Haunted House Movies

Today’s episode of Sounds of Cinema continued the month-long Halloween theme with a look at haunted house pictures. What follows are the movies discussed on today’s show as well as some additional titles.

1408
Based on a short story by Stephen King, a writer who specializes in debunking paranormal activity checks into a fabled haunted hotel. The movie had two endings, one that was shown in theaters and another, darker ending, that was included on the home video release.


The Amityville Horror
The Amityville Horror was based on the supposedly true story of a haunting experienced by the Lutz family in their Long Island home. The facts in the case have been a matter of dispute but that controversy only added to the mystery of the Amityville haunting. The 1979 movie was enormously successful and inspired a series of sequels although the follow ups had little to do with the original material.


The Beyond
Lucio Fulci is one of the legendary directors in the horror genre. His movies were mostly known for their gore but he mounted ambitious productions on small budgets. One of the most popular titles among Fulci’s cult following is 1983’s The Beyond (also known as The Seven Doors of Death). The movie concerns a hotel constructed over a gateway to hell. At the time of its release the movie was subject to censorship and like most of Fulci’s films it was critically derided but it has since achieved a modest reputation as a surrealistic horror title.


The Changeling
A man mourning the death of his wife and child rents an isolated mansion and is accosted by the spirit of a murdered child. Martin Scorsese named The Changeling one of his favorite horror films.


The Haunting
One of the great titles in the history of haunted house movies is 1963’s The Haunting. Based on Shirley Jackson’s novel The Haunting of Hill House and directed by Robert Wise (who also helmed The Sound of Music and The Day the Earth Stood Still), The Haunting involves a scientist testing paranormal researchers in a haunted mansion. The film is so effective because of its use of suggestion. That was lost on the makers of the 1999 remake.


Hellraiser
The Hellraiser franchise is now synonymous with the character of Pinhead but the original movie is really a haunted house picture. A married couple move into the husband’s childhood home but the reanimated corpse of the husband’s older brother is living in the attic and he seduces the wife into bringing him victims so that he can regenerate the rest of his body. Hellraiser was one of the best horror pictures of the 1980s and it’s one of the best debut features by a director in the genre.


House
A troubled novelist moves into the home of his recently deceased aunt in order to complete his next book. The movie isn’t a horror comedy but some of the visuals are a bit silly in a way that makes the movie campy fun. Interestingly, House was produced by Sean Cunningham, director of Friday the 13th, and directed by Steve Miner, who helmed Friday the 13th Part 2 and 3.


House on Haunted Hill
Directed by William Castle and starring Vincent Price, The House on Haunted Hill tells the story of a millionaire who offers ten thousand dollars to five people who agree to be locked in a spooky house overnight.


Monster House
Monster House is a good example of a family movie that respects the intelligence of both kids and their parents. This is an animated film but it gets pretty intense and is thematically heavy while managing to be appropriate for the family audience.


A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
The second film in the Elm Street series combines a slasher film with a possession movie and a haunted house story. Taking place in the home were Freddy Krueger was defeated in the original picture, the sequel sees the villain attempting to cross from dreams into the real world.


The Orphanage
A couple renovates an orphanage into a home for handicapped children and their son plays with imaginary friend who might be ghosts. The Orphanage is a very thoughtful haunted house picture. It may not deliver the shocks of a mainstream horror film but it does tap into something that is mysterious about childhood.


The Others
Written and directed by Alejandro Amenábar, The Others is a very effective haunted house movie. The story concerns a mother and her two children who have an allergic reaction to sunlight. The mother maintains strict control over the household but her grip is disrupted by supernatural phenomena.


Paranormal Activity
The glut of sequels has pushed the series into absurdity but the original Paranormal Activity was a very effective found footage movie.


The Shining
Based on the book by Stephen King, The Shining has been adapted twice. The more popular version is the 1980 motion picture directed by Stanley Kubrick. This film starred Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall as a married couple who spend the winter as caretakers of an isolated hotel and the husband gradually goes insane. King was unhappy with Kubrick’s film, as it diverged greatly from the novel, and he produced a made-for-television remake that aired on ABC in 1997.


Poltergeist
Poltergeist was a very intense and quite successful haunted house picture in which a family’s young daughter is abducted by ghosts. Released in 1982, the movie was rated PG but it is more intense than that rating suggests. Poltergeist inspired two sequels and a television series. A remake of the original film was released in 2015.


What Lies Beneath
Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer play a couple whose marriage is strained by the wife’s visions that might be supernatural or the result of head trauma.