The Best and Scariest Haunt Films
My favorite film genre is the Haunt genre, and as such I've seen hundreds of haunt films ranging in age from the late 1800's to the present. Check my 'Haunt Films I've Watched' list for a full listing of what I've seen, as well as a definition for what I consider to be a "haunt" film, and more detailed reviews of many of these films.
From an avid fan of the haunt genre, here is, in alphabetical order, what I consider constitutes the best of the genre, aside from what I have yet to watch.
Keep in mind that this list is comprised of haunt films only, not horror, which is a different genre entirely, though the two genres are frequently combined into the sub-genre I refer to as haunt horror. For example, Casper (1995) is haunt but not horror, and [REC] (2007) is horror but not haunt. Everything currently in this list happens to be haunt horror.
From an avid fan of the haunt genre, here is, in alphabetical order, what I consider constitutes the best of the genre, aside from what I have yet to watch.
Keep in mind that this list is comprised of haunt films only, not horror, which is a different genre entirely, though the two genres are frequently combined into the sub-genre I refer to as haunt horror. For example, Casper (1995) is haunt but not horror, and [REC] (2007) is horror but not haunt. Everything currently in this list happens to be haunt horror.
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- DirectorDavid F. SandbergStarsAnthony LaPagliaSamara LeeMiranda OttoTwelve years after the tragic death of their little girl, a doll-maker and his wife welcome a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage into their home, where they become the target of the doll-maker's possessed creation, Annabelle.There were quite a few decent creepy moments in this one, as well as some unique things I haven't seen done before. It had not just one but two completely different scenes of a haunted barn, and a wide variety of fantastic haunt environments in and around a wonderfully creepy old house. The story was decent with a nice pace and likeable characters and had two endings, one that ended the primary story and one that tied up the entire Annabelle story in a satisfyingly surprising way. Overall this is a very good haunt film, one of the better ones I've seen.
- DirectorNick MurphyStarsRebecca HallDominic WestImelda StauntonIn 1921, England is overwhelmed by the loss and grief of World War I. Hoax exposer Florence Cathcart visits a boarding school to explain sightings of a child ghost. Everything she believes unravels as the 'missing' begin to show themselves.A good film overall, but not that scary. If someone were to ask me to recommend the most well made haunt films I would have to include this one. A combination of being a period film, a ghost hunter / hoax debunker film, and a well written story have landed this film a spot in this list.
- DirectorJennifer KentStarsEssie DavisNoah WisemanDaniel HenshallA single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book titled "Mister Babadook" manifests in their home.Leaving aside the boring scenes of the protagonists psychosis and terrible attempts at child rearing, this film is uniquely terrifying.
- DirectorWilliam Brent BellStarsLauren CohanRupert EvansJames RussellAn American nanny is shocked that her new English family's boy is actually a life-sized doll. After she violates a list of strict rules, disturbing events make her believe that the doll is really alive.Not really a scary film, as I can only recall getting one good jolt of fear throughout the entirety of it, but overall it was very well done. It's a refreshingly unique take on the evil doll sub-genre of haunt films.
- DirectorDan CurtisStarsKaren BlackOliver ReedBurgess MeredithA family moves into a large old mansion in the countryside which seems to have a mysterious and sinister power over its new residents.No jump scares are to be found here. This film relies purely on creep for its terror. The creepiness is almost tangible right from the start, with slow camera movements and a delightfully creepy 1970's soundscape creating the feeling that something just isn't right. I consider this film to be the pinnacle of "the house is alive" sub-genre of haunt films.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGeorge C. ScottTrish Van DevereMelvyn DouglasAfter experiencing tragic personal losses, a music professor rents a Seattle mansion, haunted by a slain boy.A full movies worth of buildup for one of the greatest most drawn out thrills I've ever gotten in my life.
- DirectorJames WanStarsPatrick WilsonVera FarmigaRon LivingstonParanormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse.If I were to rank the best haunted house films ever made in numerical order, this would be number 1. Director James Wan is a genius when it comes to making terror come across on film.
- DirectorJames WanStarsVera FarmigaPatrick WilsonMadison WolfeEd and Lorraine Warren travel to North London to help a single mother raising four children alone in a house plagued by a supernatural spirit.This is one of the best haunt films ever made. The tension and fear were fantastic. James Wan is the Alfred Hitchcock of haunt horror, it's just not done this well without him behind the helm. It was a perfectly crafted clockwork of a film, designed to create the scariest vibe possible, and it succeeded.
- DirectorGuillermo del ToroStarsMia WasikowskaJessica ChastainTom HiddlestonIn the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds - and remembers.An extremely well produced period film that uses isolation and color to accentuate the terror the protagonist feels as she unravels the mystery of the crumbling haunted mansion she's been forced to move into. One of Guillermo del Toro's finest works of art.
- DirectorGuillermo del ToroStarsMarisa ParedesEduardo NoriegaFederico LuppiAfter Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.While not exactly scary, this Spanish language film is one of the most well produced ghost stories I've ever seen. What scares this film does contain come not from the ghosts, but from the live antagonist and poor living situation the protagonists are forced to deal with.
- StarsTimothy SpallEleanor Worthington-CoxJuliet StevensonAn 11 year-old Janet terrorized by the paranormal activity permeating every room - or so she'd like everyone to believe; especially Mr. Grosse, the doting researcher who goes to great lengths to protect her from the strange, dark forces.Being based on a true story in combination with good cinematography and storytelling is what gets this 3 part mini-series into this list. Some of the haunt scenes are delightfully frightening to watch.
- DirectorSteven R. MonroeStarsSarah LindDevon SawaGina HoldenTaking place years after The Haunting of Molly Hartley, who now, as an adult, has fallen under the possession of an evil spirit and must be exorcised by a fallen priest before the devil completely takes her.The best exorcism film I've yet seen, and I've seen most of them. This sequel to The Haunting of Molly Hartley (2008) is far superior to its predecessor, and you wouldn't need to see the original to jump right into this one and know what's going on. It does a few things differently than the conventional exorcism movie and has some nice twists.
- DirectorOz PerkinsStarsRuth WilsonPaula PrentissBob BalabanA young nurse takes care of an elderly author who lives in a haunted house.The lighting in this film was some of the best I've ever seen in a haunt film. It's not that scary but it has a few good creepy moments and one top-notch spine tingling scene, and it's an excellent example of good haunt filmmaking.
- DirectorJames WanStarsPatrick WilsonRose ByrneTy SimpkinsA family looks to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose child in a realm called The Further.Multiple moments of sheer terror. This film does it right by building up the tension to near breaking point and then either not showing or only briefly showing the objects of terror. This would be number 3 on my list, below The Conjuring (2013) and The Conjuring 2 (2016), if I were to use numerical order to rank the best haunted house films ever made.
- DirectorJames WanStarsPatrick WilsonRose ByrneBarbara HersheyThe Lamberts believe that they have defeated the spirits that have haunted their family, but they soon discover that evil is not beaten so easily.Not quite as good as the original, but a good sequel that completes the story started in the first film and even gives answers to what was causing much of the haunting in the first film.
- DirectorLeigh WhannellStarsDermot MulroneyStefanie ScottAngus SampsonA prequel set before the haunting of the Lambert family that reveals how gifted psychic Elise Rainier reluctantly agrees to use her ability to contact the dead in order to help a teenage girl who has been targeted by a dangerous supernatural entity.Not quite as good as the previous two films, but it keeps the pace of the previous two and offers unique new scares.
- DirectorJohn D. HancockStarsZohra LampertBarton HeymanKevin O'ConnorA recently institutionalized woman has bizarre experiences after moving into a supposedly haunted country farmhouse and fears she may be losing her sanity once again.The soundscape rules this film. Possibly the best use I've ever heard sound put to in a horror film. It would be nothing more than a sub-par B horror film without it, but with the chilling 70's-esque soundscape it turns into a psychological nightmare.
- DirectorDanny PangOxide Chun PangStarsDylan McDermottPenelope Ann MillerKristen StewartAn ominous darkness invades a seemingly serene sunflower farm in North Dakota, and the Solomon family is torn apart by suspicion, mayhem and murder.With its violent and terrifying haunt scenes, this film would be number 4 on my list, below The Conjuring (2013) and its sequel, and Insidious (2010), if I were to use numerical order to rank the best haunted house films ever made.
- DirectorJ.A. BayonaStarsBelén RuedaFernando CayoRoger PríncepA woman brings her family back to her childhood home, which used to be an orphanage for handicapped children. Before long, her son starts to communicate with an invisible new friend.This Spanish language film makes the list simply because it's just a good film. A few good scares are scattered throughout, with a simple yet terrifying looking cloth sack mask on a child's head being utilized to good effect on several occasions, but the heart of what makes this film good is the overall story and its wonderful ending.
- DirectorOle BornedalStarsNatasha CalisJeffrey Dean MorganKyra SedgwickA young girl buys an antique box at a yard sale, unaware that inside the collectible lives a malicious ancient spirit. The girl's father teams with his ex-wife to find a way to end the curse upon their child.Quite possibly the best demonic possession film I've ever seen. I will never be able to erase the image from my mind, of a little girl on all fours in the kitchen sobbing while trying to swallow an entire raw steak in one bite.
- DirectorAndrew JonesStarsSuzie Frances GartonLee BaneFlynn AllenIn this chilling story based on real life events a family experience terrifying supernatural occurrences when their son acquires a vintage doll called Robert.The best evil doll film I've seen. Most evil dolls are kind of goofy, but Robert is something anybody in their right mind would slowly back away from regardless of the fact that it's "just a doll."
- StarsNancy TravisMatt KeeslarKimberly J. BrownA college professor and a team of psychics investigate mysterious deaths and disappearances at an old abandoned mansion.While not that scary overall, this mini-series is stuffed full of scary imagery and personifies the idea of the classic haunted mansion. With a nearly 4 and a half hour total run time it makes you feel like you've actually spent a significant amount of time getting to know the horrifying nature of this beast of a building.
- DirectorScott DerricksonStarsEthan HawkeJuliet RylanceJames RansoneA controversial true-crime writer finds a box of Super 8 home movies in his new home, revealing that the murder case he is currently researching could be the work of an unknown serial killer whose legacy dates back to the 1960s.The title of this film could easily be changed to "Disturbing" and it would fit it perfectly. I just about wanted to turn it off within the first few minutes, not out of fright, but out of decency. However, if you can get past repeatedly watching an 8mm snuff film of an entire family with bags over their heads hanging by nooses from a tree with their legs kicking helplessly at the air, this film has some moments of sheer terror and will likely keep you guessing until the end.
- DirectorIain SoftleyStarsKate HudsonPeter SarsgaardJoy BryantA hospice nurse working at a spooky New Orleans plantation home finds herself entangled in a mystery involving the house's dark past.Full of suspense, the true terror of this film doesn't come until it's over and you start thinking back on it, putting yourself into the shoes of the protagonists.
- DirectorAdam RobitelStarsJill LarsonAnne RamsayMichelle AngAn elderly woman battling Alzheimer's disease agrees to let a film crew document her condition, but what they discover is something far more sinister going on.If Alzheimer's was not the actual cause of an elderly patient's mind slipping away, but instead it was demonic possession, this is what might happen. This film makes the list due to how well it shows the reality of how close Alzheimer's actually seems to be to fictional demonic possession.
- DirectorJesse HollandAndy MittonStarsAnnette O'TooleClark FreemanJohn GloverMiles Grissom offers $30,000 to the first person who can prove to him that we go on after death.Despite having a lot of the typical haunt film tropes in it this film is a whole new take on the genre. If you want to see a unique haunt film I highly recommend this one. Just don't expect a lot of scares, dread or any kind of creepy feeling from it.
- DirectorGregory JacobsStarsEmily BluntAshton HolmesMartin DonovanTwo college students share a ride home for the holidays, but when they break down on a deserted stretch of road, they are preyed upon by the ghosts of people who have died there.This film is just okay and not really all that scary, but it made it into this list specifically for the haunted car scene, due to its uniqueness. When I say "haunted car scene" I should be more specific. Practically the entire movie takes place in the car. But in one particular scene the ghosts haunt the hell out of the car, and that scene is quite unique in the haunt genre.
- DirectorJames WatkinsStarsDaniel RadcliffeJanet McTeerCiarán HindsA young solicitor travels to a remote village where he discovers that the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman is terrorizing the locals.This film uses just about every haunt trope in existence yet still maintains a wonderfully creepy atmosphere. Far superior to the original and the sequel has nothing on it.
- DirectorTom HarperStarsHelen McCroryJeremy IrvinePhoebe Fox40 years after the first haunting at Eel Marsh House, a group of children evacuated from WWII London arrives, awakening the house's darkest inhabitant.A good film overall, but not that scary. This film is in the list specifically for the haunted decoy airfield scene, due to the uniqueness of the haunted environment.
- DirectorJason DeVanStarsJessica BarthSydney SweeneyMatt DallasAfter a troubled childhood, Ashley searches for a connection, and unknowingly invites in a demonic force, which leaves her loved ones fighting for her soul.Not a great movie overall, but the haunt scenes are fantastically terrifying. They are the very thing that I've watched hundreds of haunt films in search of but rarely find. A scene near the beginning when two kids are in a bathroom in the middle of the night was literally jaw dropping and made the hairs on my arms stand on end. I had to go back and watch that part several times because I was so in awe of what I'd just seen and wanted more clarity on it. A good many other scenes were similar, putting a huge grin on my face (the scarier something is the bigger I grin.) This one is definitely worth a watch despite its overall sub-par quality.