ratio and is just an all around gorgeous film to look at. That's the best way to describe this, beautiful. It's very slow and artistically driven, so I know many just find it boring, but I really appreciate what Lowery is going for, and I'm glad this list has a classic white sheet ghost.
8. The Orphanage
The Orphanage is a Spanish horror film by JA Bayona who also gave us A Monster Calls and the most recent Jurassic World film. This is tonally very similar to a Guillermo del Toro film, which makes sense consider he's one of the producers on it. This is a movie that has a lot of smartly placed fun scenes early on, then transitions into some insanely freaky and upsetting stuff. This film definitely goes further into pure horror more than any of del Toro's work in my eyes. The second half leans away from that pure horror and I lost a small bit of investment but it's still very good. My only gripe is the music which I found really weak, but the production design, atmosphere, and performances are all amazing, and the ending is quite great.
7. The Others
The Others has all the makings of a great ghost movie. It has a big house, a lot of creepiness, but also doesn't rely on horror. It's scary, but it's patient with the scares, instead letting the mystery and patience drive the story forward. When I first saw this it honestly shocked me, and the shock of it is made great by how patient it is. Nicole Kidman is really great, and like I said this just has all the ingredients I love in a ghost story. A ghost story should be scary, but the scares should be accompanying something larger and that is certainly the case here.
6. The Sixth Sense
This is definitely a lot lower than most people will have this one, but there's a lot of ghost movies I love and I haven't seen this in a while. A rewatch might bump it up, but regardless this is a movie I love and no doubt one of the all time great ghost movies. The chemistry between Willis and Haley Joel Osment have a ton of chemistry, and Willis is actually trying which is always great to see. The film doesn't play out as a traditional horror film but still delivers scares when it needs to, which as I've said is something I appreciate, and damn that twist is next level.
5. Beetlejuice
What an absolute classic. This isn't a traditional ghost story by any means, but it's a lot more fun than most of them. Michael Keaton gives what I consider his best performance, and a performance that really goes against the rest of his work. Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, and of course one of my faves Winona Ryder round out a cast that is just unbelievable for a movie like this. The set and costumes are beyond creative and everything is just so much bloody fun.
4. Ghostbusters
Speaking of fun... what kind of ghost list would this be without Ghostbusters! Easily one of the best comedies from the 80s. This ensemble cast is amazing and each member works great off of each other. The plot is absolutely ridiculous, but that's a-okay because it is just so much fun. The music of course is iconic, the costumes are iconic, and this is of course the film that introduced us to the infamous Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. I don't know what else there is to say about this movie, it's one of the all time comedy greats, so I'll finish things off by saying "That's a big twinkie."
3. The Devil's Backbone
After The Shape of Water came out I was eager to watch more work from Guillermo del Toro and this was a film that just really stuck with me. Much like he later does in Pan's Labyrinth, del Toro puts a fantastical story against a real life backdrop which allows both to draw meaning out of each other. This isn't one I usually consider a horror film, but there's no doubt imagery that firmly elicits the genre. This is a film that questions who the real monsters and demons are, and brilliantly crafts the themes of guilt, greed, and grief. This is a film I'd very highly recommend to anyone as it is one of del Toro's best and one of the greatest ghost stories I've ever seen.
2. The Innocents
Circling back to The Haunting of Bly Manor, The Innocents is also based on Henry James' The Turn of the Screw, the central story in the new series. This film is just a perfect ghost story. It has all the classic ghost story elements that I love from The Others but it just does them all perfectly. This is a very patient film, often nodding to something sinister without showing what that something is. This makes the moments of terror all the more impactful, as they are led to by a satisfying while still creepy build up. Despite not always relying on straightforward horror, this is still in my opinion a quite scary movie. There are some images that are hard to shake due to the lingering nature they have, and some moments genuinely startled me. The house is sprawling and creepy, the performances are all incredible, and the film ends in a way that really stuck with me, this is a must watch for fans of the genre and anyone enjoying The Haunting of Bly Manor.
1. The Shining
I really wanted to put The Innocents at number one, but I just couldn't do it. The Shining is a different beast when it comes to horror, and is probably in my all time top 5 for the genre. Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall give two of the genre's best performances, playing both sides of the coin when it comes to fear and playing those sides brilliantly. The Overlook Hotel is one of the most incredible settings in film history, acting almost as a maze alongside the actual hedge maze outside of it. This film has produced some of the greatest horror imagery, and creates an atmospheric sense of fear that never uses and never needs jump scares. Anyone that's been cooped up for too long (like most people during the pandemic) can relate to the sense of madness that starts befalling these characters, even if none of us go Jack Torrance level crazy. This is simply put a masterpiece of the genre, and The Overlook is the ultimate haunted house.
Written by Matt McKenzie
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