20. House on Haunted Hill (1999)
Dark Castle’s House on Haunted Hill remake had the misfortune of being released at a time when the popular opinion wasn’t in the horror’s corner. The Houston Chronicle bemoaned the film’s third-act “computer-generated spectacle” and my hometown’s paper, The Georgia Straight, dubbed the whole affair “hokey.” Folks, we truly did not know how good we had it. Just squint your eyes when the finale’s FMV jpeg-looking monster shows up — it’s *that* easy. What House on Haunted Hill lacks in visually parsable optical f/x it more than makes up for in production design, a rock-solid cast (Chris Kattan is good here and I’m not afraid to say it!), and a level of maximalist production design that just doesn’t exist anymore. This film has a scene in which Geoffrey Rush cosplaying as Vincent Price on cocaine hallucinates Jeffrey Combs bouncing a dodgeball while trapped inside a water-tank-sized zoetrope. That’s how you know it’s good. If “what if there was a nu metal haunted house film?” sounds up your alley, run, don’t walk, and ignore the decades of negative talk you’ve heard about this much-maligned era in the genre’s history. Blumhouse and company, take note: this is how you do a legacy remake. (Meg Shields)
19. The Night House (2021)
The titular night house does not appear as anything special. It’s a home—a place built to contain love. Beth (Rebecca Hall) spends her nights drinking. Her husband, Owen, recently killed himself. She pours over photos, memorabilia, and his suicide note. Each lost memory calls her toward oblivion. One night, something awakens her, and she runs to the boat where her husband died. The something that pulled her from bed now pushes her to cross the lake, where she finds a duplicate house, a mirror realm. And that’s when solid objects become malleable, bending to rules not associated with reality. The Night House is a deeply upsetting horror story that succeeds with camera tricks and an emotionally torturous performance from Hall. The scares are quick, maybe even a little jumpy, but they linger throughout the remaining plot. No ghost can tear us apart quite like ourselves. (Brad Gullickson)
18. A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
Writer/director Kim Jee-woon is better known for his stellar action/thriller films (I Saw the Devil, The Good the Bad the Weird, The Age of Shadows), but he shows an equally masterful touch with the horror genre. This gem follows a young woman’s return home from a mental hospital as she reunites with her sister and bond together over their shared dislike for their stepmother. That’s already enough darkness for any teen, but as the film unfolds things only grow more nightmarish. Ghosts hide in the shadows, abuse threatens to shatter the idyllic illusion of family life, and the truth about what brought them all to this point sits waiting to pounce. Some films with big finale reveals suffer on rewatch, but Kim’s horror masterpiece retains its power even when you know what’s coming. Beautifully shot, exquisitely crafted, and creepy as hell, the film builds to an emotional gut punch that leaves a mark. (Rob Hunter)
17. Thirteen Ghosts (2001)
Dark Castle Entertainment had a pretty good run in the early aughts with the likes of House on Haunted Hill, Ghost Ship, and House of Wax — none of them are exactly masterpieces, but goddamn are they entertaining. Slickly produced, wonderfully gory, and in full embrace of nonsensical horror conventions, the films know exactly what they’re doing. Thirteen Ghosts updates the William Castle flick with fantastic production design, R-rated thrills, and the kind of goofy humor that makes you roll your eyes even as you’re laughing. A family inherits a fancy, high-tech house made of glass, no strings attached, but please don’t release the wicked and deadly ghosts in the basement… and these are awesomely designed ghosts with nicknames like The Torso, The Angry Princess, and The Jackal. They are wicked. This isn’t a haunted house movie you put on to be scared, this is one you put on to entertain the hell out of you. (Rob Hunter)
16. House (1985)
After his aunt commits suicide, author Roger Cobb (William Katt) decides to move into her old house — and his childhood home — to work on his latest novel. But things are complicated for Roger. He’s going through a public divorce from his celebrity wife (Kay Lenz), heartbroken from the strange disappearance of his son, struggling with Vietnam flashbacks, and dealing with a nosy neighbor (George Wendt). Also, his house is very much haunted. Steve Miner‘s House is a lot of movies wrapped into one. The horror-comedy is part haunted house movie, part war movie, and part creature feature. The unique blending works well together and the final result is a fun slice of 80s horror that is heavy on practical effects featuring elaborate puppet work and classic man-in-suit monsters. House may not be the best haunted house movie, but it is one of the most fun. (Chris Coffel)
15. Sinister (2012)
Look, we try not to blame characters for the horrific situations they end up in, but if you learn about a family viciously murdered and your instinct is to move into the house, you kinda have it coming. Good thing Sinister has Ethan Hawke’s compelling and likable performance leading the charge. Hawke stars as Ellison Oswalt, a true crime writer whose desire to get close to the case he’s writing about leads his family directly into danger. But when Ellison happens upon disturbing 8mm “home movies” in his new home’s attic, it appears as though bad vibes aren’t the only things lingering from the previous inhabitants. Legitimately shocking and genuinely scary, Sinister offers an especially ominous twist on haunted house tropes with some clever and effective film techniques to go along with the frights. (Anna Swanson)
14. The Uninvited (1944)
Oh, to live next to the crashing waves of the ocean in a stunning haunted house. During a holiday on the English coast, brother-sister duo Roderick and Pamela Fitzgerald stumble across a seemingly vacant estate and feel compelled to buy it. Their impulsive purchase begins to sour when they learn about the tragedy that befell the previous owners: a cliff-side suicide whose reverberations seem to still haunt the manor’s creaking walls. Further complicating matters, Roderick has fallen in love with Stella, the orphaned daughter of the house’s original owners. As the hauntings continue, the trio begins to suspect there is a connection between Stella’s old family secrets and the ghostly happenings taking place at Windward House. Melding paranormal activity with melodrama and a lighter tone, The Uninvited is the kind of haunted house movie you watch curled up on your couch on a rainy Sunday morning. Groundbreaking and oddly cozy in equal measure, The Uninvited laid the groundwork for many films on this list, taking the supernatural seriously rather than undermining itself with man-made trickery or camp. (Meg Shields)
13. House on Haunted Hill (1959)
House on Haunted Hill is a fiendishly wicked film that only reveals its dastardly nature until the last few moments. Vincent Price plays an eccentric millionaire who invites five seemingly random guests to spend a night in his haunted estate. As the film winds its way toward its conclusion, the viewer begins to catch on to the painfully banal human evil at the film’s center. When Price is on screen, can you ever trust him, right? Not a chance. Director William Castle concocted House on Haunted Hill as an extrasensory experience. If you ever find a theater willing to jump through his 4D hoops, you owe it to yourself to purchase as many tickets for your friends as possible. I’ve watched House on Haunted Hill numerous times at home. It’s always a blast. However, the one time I saw the flick at the AFI Silver in Maryland, complete with ushers running screaming down the aisles as skeletons flew overhead on strings, I reached a horror movie nirvana I’ve never hit since. (Brad Gullickson)
12. The Others (2001)
Ominous and tense, The Others is a slow-burn gothic mystery with atmosphere to spare. Nicole Kidman stars as Grace, the lady of the house in 1940s England. With a husband away at war and two children with a mysterious sensitivity to sunlight, Grace is desperate to protect both her family and her home from the ghostly beings that are appearing with increasing frequency. But why are the servants acting strange? And what’s really up with Grace’s insistence that her children cannot go into the sunlight? I won’t say more in case you’re able to go into this movie unspoiled, an experience that we cannot recommend enough. And even if you know how it all plays out, The Others is a truly haunting and upsetting film that’s well worth revisiting. (Anna Swanson)
11. Dark Water (2002)
The creepiest ghost stories seem to center on strange little kids, and Hideo Nakata‘s Dark Water is no different. Amid a messy divorce and custody battle, Yoshimi (Hitomi Kuroki) must prove she can properly provide for her young daughter, Ikuko (Rio Kanno). Yoshimi gets a new job, enrolls Ikuko in school, and rents a two-bedroom apartment. Unfortunately, it’s a rundown apartment with a serious water problem. Yoshimi reaches out to building management, but they’re unresponsive. Meanwhile, Ikuko finds a mysterious red bag that is the key to a dark mystery hidden deep within the apartment complex. Dark Water is a bit of a slow burn, creating chilling suspense with what the film doesn’t show you. Eventually, the tension boils over with a payoff that is one of the all-time great scares of 21st-century horror. (Chris Coffel)
