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It’s Halloween season, and everyone is looking for an excuse to get a little spooked. Some paranormal movies will be talked about for generations because at the time of their release, they were cutting-edge and absolutely terrifying. They all make sure audiences will reach the end credits thinking something is watching them all night.
Horror films will outlast generations and paranormal films will see that the genre lasts even longer. With special effects and suspenseful storytelling, there’s more than just a jump scare that will make these films stand out.
‘The Exorcist’ (1973)
When young Regan (Linda Blair) becomes possessed by Pazuzu, her family calls for an exorcism to get the demon out. As Regan’s condition worsens, she wreaks havoc on everyone in her household. Both Regan and the demon fight for power as the rest of her family reckons with the fact that she could kill them. Effects like projectile vomiting and a 360-degree rotation of the head have become trademarks of the film.
While not the first paranormal film to exist, The Exorcist broke barriers that no other horror film had accomplished at the time. Several audience members recalled vomiting and having heart attacks from the experience of this film. To this day, The Exorcist stands the test of time as a classic and one of the scariest horror movies to exist.
‘The Ring’ (2002)
The Ring took the friendliness of “be kind, rewind” out of VHS tapes. When Rachel (Naomi Watts), a journalist, covers the death of a teen girl, she discovers a deadly VHS tape. Rachel realizes that when someone watches it, they have seven days until they die a gruesome death. Samara (Daveigh Chase) is a possessed spirit who kills anyone who watches the tape. Rachel does all she can to save herself and those around her before time runs out.
With an uncompleted script, The Ring went into production and found itself from there. A demonic spirit coming out of a shared VHS is the supernatural equivalent of chain mail no one wants to get. This film would go on to have sequel films that are just as terrifying as the first.
‘Paranormal Activity’ (2009)
Paranormal Activity promoted itself as one of the most horrifying films of all time. Using the ingenuity of a home camera, Paranormal Activity documents the life of a young couple in their new home. Both Katie (Katie Featherston) and Micah (Micah Sloat) experience strange happenings in their home and decide to document it with several cameras in their home. This film is meant to be the found footage of the aftermath with each moment becoming deadlier by the minute.
With a very low budget, Paranormal Activity managed to do things no other horror film had done before and brought about a whole new genre of supernatural films. The series continues to scare audiences today with the final installment of the franchise set to release in 2023.
‘The Blair Witch Project’ (1999)
In The Blair Witch Project, Heather (Rei Hance), Josh (Joshua Leonard), and Mike (Michael C Leonard) are three filmmaking students who go to make a documentary of the Blair Witch. What they don’t expect is to document more than a little history. As the story goes on, the three students discover that a serial killer used to live in the woods and go find out what happened, despite knowing other stories that corroborated the woods being haunted. As they uncover more truth, they are discovered by the spirit that haunts the woods, and they become victims themselves.
Using a documentary-style approach to a horror film made it all the more terrifying. By only seeing a certain point of view, audiences are left to fill in the gaps of what really happened to these students.
‘The Conjuring’ (2013)
The Conjuring begins when the Perron family moves into a new home. After realizing that their home used to be inhabited by a killer witch, the Perrons the request help of demonologists, Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) Warren to unravel what’s happening. As the ancient witch makes her way through the family, everyone in that home is on the chopping block with nothing to save them.
The Conjuring led to a successful franchise following the Warrens as they attempted to save others from the paranormal dangers they face. With the fourth film in production, there is no end in sight to when the terrors will be over.
‘Poltergeist’ (1982)
Poltergeist made television a thing to be feared. When the youngest of the family, Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke) begins chatting with the static on the TV, there is something wrong. Eventually, the rest of the house begins to do strange things and the family is convinced that there is another world inside the television trying to come out. Upon finally discovering another dimension, the family flees, convinced never to watch television again.
While not the most terrifying film on the list, Poltergeist takes an everyday item and makes it terrifying. As most horror films do best, this Poltergeist explains the unexplained and does so in the creepiest way possible. No one may truly know what is in the static on the television.
‘Hereditary’ (2018)
Hereditary shows how family can tear each other apart – literally. When Annie (Toni Collette) attends her mother’s funeral, she discovers that there are people she never met before. Later her son Peter (Alex Wolff) goes to a party and Annie insists he takes his younger sister Charlie (Milly Shapiro) with him. On the way home, Peter accidentally kills Charlie. After a séance to communicate with Charlie, Annie and Peter go through hell and back while trying to mourn their loss.
Not only is Hereditary about the guilt of losing someone, but it also plays on the feelings of loss in very different ways. Truly everything is connected, especially family.
‘Last Night in SoHo’ (2021)
While not classified as a horror film, Last Night in SoHo scares audiences with more than just ghosts. When clairvoyant Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) moves to London to start fashion school, she finds that the culture in her dorm is toxic. So, she rents an apartment in SoHo and has dreams about the woman who used to live there, Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy). After noticing how Sandie’s fledging singing career led her to a life of abuse, Eloise sees the ghosts of the men who exploited Sandie. And despite falling in love with the idea of Sandie, Eloise uncovers an even darker truth.
Last Night in SoHo calls on the fears of the supernatural and of abuse because ghosts are not the only things that haunt people. While that twist ending may not have landed with everyone, this film is a testament to classic horror in many ways.
‘The Babadook’ (2014)
In The Babadook, Amelia Vanek (Essie Davis) lives with her son after the loss of her husband in a car crash. Amelia’s son begins acting strange and says there is a monster coming to get him. When he asks her to read a book called Mister Babadook, the pieces start coming together. Then Amelia must contend with the children’s book coming to life when she discovers that the monster her son has been talking about is real.
The Babadook does well to call on how grief can manifest in many ways. With the mystery unfolding at every turn, there is no doubt that this is not the normal haunting story that one would expect.
‘Smile’ (2022)
Based on Laura Hasn’t Slept by Parker Finn, Smile is Finn’s original piece of work made longer. Rose (Sosie Baker) is a psychiatrist who discovers something sinister when she meets Laura (Caitlin Stasey). Laura is convinced that she is being chased by a demon who told her she will die. When Laura herself is possessed by the demon, Rose becomes a target and attempts to run away from her fate, but there is only so much she can do.
As a fresh entry into the horror film world, Smile has already managed to make 10x its budget at the box office alone. Fortunately, using small, everyday things such as a smile can be turned on its head. Both the possession aspects and the jump scares are enough to keep anyone awake at night.
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