It makes total sense that many horror movies would be set in haunted houses. These are often the most obvious locations for a chilling story, as families begin living in old homes with floors that creak, doors that don’t close properly, and most important of all, ghosts who roam the premises and wait for new inhabitants.
While some haunted house horror movies are stellar and impressive, like the 2001 filmThe Othersor the ’80s gemPoltergeist, there are just as many that fall flat and are more popular and beloved than they should be.
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The Amityville Horror (1979)
While there are many movies inThe Amityville Horrorfranchise, the first film from 1979 is often considered the most groundbreaking. After all, this was the OG haunted house horror movie, released even beforePoltergeistin 1982. But is the movie really that good?
When watched today, the film seems incredibly dated and not scary at all. Kathy (Margot Kidder) and George Lutz (James Brolin) move into thefamous horror movie housethat everyone is familiar with at this point. Yes, the home looks creepy and horrible, even today. But the plot is lacking both scares and forward momentum, as it feels too slow to be truly gripping and riveting. It makes sense that it was horrifying at the time, but now that horror audiences have seen so many similar stories, it has lost its power.
What Lies Beneath (2000)
What Lies Beneathcan be considered a2000s horror movie that doesn’t hold up. Claire Spencer (Michelle Pfeiffer) realizes the sad and horrifying truth about her husband Norman (Harrison Ford). Not only is he emotionally abusive toward her and gaslights her throughout the entire film but he also killed his previous wife Madison Frank (Amber Valletta).
The tone of the movie feels off, as it’s too slow to be effective and scary. While audiences feel badly for Claire and hate Norman from the beginning,What Lies Beneathfeels predictable, although it does have a great setting as the couple lives in a gorgeous house on a lake. Theending may be satisfying, but it’s not much fun watching Claire and Norman dance around each other as neither one is very well-developed. Norman is too cruel to care about and Claire spends the film feeling like something is terribly wrong, and while she’s right, she isn’t an active participant in the story.
Paranormal Activity (2007)
WhenParanormal Activitywas released in 2007, it was exciting to see such a creative film. Now that there have been so many movies in theBlumhouse horror franchise, fans might be wondering if it has lost something along the way, as fans don’t love every new film as much as they did the first one. But even the first movie feels a bit overrated.
After a while, watching a couple filming themselves in the middle of the night to see the paranormal presence in their home gets old. From the beginning, it’s clear that the couple isn’t likely to make it out alive, which makes the movie feel predictable. The format is the most compelling part ofParanormal Activitybut there isn’t much story there to keep audiences engaged.
The Woman In Black (2012)
Daniel Radcliffe has played many film charactersover the years, including Arthur Kipps inThe Woman In The Black. On the surface, this sounds like an interesting movie: Arthur comes across an evil ghost in a home in an English village. He wants to save the town as the spirit is killing people.
When compared to moreunique and creative haunted house movies, this one falls short a bit. The period piece feels dull after a while as there have been so many stories about the Victorian era and the spooky mansions that people lived in during that time. It’s cool to see Radcliffe in this type of role, but besides that, horror fans might not find a lot to enjoy here.
The Conjuring (2013)
There aremany films in theConjuringuniverse, staring with this one from 2013. Directed by James Wan, it tells the story of Lorraine and Ed Warren, played by Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson. The movie is incredibly popular, earning an 83% Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes, an 86% rating on the Tomatometer, and grossing $137,400,141 at the box office, according to Box Office Mojo.
While the plot is compelling enough and the actors deliver good performances,The Conjuringdoesn’t measure up to other movies about haunted houses as it feels like more of the same. Some horror fans thinkThe Conjuringfranchise should endand some might be bored by this film, which doesn’t offer up anything different from typical fare about ghosts.
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