Spooky Films for Halloween

As the nights get darker and the days get colder, it’s the perfect season for watching spooky movies, especially as Halloween is around the corner. What better way is there to get into the Halloween spirit than watching horror films? Here is a list of films that I think are perfect for watching around Halloween.

1. A Nightmare on Elm Street

A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 1984 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven. Many argue that this film influenced many other horror films as a “Freddie Krueger” type is featured in many other films such as Prom Night, even if they are not the main antagonist. The story focuses on Freddie Krueger attacking Nancy Thompson and her friends in their dreams. If you are prone to nightmares, then you should probably stay away from this film but otherwise, I would definitely recommend for a Halloween scare.

2. What Lies Beneath

This is the first horror movie that I ever watched. I remember watching this at a sleepover with my friends when I was about 12 years old. What Lies Beneath is a 2000 American psychological horror-thriller film and follows Claire Spencer (Michelle Pfeiffer) who believes that her and her husbands (Harrison Ford) lakeside home is haunted by a ghost – or that she is losing her mind. Even if the plot doesn’t take your fancy, I would watch it just for Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer.

3. The Shining

Although personally, I am not a huge fan of this film, many other people are and I can understand why. The Shining is a 1980 British-American psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. This film is widely recognised as one of the greatest horror films ever made and even Martin Scorsese ranked it one of the 11 scariest horror movies of all time.

4. Psycho

Psycho is a 1960 American psychological horror film directed and produced by Alfred Hitchcock. This film is argued to be the influence of many horror films as it is considered to be the earliest example of the slasher film genre. Film critics and scholars have ranked this film among the greatest films of all time. If this doesn’t persuade you to watch then I don’t know what will. There have been many spin-offs, including Bates Motel. The film focuses on secretary Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), who ends up at a secluded motel after stealing money from her employer, and the motel’s disturbed owner, Normal Bates (Anthony Perkins), and the aftermath.

5. The Woman in Black (2012)

This film is a 2012 British-American supernatural period horror film based on Susan Hill’s 1983 novel of the same name. The Woman in Black follows a young lawyer (Daniel Radcliffe) as he travels to a remote village where he discovers a vengeful ghost of a scorned woman who is terrorising the locals.

6. The Exorcist (1973)

The Exorcist is a 1973 horror supernatural film directed by William Friedkin. The film focuses on a mother who seeks the help of two priests when her teenage daughter is possessed by a mysterious entity. Many people that the film set was ‘cursed’ due to many accidents happened and was previously turned down by Stanley Kubrick and Arthur Penn. This film has had a significant influence on popular culture and is regarded as one of the best horror films in history.

7. Insidious

I have to say, I personally don’t find Insidious scary as it makes me laugh more than scares me. However, I do think that it is an enjoyable film and it good for getting in the spooky spirit. Insidious is a 2010 American-Canadian supernatural horror film directed by James Wan. The film centres on a couple whose son inexplicably enters a comatose state and becomes a vessel in an astral dimension who want to inhabit his body. A sequel and a prequel have been released since.

8. An American Haunting

This is also one of the first horror films that I ever watched, again at a sleepover with my friends. I really enjoyed watching this film and would definitely recommend it. An American Haunting is a 2005 American horror film written and directed by Courtney Solomon. The film switches from the 21st century to the 19th and focuses on a local Tennessee folklore legend.

9. Halloween (1978)

Halloween is a 1978 American independent slasher film directed by John Carpenter. On Halloween in 1963, a six-year-old Michael Myers murders his sister and is committed fifteen years later, he escapes and returns home to kill again. This is one of the first slasher films to be inspired by Psycho. If you struggle to watch graphic violence and gore, then I would recommend this film as it contains very little compares to many other slasher films.

10. Cannibal Holocaust

I do not recommend watching this film but I had to include it in this list. Cannibal Holocaust is a 1980 Italian cannibal exploitation horror film directed by Ruggero Deodato. The film tells the story of a missing documentary film crew who had gone to the Amazon to film cannibal tribes. Many horror films have taken on this documentary-type format as is most famous in The Blair Witch Project. Cannibal Holocaust has been banned in over 50 countries due to several scenes of sexual violence and genuine cruelty to animals. In 2006, Entertainment Weekly magazine named Cannibal Holocaust as the 20th most controversial film of all time.

What are your favourite horror films? Let me know in the comments.