Loveland, Ohio – With Halloween just around the corner and Fall weather officially here scary movie marathons are in full swing! There is nothing better than a good scare to get you in the mood for the 31st! So you’re not sure what scary movies to add to your Halloween movie marathon? Well, you have come to the right place! Here is PART 2 of my guide to the Top 10 Best Halloween movies!
5. Lights Out, 2016, directed by David F. Sandberg and produced by James Wan, Lawrence Grey, and Eric Heisserer
The title of this film is spooky in itself because during the season of Halloween who honestly likes the “lights out?” The film Lights Out is based on an evil entity in the form of a girl named Diana. Diana meets Sophie, played by Maria Bello when Sophie is a young girl and eventually Diana dies for reasons I don’t want to give away! Diana then attaches her insidious spirit to Sophie and makes it her sole mission to have Sophie all to herself…FOREVER! Sophie’s evil conduit (a demonic spirit that attaches itself to a person or object) then begins to haunt Sophie’s daughter Rebecca, played by Teresa Palmer, and Sophie’s son Martin, played by Gabriel Bateman. The most horrifying part of this film is that Diana can only be seen or cause harm when the lights are out! This supernatural horror film is of course produced by my FAVORITE, the legendary James Wan, which means this film definitely includes some terrifying scenes that will leave you keeping the lights on long after the film’s over! Lights Out is a film that is bound to make you jump out of your seat so don’t forget to secure your popcorn!
4. It, 1990 (original), based on the Stephen King novel, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace and written by Tommy Lee Wallace and Lawrence D. Cohen, It: Chapter 1, 2017 (adaptation), directed by Andy Muschietti and produced by Roy Lee, Dan Lin, Seth Grahame-Smith, David Katzenberg and Barbara Muschietti
I honestly don’t even know where to start when it comes to this film! Let’s just address now that It was responsible for most of the nightmares I had as a kid so when it was re-released in 2017 I was definitely excited to see the film, but not excited for the nightmares to start up again! The film It, which was based on a novel written by the infamous Stephen King, begins its terrifying tale in Derry, Maine in the 1960s where an evil murderous clown named Pennywise, begins to kidnap and kill the children of Derry. When Pennywise takes a young child named Georgie, he finds himself being challenged by 7 outcast kids, one of the kids being Georgie’s brother Billy, that vow to do whatever they can to take Pennywise down for good. If being a murderous clown isn’t scary enough Pennywise can also transform himself into his “victim’s” worst fear causing the victim to succumb to Pennywise’s “light” (the film will explain what the light is) allowing Pennywise to take and keep the victim’s soul forever. This film has so many scenes that will not only make you close your eyes but also close your ears because of Pennywise’s chilling voice! The original It was the film I was first introduced to Pennywise, played by Tim Curry, and I can definitely say with confidence that I have never experienced a scarier clown in a film until It: Chapter 1, an adaptation of the original, was released in 2017. Bill Skarsgard was selected to play the role of Pennywise and to my pleasant surprise scared me just as much as Curry did in the original! The 2017 cast was also selected in a way that I thought worked just as well as the original cast. Fan favorites Finn Wolfhard from Stranger Things, Sophia Lillis from Sharp Objects and Jeremy Ray Taylor from Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween all play roles in It: Chapter 1. A highly anticipated follow up to It: Chapter 1 was released in September of this year. I visited the theaters as soon as It: Chapter 2 was released and I must say director Andy Muschietti did a fantastic job transitioning the kid characters into adult characters. With Halloween just right around the corner, I don’t think there’s any better way to celebrate than by watching the entire It collection! You’ll float too….
3. Insidious, 2010, directed by James Wan, produced by Jason Blum, Steven Schneider, Oren Peli and written by Leigh Whannell
If you haven’t seen this supernatural horror film you are definitely missing out! Insidious does not follow the typical scary movie mold as it actually introduces another dimension to the viewer called “The Further.” In the film married couple Josh and Renai, played by Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne, move into a new home with their young sons Dalton and Foster. Shortly after moving in their son Dalton falls into a mysterious coma that no one can figure out the cause of until demonologist Elise Rainier comes into the picture! After Renai starts to experience some of the most terrifying paranormal activity, including seeing a red-face demon hovering over Dalton, she realizes there is more to what’s happening to her son then meets the eye! This film packs in so many scares that going to bed right after watching I’ll admit probably isn’t the best idea considering Insidious primarily focuses on the idea of astral projection, which many believe is something that people have experienced in dream-like states. Though Insidious is now a film franchise as the film itself has been followed by Insidious: Chapter 2, Insidious: Chapter 3, and Insidious: The Last Key the magic of the very first film of the series cannot be denied! One of my favorite film directors, James Wan, and one of my favorite producers, Jason Blum, teamed up to create this film and if you know anything about either one of these talented individuals you know that they are experts when it comes to giving viewers scares. Again this film isn’t necessarily based on Halloween but it is definitely a fantastic post trick or treating film choice!
2. The Conjuring, 2013, directed by James Wan, produced by Tony DeRosa-Grund, Peter Safran and Rob Cowan and written by Chad Hayes and Carey W. Hayes
If you were able to handle all the movies on my list so far without any nightmares congratulations I am very happy you have made it this far! The film I am about to suggest you watch is by far one of the scariest supernatural horror movies I have ever seen. The Conjuring is based on a real paranormal case that the legendary paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren took on in Rhode Island in 1971. There’s nothing that makes a film more appealing, especially in the horror movie genre than sharing with the viewer that what they are watching is based on a true story, and The Conjuring is just that! The real Ed and Lorraine Warren, who are now passed, took on over 10,000 paranormal cases over their very long careers as paranormal investigators. The Conjuring film follows Ed and Lorraine Warren, played by Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, as they get pulled into the mysterious demonic occurrences that are happening, according to the Perroni family, in their Rhode Island farmhouse. What Lorraine ends up finding to be attached to the family and farmhouse is beyond what she ever expected! This film literally has it all; great acting, great story development, great visionary moments and the scare tactics well they are off the charts! I will warn you that this movie may not be for children as it is rated R and has quite a few REALLY scary moments! Adults beware you are definitely in for a scare with The Conjuring!
- Hereditary, 2018, directed and written by Ari Aster, and produced by Kevin Frakes, Lars Knudsen, and Buddy Patrick
You know the feeling when you see a film for the first time and after it has finished all you can do is sit there in utter shock and silence? That’s exactly how I felt after I saw Hereditary for the first time. This supernatural psychological horror-drama takes place in Utah where Annie and her husband Peter, played by Toni Collette and Gabriel Bryne, along with their kids Steve and Charlie, played by Alex Wolff and Milly Shapiro, discover that a demon by the name of Paimon is haunting them due to Annie’s estranged mother’s death. Though the film’s plot seems quite typical the film itself is anything but typical! I will attest that some of the scenes in this film are quite horrifying and will probably stick with you in your dreams, but hey isn’t that what enjoying a great horror film is all about?! Finding this film maybe a little difficult as it was originally released at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival as somewhat of an “underground indie horror film,” but of course I did my research and I found that you can purchase this film at most stores, amazon prime video, google play and YouTube. Hereditary is number 1 on my list for a reason and that’s mainly because out of all the millions of horror movies I’ve seen not many scenes can compare to the visual horror that is displayed in this film! This horror movie is one that should be saved for Halloween night after the kids go to bed!
Thank you Loveland Magazine readers for tuning in to my Top 10 Best Halloween Movies Part 1 and Part 2! We hope everyone has a spooky yet safe HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Scare ya later!
Read Part 1 of my Guide to the Top 10 Best Halloween Movies!
Loveland Magazine Celebrates Fall With Cassie’s Guide to the Top 10…
