Weary of vampires, werewolves and the odd zombie apocalypse?
Guess whos going to get her faith in science shattered?
Extra points for a cheekily ambiguous ending.
Watch The Awakening on Amazon Prime
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24.
And how do you stop ghosts from dripping pond weed all over your carpet?
Watch The Gift on Amazon
23.
And there are certainly high jinks in the boys dormitory.
And the children do have to band together to outsmart the bad guys.
Its practically a Famous five book.
Watch The Devils Backbone on Amazon Prime
22.
Buy Haunted on Amazon
21.
Then theres the little bag which her daughter keeps finding no matter how many times it gets thrown away…
The suspense builds with the ephemeral appearances of the (now classic) creepy little girl ghost.
The Sixth Sense (1999)
Writer and directorM.
Night Shyamalanhad his big break with this movie, causing quite an uproar with the now infamous twist.
The question now is, does the wisdom of hindsight suck all the fun out of it?
Actually, it stands up to repeat viewings pretty well.
Thanks, Jack Dee.
Watch The Sixth Sense on Amazon Prime
18.
Buy The Changeling on Amazon
17.
This is one of his finest, and possibly the best match of subject matter and his gothic style.
With Johnny Depp, its brilliant.
Watch Sleepy Hollow on Amazon Prime
16.
And isnt that the very best kind of movie?
Watch Tale of Two Sisters on Amazon Prime
15.
You should be innocent and receptive.
(The old dog.)
Watch The Haunting on Amazon Prime
14.
All the same, I will confess…
Turns out, not all remakes are bad!
Watch The Uninvited on Amazon Prime
13.
Or people who visit that home.
Or, dammit, random people who work in the same building with someone who visited the home.
Ghosts dont need valid motivations, ok?
Some of the acting (particularly in the first half) is distinctly dodgy.
As a coherent movie plot which makes sense, it fails somewhat.
Watch Ju-On on Amazon
12.
But is there really anything wrong, or is it all in her head?
Shes been told by their father whatever happens, you must handle it alone.
Director Jack Clayton creates an incredibly chilling atmosphere and a story which is ambiguous enough to have several interpretations.
Buy The Innocents on Amazon
11.
Gigantic monsters are chasing you and youre still looking at them through a viewfinder?)
Watch Paranormal Activity on Amazon Prime
10. further reading: The Best Modern Horror Movies
Where would horror films be without photographic dark rooms?
Even in the digital age, the dim red light and slowly emerging pictures remain classic tools of terror.
Not to mention the room with rows of jars containing pickled animals, and the surprise homage toPsycho.
This story has it all.
The mystery deepens as more sinister evidence comes to light and the climax is truly chilling.
This is one which will stay with you long after Halloween.
Buy Shutter on Amazon
9.
When Claire starts seeing faces in the bathtub (where else?)
she goes to talk it over with a psychiatrist.
Watch What Lies Beneath on Amazon Prime
8. which somehow causes the death of anyone who watches it.
Sadako (Rie Inoo) is a very scary ghost.
Buy Ringu on Amazon
7.
Ghostbusters (1984)
If youre looking for some light relief… who you gonna call?
(Plus, as we all know, it has the best theme tune ever.)
Could this be a sign of worse things to come?
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria?
Things arent so fun when their kids get sucked into a tree and the TV, respectively.
(I bet theyre ruing the day they got genuine skeletons to cut costs.
What was that about respecting the dead?)
Watch Poltergeist on Amazon Prime
5. and just watch them start trembling.
To watch this film is to experience an overwhelming sense of dread on behalf of our protagonist Mr Kidd.
Buy The Woman in Black on Amazon
4.
Its just delightfully surreal.)
The tension builds to almost unbearable heights before a truly haunting ending.
Watch The Others on Amazon Prime
3.
He might have a sack over his head, but whats a little creepy mask between pals?
Simon is adopted, so its only a little odd when a social worker shows up without an appointment.
Its slightly more odd that shes snooping around in the shed at night.
Director JA Bayona makes every shot count; the movie is visually beautiful as well as fantastically sinister.
By the way, this is a bona fide horror film but the ending might make you cry.
Watch The Orphanage on Amazon Prime
2.
Dont Look Now (1973)
Because every scary movie list should feature something written by Daphne Du Maurier.
If you dont already know how the movie ends, its a stunner.
Watch Dont Look Now on Amazon Prime
1.
Anyone not familiar with the story?
Thats a little extreme.
No adverse effects here.
Did I mention the hotel was built on an Indian burial ground?
Its hard to say whats more nauseating Nicholson snogging a decomposing old lady or the 1970s decor.
Before all the screaming starts, this is a slow release atmospheric time bomb.
