It's that time of the year again when people willingly and more openly let movies and TV shows increase their fears and anxieties. At the forefront of all the awesome Halloween media on Netflix comes the prequel to the horrific The Haunting of the Hill House which is The Haunting of Bly Manor. It's dramatically different compared to its predecessor but the horror is there alright.
Those looking for more ways to scare themselves or the people who might have thought that Bly Manor is less frightening than Hill House, might want to check similar haunted house-themed shows. Turns out haunted houses and ghosts haunting someone, in particular, are now more popular than ever. Hence, these 10 shows and movies should satisfy that adrenaline and horror craving.
10 THE CONJURING
By far one of the most terrifying haunted house film in the history of Hollywood movies, The Conjuring is a fresh and modern take on an aging formula. It re-tells the exploits of the famed real-life demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren based on their case files over the years of their practice.
The film's story revolves around the Perron family who recently moved into an old farmhouse which, to nobody's surprise in the film theater, was infested with malevolent ghosts who had a satanic history. This was director James Wan's finest horror movie to date and likely his magnum opus if his fans have anything to say about it.
9 AMERICAN HORROR STORY
American Horror Story is a well-received horror anthology series that compiles some harrowing tales from different horror formats, including haunted houses. The series has been around for nine seasons so this one is great for show marathon sessions.
Many of the themes in American Horror Story's episode features haunted places of some sort including a house with many secrets and an asylum with many lost souls. Other places include a farm, a coven, and even a post-apocalyptic setting for those wanting a different flavor of frights.
8 HEREDITARY
As far as unconventional horror movies go, Hereditary is up there with the oddballs. It's a traumatic experience that showcases witchcraft generously as the plot is all about a family cursed to be a sacrificial lamb for the demon king Paimon.
As such, it depicts witchcraft iconography more ominously compared to their modern peaceful counterparts. It's a more unique take on the haunted family trope in horror movies, for that matter, with a more vulnerable and troubled cast. Along the way, it explores subjects of grief, insanity, and trauma that makes the film's climax sink to a dark descent of madness not usually seen in other films of the same genre.
7 HAUNTED
What could be scarier than supposed real-life accounts of dread? That's what Netflix's Haunted aims to bring to the table. It's not fiction and it's not even a horror-drama show but a documentary series which tries to deal with facts as much as it can.
In that regard, Haunted is a reenactment compilation of several ghost and scary stories that ought to send a chill up anyone's spine. From haunted apartments plagued by ghostly women hanging from closets to serial killer parents, watching Haunted should be a nice alternative to gathering around the campfire in the middle of the forest, telling made-up stories about Big Foot. Some of these are real enough.
6 THE ORPHANAGE
What could be more terrifying than a haunted house? Well, how about a haunted house full of children who can't leave? The Orphanage served that nightmare-trigger exquisitely back when it was released in 2007. It's a foreign language film from Spain and is even produced by famed director Guillermo del Toro himself.
Now, haunted house horror films have this penchant of making the children as ghost magnets possibly to symbolize their vulnerability and the fear of parents. The Orphanage is no different as it puts a former orphan Laura and her son in situations machinated by none other than malevolent supernatural beings, possibly some long un-adopted orphans who weren't given the proper sendoff to the afterlife.
5 JU-ON ORIGINS
For those who are not yet tired of The Grudge films and their less than optimal American remakes, then Ju-On Origins should be a priority. It further explores the nature of the curse that befell the specific household in the original Grudge or Ju-On movies.
Since it was only released this year in the midst of a global pandemic, it went relatively unnoticed but make no mistake, it's a lot more hardcore and even violent than its film counterparts. The series follows a familiar horror format where some curious researcher or journalist throws away their life and sanity to dig up the origins of the said curse-- all for our viewing displeasure.
4 OCULUS
Not to be confused with the VR device, Oculus is another sleeper hit from back in 2013 which seems to have been overshadowed by more mainstream heavyweights like The Conjuring which also released that year. Still, it's a worthy contender and a groundbreaking haunted house horror film to boot.
Oculus is one of the most unique horror films in existence as it successfully tells two stories from 11 years apart and makes them intersect in a gruesome and freaky manner. The story begins when two siblings reunite again after several years apart and now have to deal with a sinister killer antique mirror that led to their parents' psychosis.
3 GHOST HUNTERS
Looking for more horror houses? Why not take a peek at some of the most notorious actual ones all throughout North America in Ghost Hunters. It's a reality show/documentary that showcases the ghosthunting activities of The Atlantic Paranormal Society.
It's a classic ghosthunting show where they usually arrive at the site at nighttime to maximize the fear factor and utilize high-tech sensory equipment to hopefully capture paranormal activities. It's been around since 2004 so there's plenty of episodes and drama to watch in this show.
2 INSIDIOUS
Insidious is one of the horror movies that put James Wan on the esteemed horror pedestal as one of the most recognizable directors in the genre. It's a clever horror house movie that takes full advantage of silence, eerie screeching soundtracks, as well as creepy surreal imagery to spook the audience.
The result was a visually entertaining and horrific spectacle with not much reliance on cheap jumpscares. Although, the second half of the film becomes somewhat less serious thanks to over-explanation and the wacky exorcist groups. Still, Insidious redefined the horror house formula which was a tall order back when it was released.
1 MARIANNE
Technically, it's not the house that's haunted in the show Marianne but the person. However, any place that person goes to becomes haunted by technicality so it counts. Besides, who would want to miss this hidden French gem of a horror flick this Halloween? Marianne is what transpires when an author suddenly finds out that the characters she wrote in her book suddenly became alive and manifested into her world.
It just so happens that one of those characters is Marianne, a witch who can kill in the most brutal supernatural ways. Unfortunately, the protagonist author also hasn't written a way of defeating Marianne in her books. Make sure to get the blankets ready as well as a buddy to scream with when watching this one, you've been warned.
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