Hauntings - on the Screen

Hauntings and the Paranormal in the Movies. With spectral appearances by Spooks, Specters, Spirits, Phantoms, Demons, Banshees, Wraiths, Poltergeists, Ghosts and Apparitions.

Plus - facts, quotes, ratings, photos and posters.

The Uninvited (1944) Directed by Lewis Allen. 99mins.

Ray Milland - Roderick Fitzgerald
Ruth Hussey - Pamela Fitzgerald
Donald Crisp - Commander Beech
Gail Russell - Stella Meredith
Barbara Everest - Lizzie Flynn
Alan Napier - Dr. Scott

Hollywood's first serious feature-length haunted house movie.

A haunted - cliff-side manor on the south coast of England.

Haunted by - an evil ghost (Mary Meredith)

No.3 on director Martin Scorsese's 11 Scariest Horror Movies list.

IMDB rating 7.5

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.

Gene Tierney - Lucy Muir
Rex Harrison - Capt. Daniel Gregg
George Sanders - Miles Fairley
Edna Best - Martha Huggins
Vanessa Brown - Anna Muir as an Adult
Natalie Wood - Anna Muir as a Child

A romantic supernatural fantasy.

A haunted - cottage near a small English seaside town.

Haunted by - the ghost of a crusty sea captain, Daniel Gregg (Harrison)

Captain Gregg: Blasted women. Always make trouble when you allow one aboard...

Lucy Muir: You'll forgive me if I... if I take a moment to get accustomed to you.

A TV series based on the film appeared in 1968, lasting 2 seasons..

IMDB rating 7.8

House on Haunted Hill (1959) Directed by William Castle. 75mins.

Vincent Price - Frederick Loren
Carol Ohmart - Annabelle Loren
Richard Long - Lance Schroeder
Alan Marshal - Dr. David Trent
Carolyn Craig - Nora Manning
Elisha Cook Jr. - Watson Pritchard

An eccentric millionaire and his wife invite 5 people to a house which they claim is haunted. Whoever stays the night will win $10,000. But the challenge is really 'who will survive the night' as guests start turning up dead.

A haunted - house on Haunted Hill.

Haunted by - skeletons on wires and other fake apparitions.

The film was famous for its promotional gimmick "Emergo" which featured a 'skeleton' flying over the audience at appropriate times.

Frederick Loren: Don't let the ghosts and the ghouls disturb you, love.
Annabelle Loren: Darling, the only ghoul in the house is you!

IMDB rating 6.8

The Innocents (1961) Directed by Jack Clayton. 100mins.

Deborah Kerr - Miss Giddens
Michael Redgrave - The Uncle
Megs Jenkins - Mrs. Grose
Martin Stephens - Miles
Pamela Franklin - Flora
Peter Wyngarde - Peter Quint
Clytie Jessop - Miss Jessel

One of the great British horror movies which still has the power to send shivers down the back. The new governess (Kerr) seems to be the only one who notices the ghosts, are they real or a figment of her imagination?

The children, especially Martin Stephens, are very effective and a little creepy. Stephens kissing the sexually repressed governess on the mouth was daring for its time and may be what sets her off seeing ghosts of the previous housekeepers who were both sexual deviants.

A haunted - old mansion in Sussex.

Haunted by - the ghosts of Peter Quint and Miss Jessel.

No.10 on Martin Scorsese's list of Scariest Horror Movies.

IMDB rating 7.9

The Haunting (1963) Directed by Robert Wise. 112mins.

Julie Harris - Eleanor Lance
Claire Bloom - Theodora
Richard Johnson - Dr. John Markway
Russ Tamblyn - Luke Sanderson
Lois Maxwell - Grace Markway

A classic horror thriller based on the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson.

A haunted - mansion in a remote part of New England.

Haunted by - unexplained supernatural phenomena and the book is even less helpful.

Theodora: Haven't you noticed how nothing in this house seems to move until you look away and then you just... catch something out of the corner of your eye?

Eleanor Lance: God! God! Whose hand was I holding?

IMDB Rating 7.7

The Legend of Hell House (1973) Directed by John Hough. 95mins.

Roddy McDowall - Benjamin Fischer
Pamela Franklin - Florence Tanner
Clive Revill - Dr. Lionel Barrett
Gayle Hunnicutt - Ann Barrett
Michael Gough - Emeric Belasco

Based on Richard Matheson's novel Hell House.

First class ghost story with some good shocks. The eerie music score by Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson adds to the film's creepiness.

A haunted - mansion in Maine, the Belasco House, said to be the most haunted house in the world.

Haunted by - the evil ghost of Emeric Belasco.

Ann Barrett: Isn't it just another so-called haunted house?
Dr. Barrett: It's the Mount Everest of haunted houses. There were two attempts to investigate it. Both were disasters. Eight people died. Fischer was the only one who survived, and when he crawled out he was a mental wreck.

IMDB rating 6.9

Burnt Offerings (1976) Directed by Dan Curtis. 116mins.

Karen Black - Marian Rolf
Oliver Reed - Ben Rolf
Burgess Meredith - Arnold Allardyce
Eileen Heckart - Roz Allardyce
Dub Taylor - Walker
Bette Davis - Aunt Elizabeth

Based on the novel by Robert Marasco.

A haunted - Gothic mansion in California.

Haunted by - the ghost of old Mrs Allardyce, who we never see.

Burnt Offerings won awards for Best Horror Film and Best Director by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films.

Roz Allardyce: The house takes care of itself.

IMDB rating 6.1

The Sentinel (1977) Directed by Michael Winner. 92mins.

Chris Sarandon - Michael Lerman
Cristina Raines - Alison Parker
Martin Balsam - Prof. Ruzinsky
John Carradine - Father Halliran
José Ferrer - Priest of the Brotherhood
Ava Gardner - Miss Logan
Arthur Kennedy - Monsignor Franchino
Burgess Meredith - Charles Chazen
Sylvia Miles - Gerde Engstrom
Beverly D'Angelo - Sandra
Eli Wallach - Detective Gatz
Christopher Walken - Detective Rizzo

The most star-studded film on the list. Michael Winner's underrated slice of gory horror has some genuine jolts, but the use of real freaks at the climax was bad form Michael, bad form.

A haunted - Brownstone house in Brooklyn, New York.

Haunted by - a variety of ghosts and demons. The blind old priest on the top floor (John Carradine) is guarding a gateway to hell.

Michael: It's all right. Listen, I know everything now. The Latin you saw in that book was an ancient warning from the angel Gabriel to the angel Uriel.
Alison: Michael, what are you talking about?
Michael: The angel Uriel was stationed at the entrance to Eden to guard it from the devil. Since that time a long line of guardians... sentinels, have guarded the world against evil.

IMDB rating 6.2

The Amityville Horror (1979) Directed by Stuart Rosenberg. 117mins.

James Brolin - George Lutz
Margot Kidder - Kathy Lutz
Rod Steiger - Father Delaney
Don Stroud - Father Bolen
Murray Hamilton - Father Ryan
Helen Shaver - Carolyn

Based on the novel by Jay Anson which chronicles the alleged real life experiences of a family who moved into a 'haunted' house in Amityville, New York.

A haunted - house at 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville.

Haunted by - an evil spirit or demon and the ghosts of people who have died in the house.

Kathy Lutz: I just wish that... all those people hadn't died here. I mean... ugh! A guy kills his whole family. Doesn't that bother you?
George Lutz: Well, sure, but... houses don't have memories.

IMDB rating 6.0

The film was a big hit and was followed by -

Amityville 2: The Possession (1982)
Amityville 3: The Demon (1983)
Amityville 4: The Evil Escapes (1989)
The Amityville Curse (1990)
Amityville 1992: It's About Time (1992)
Amityville: A New Generation (1993)
Amityville Dollhouse: Evil Never Dies (1996)
The Amityville Horror (2005)
The Amityville Haunting (2011)

The Shining (1980) Directed by Stanley Kubrick. 146mins (119mins)

Jack Nicholson - Jack Torrance
Shelley Duvall - Wendy Torrance
Danny Lloyd - Danny Torrance
Scatman Crothers - Dick Hallorann
Barry Nelson - Stuart Ullman
Philip Stone - Delbert Grady
Joe Turkel - Lloyd the Bartender

Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece of horror based on the novel by Stephen King.

The haunted - Overlook Hotel in Colorado.

Haunted by - the ghosts of residents who died in the hotel.

The Shining cost $19m to make and has grossed $44m in the US.

A made for TV adaptation of the novel appeared in 1997.

Jack: Mr. Grady. You were the caretaker here. I recognize ya. I saw your picture in the newspapers. You, uh, chopped your wife and daughters up into little bits. And then you blew your brains out.
Grady: That's strange, sir. I don't have any recollection of that at all.
Jack: You WERE the caretaker here, Mr. Grady.
Grady: No sir, you are the caretaker. You've always been the caretaker. I ought to know: I've always been here.

IMDB rating 8.5

The Changeling (1980) Directed by Peter Medak. 107mins.

George C. Scott - John Russell
Trish Van Devere - Claire Norman
Melvyn Douglas - Joe Carmichael
Jean Marsh - Joanna Russell
John Colicos - Captain DeWitt
Barry Morse - Dr. Pemberton
Ruth Springford - Minnie Huxley

A Canadian horror film with some genuinely unsettling moments, allegedly based on real events.

A haunted - old mansion in New York

Haunted by - the ghost of a murdered child.

Minnie Huxley: That house is not fit to live in. No one's been able to live in it. It doesn't want people.

IMDB rating 7.3

The Entity (1982) Directed by Sidney J. Furie. 125mins.

Barbara Hershey - Carla Moran
Ron Silver - Phil Sneiderman
David Labiosa - Billy
George Coe - Dr. Weber
Margaret Blye - Cindy Nash
Alex Rocco - Jerry Anderson

The Entity is based on the supposedly true event of a woman who was repeatedly raped by an unseen force.

A haunted - woman, the evil entity only seems to be interested in her.

Haunted by - an unexplained demonic evil.

Cindy: Beautiful day outside, isn't it?
Carla Moran: I was raped.
Cindy: Oh my God. How did it happen?
Carla Moran: Well, I was alone in my room, and... something grabbed me and smothered me.
Cindy: Did you call the police?
Carla Moran: No.
Cindy: Why?
Carla Moran: There was no reason to.
Cindy: What do you mean?
Carla Moran: There was nobody there.

IMDB rating 6.4

Poltergeist (1982) Directed by Tobe Hooper. 114mins.

Craig T. Nelson - Steve Freeling
JoBeth Williams - Diane Freeling
Beatrice Straight - Dr. Lesh
Dominique Dunne - Dana Freeling
Oliver Robins - Robbie Freeling
Heather O'Rourke - Carol Anne Freeling
Zelda Rubinstein - Tangina
James Karen - Mr. Teague

Produced by Steven Spielberg, the most successful horror movie of the 1980s.

A family are plagued by ghosts and poltergeists and their youngest daughter is spirited away by supernatural forces. The parents hire parapsychologists and a spiritual medium to try to get her back.

A haunted - house in the fictional town of Cuesta Verde, California.

Haunted by - the restless spirits of the buried dead. The house and part of the town was built over a cemetery and only the headstones were moved to a new graveyard.

Marty: Poltergeist disturbances are fairly short duration. Perhaps a couple of months. Hauntings can go on for years.
Diane: Are you telling me that all of this could just suddenly end at any time?
Dr. Lesh: Yes, it could. Unless it's a haunting. But hauntings don't usually revolve around living people.
Diane: Then we don't have much time, Dr. Lesh, because my daughter is alive somewhere inside this house.

Poltergeist cost $10.7m to make and has grossed $121.7m worldwide.

IMDB rating 7.4

Two sequels followed-

Poltergeist II The Other Side (1986) Directed by Brian Gibson
Poltergeist III (1988) Directed by Gary Sherman.

Ghostbusters (1984) Directed by Ivan Reitman. 105mins.

Bill Murray - Peter Venkman
Dan Aykroyd - Raymond Stantz
Sigourney Weaver - Dana Barrett
Harold Ramis - Egon Spengler
Rick Moranis - Louis Tully
Annie Potts - Janine Melnitz
Ernie Hudson - Winston Zeddmore
William Atherton - Walter Peck

Supernatural comedy, one of the biggest hits of the 80's.

After losing their jobs at Columbia University three friends start their own business as paranormal exterminators.

Ray Stantz: Symmetrical book stacking. Just like the Philadelphia mass turbulence of 1947.
Peter Venkman: You're right, no human being would stack books like this.

A haunted - apartment building in New York City.

Haunted by - Gozer the Gozerian, an evil entity from another dimension, plus assorted ghosts, phantoms and demon dogs.

When the idea of Ghostbusters was first proposed John Belushi was to play Peter Venkman, with Eddie Murphy playing the part of Winston Zeddmore.

Oscar nominated for Best Song and Best Visual Effects.

Ghostbusters cost $30m and has grossed $291.6m worldwide.

Peter Venkman: This city is headed for a disaster of biblical proportions.
Mayor: What do you mean, "biblical"?
Ray Stantz: What he means is Old Testament, Mr. Mayor, real wrath of God type stuff.
Peter Venkman: Exactly.
Ray Stantz: Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling!
Egon Spengler: Forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes...
Winston Zeddemore: The dead rising from the grave!
Peter Venkman: Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!

IMDB rating 7.8

High Spirits (1988) Directed by Niel Jordan. 99mins.

Peter O'Toole - Peter Plunkett
Daryl Hannah - Mary Plunkett
Steve Guttenberg - Jack
Beverly D'Angelo - Sharon
Liam Neeson - Martin Brogan
Jennifer Tilly - Miranda
Peter Gallagher - Brother Tony
Ray McAnally - Plunkett Senior

Fantasy comedy.

To attract tourists to his decrepit old castle Peter O'Toole claims that it's the most haunted castle in all Europe and employs people to pretend they're ghosts. But than the castle's real ghosts rise up and start attacking the guests.

A haunted - Castle Plunkett in Limerick, Ireland.

Haunted by - the ghosts of the castle's original residents.

Jack: You're a ghost, I'm an American. It would never work out.

High Spirits cost $15m and has grossed $8.5m in the US.

IMDB rating 5.2

Beetlejuice (1988) Directed by Tim Burton. 92mins.

Michael Keaton - Beetlejuice
Alec Baldwin - Adam Maitland
Geena Davis - Barbara Maitland
Jeffrey Jones - Charles Deetz
Catherine O'Hara - Delia Deetz
Winona Ryder - Lydia Deetz
Glenn Shadix - Otho
Sylvia Sidney - Juno

Popular comedy fantasy by Tim Burton, starring Michael Keaton as the freelance bio-exorcist from the afterlife, Beetlejuice, or 'Betelgeuse' as it is spelt in his advert.

A haunted - house in New England.

Haunted by - the ghosts of the recently deceased Maitlands.

Adam: What are your qualifications?
Betelgeuse: Ah. Well... I attended Juilliard... I'm a graduate of the Harvard business school. I travel quite extensively. I lived through the Black Plague and had a pretty good time during that. I've seen the EXORCIST ABOUT A HUNDRED AND SIXTY-SEVEN TIMES, AND IT KEEPS GETTING FUNNIER EVERY SINGLE TIME I SEE IT... NOT TO MENTION THE FACT THAT YOU'RE TALKING TO A DEAD GUY... NOW WHAT DO YOU THINK? You think I'm qualified?

Sammy Davis Jr was originally considered for the role of Beetlejuice.

This is Michael Keaton's favourite of his films.

The success of Beetlejuice paved the way for Burton to direct the mega-successful Batman (1989) starring Keaton as the Caped Crusader.

Beetlejuice cost $15m to make and has grossed $73.7m in the US.

Tagline - The Name In Laughter From The Hereafter.

IMDB rating 7.4

Casper (1995) Directed by Brad Silberling. 100mins.

Bill Pullman - Dr. James Harvey
Christina Ricci - Kathleen 'Kat' Harvey
Cathy Moriarty - Carrigan Crittenden
Eric Idle - Paul 'Dibbs' Plutzker
Amy Brenneman - Amelia Harvey
Malachi Pearson - Casper (voice)
Devon Sawa - Casper (human form)

Fantasy based on the childrens comic book and cartoon series.

A haunted - Manor in Friendship, Maine.

Haunted by - Casper the friendly ghost and his uncles - Stretch, Stinkie and Fatso.

The film features cameos from Dan Aykroyd, Mel Gibson and Clint Eastwood.

Casper cost $55m to make and has grossed $288m worldwide.

Tagline - Get an Afterlife.

IMDB rating 5.8

The Sixth Sense (1999) Directed by M. Night Shyamalan. 107mins.

Bruce Willis - Dr. Malcolm Crowe
Haley Joel Osment - Cole Sear
Toni Collette - Lynn Sear
Olivia Williams - Anna Crowe
Trevor Morgan - Tommy Tammisimo
Donnie Wahlberg - Vincent Grey

Cole Sear: I see dead people.
Malcolm Crowe: In your dreams?
[Cole shakes his head]
Malcolm Crowe: While you're awake?
[Cole nods]
Malcolm Crowe: How often do you see them?
Cole Sear: All the time. They're everywhere.

The most successful film Bruce Willis has starred in to date. Director Shyamalan's career peaked with this movie, it was all downhill from here.

A haunted - boy.

Haunted by - people that don't know they're dead.

The Sixth Sense cost $40m to produce and was a surprise hit grossing an impressive $672.8m worldwide.

Tagline - Not Every Gift is a Blessing.

IMDB rating 8.2

The Haunting (1999) Directed by Jan de Bont. 113mins

Liam Neeson - Dr. David Marrow
Catherine Zeta-Jones - Theodora "Theo"
Owen Wilson - Luke Sanderson
Lili Taylor - Eleanor "Nell" Vance
Bruce Dern - Mr. Dudley
Virginia Madsen - Jane Vance

A remake of The Haunting (1963) both are based on the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson.

A haunted - mansion in a secluded part of Massachusetts.

Haunted by - the evil spirit of Hugh Crain, original owner of the mansion, and the ghosts of the children he murdered.

Nominated for five Razzie Awards including Worst Picture.

Eleanor: He killed them. Hugh Crain. The children from the mills. It's just like you said. He wanted to fill the house with the sounds of children. He took from his mills and he brought them here, but he wouldn't let them go. He would never let them go .

The Haunting cost $80m and has grossed $177.3m worldwide.

IMDB rating 4.7

House on Haunted Hill (1999) Directed by William Malone. 93mins.

Geoffrey Rush - Stephen H. Price
Famke Janssen - Evelyn Stockard-Price
Taye Diggs - Eddie Baker
Peter Gallagher - Donald W. Blackburn
Ali Larter - Sara Wolfe
Bridgette Wilson - Melissa Margaret Marr
Chris Kattan - Watson Pritchett

A loose remake of the 1959 film of the same name. The main difference being that the ghosts here turn out to be very real, and deadly.

A haunted - abandoned asylum, which used to be an institute for the criminally insane.

Haunted by - the ghosts of the inmates who were tortured and experimented on at the institute.

Watson Pritchett: The house is alive. We're all gonna die.
Eddie Baker: What good is a million dollars when you're dead?

House on Haunted Hill cost $37m and has grossed $41m in the US.

IMDB rating 5.4

Thirteen Ghosts (2001) Directed by Steve Beck. 91mins.

Tony Shalhoub - Arthur Kriticos
Embeth Davidtz - Kalina Oretzia
Matthew Lillard - Dennis Rafkin
Shannon Elizabeth - Kathy Kriticos
Alec Roberts - Bobby Kriticos
F. Murray Abraham - Cyrus Kriticos

An unusual horror film with interesting production design and some imaginative ghost make up and effects.

A haunted - building made of glass.

Haunted by - twelve dangerous ghosts imprisoned in glass cages.

Based loosely on a 1960 William Castle film of the same name.

Kalina: We have ten minutes until the ectoplasmic sh-t hits the fan.

Thirteen Ghosts cost $40m and has grossed $68.4m worldwide.

IMDB rating 5.3

The Others (2001) Directed by Alejandro Amenabar. 104mins.

Nicole Kidman - Grace Stewart
Alakina Mann - Anne Stewart
James Bentley - Nichol- Stewart
Fionnula Flanagan - Bertha Mills
Eric Sykes - Edmund Tuttle
Christopher Eccleston - Charles Stewart

A critically acclaimed ghost story with a clever twist.

Warning. Don't read on if you have yet to see the film.

A haunted - country house in a remote part of Jersey in the Channel Islands.

Haunted by - the ghosts of Grace Stewart (Nicole Kidman) and her two children, the twist is that they (and the viewer) do not realise they are ghosts until the end of the film.

Kidman was nominated for a Golden Globe - Best Actress in a Drama.

"Amenabar racks up the tension to unbearable levels in a spooky shocker that's worthy of comparison with M Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense." Neil Smith, BBC.

The Others cost $17m to make and has grossed $219m worldwide.

Grace: If you're dead, then leave us in peace. Leave us in peace!
Mrs. Mills: And suppose we do leave you, ma'am, do you suppose that They will?
Grace: Who?
Mrs. Mills: The intruders.

IMDB rating 7.6

The Haunted Mansion (2003) Directed by Rob Minkoff. 99mins.

Eddie Murphy - Jim Evers
Terence Stamp - Ramsley
Nathaniel Parker - Master Gracey
Marsha Thomason - Sara Evers
Jennifer Tilly - Madame Leota
Wallace Shawn - Ezra

A spooky comedy based on the Disney theme park attraction.

A haunted - mansion, Gracey Manor, located near the swamps and bayous of New Orleans.

Haunted by - the residents of the mansion, who turn out to be ghosts.

Jim: Wait a minute. You're telling me this guy is dead, and the only reason we were brought here is he wants to get jiggy with my wife?
Ezra: Pretty much. Are you upset?
Jim: The guy is dead, and he's trying to get with my wife. And the house isn't really for sale. Yes, I'm upset.

Terence Stamp was made up to resemble Boris Karloff.

The film was nominated for an Annie Award - Outstanding Effects Animation

The Haunted Mansion cost $90m to make and has grossed $182.2m worldwide.

IMDB rating 4.8

The Amityville Horror (2005) Directed by Andrew Douglas. 90mins.

Ryan Reynolds - George Lutz
Melissa George - Kathy Lutz
Jesse James - Billy Lutz
Jimmy Bennett - Michael Lutz
Chloë Grace Moretz - Chelsea Lutz
Rachel Nichols - Lisa

A remake of the hit 1979 horror movie of the same name, both based on the book by Jay Anson.

A haunted - house at 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville, New York.

Haunted by - the spirit of a murderous Preacher (who tortured and killed Native Americans, burying them in the basement) and the ghosts of his victims.

Megan Fox screen tested for the role of Lisa the babysitter.

Father Callaway: You know the doll with one eye that your daughter is holding?
Kathy Lutz: Yes, well...
Father Callaway: Well, that belonged to the little girl who lived here before you.
Kathy Lutz: Yes, it was left here.
Father Callaway: No, Mrs. Lutz, it was not left here.
Kathy Lutz: Father, what exactly are you trying to tell me?
Father Callaway: I knew the DeFeo's very well. I presided over their funeral. Jodie DeFeo was buried with that doll.

"This house springs so many FX shocks it plays like a theme-park ride. Result? It's not scary, just busy." Peter Travers, Rolling Stone.

The Amityville Horror cost $19m and has grossed $108m worldwide.

IMDB rating 5.8

An American Haunting (2005) Directed by Courtney Solomon. 91mins.

Donald Sutherland - John Bell
Sissy Spacek - Lucy Bell
James D'Arcy - Richard Powell
Rachel Hurd-Wood - Betsy Bell
Matthew Marsh - James Johnston
Thom Fell - John Bell Jr.

Based on the novel The Bell Witch: An American Haunting by Brent Monahan, which chronicles the true life events of the Bell family who in 1817 claimed they were cursed by a witch and were under constant attack by poltergeists.

The story became so well known that President Andrew Jackson was quoted as saying "I would rather take on the entire English Fleet than stay one night at the Bell House."

A haunted - house in Tennessee.

Haunted by - poltergeists.

Richard Powell: This... entity... do you believe that it can read your mind?
John Bell: No. But I do believe that it can hear our conversations, that's how it knows our every move.
Richard Powell: But it is only present on this property!

"Takes the most documented ghost story in history and doesn't create one truly scary moment." UGO.com

An American Haunting cost $14m and has grossed $30m worldwide.

IMDB rating 4.9

1408 (2007) Directed by Mikael Hafstrom. 104mins (112mins)

John Cusack - Mike Enslin
Samuel L. Jackson - Gerald Olin
Mary McCormack - Lily
Tony Shalhoub - Sam Farrell

Based on a novella by Stephen King which appears in the collection Everything's Eventual (2002).

Mike Enslin (Cusack) travels the world debunking haunted houses and writing about them, he decides to spend a night at the notorious room 1408 at the Dolphin hotel. The hotel manager (Jackson) warns him that 42 people had died in the room and that 12 were suicides.

A haunted - room at the Dolphin hotel in New York City.

Haunted by - a malevolent entity and the ghosts of the room's past victims.

Originally John Cusack perished in the room after setting fire to it but test audiences found this ending too downbeat and another ending was filmed with Cusack surviving the fire. The original ending can be found on the DVD.

1408 cost $25m to make and has grossed $132m worldwide.

Mike Enslin: An actual key. That's a nice touch.
Gerald Olin: We have magnetic cards also, but electronics don't seem to work in 1408. Hope you don't have a pacemaker.
Mike Enslin: [into tape recorder] 'General manager claims that the phantom in room interferes...'
Gerald Olin: I have never used the word "phantom."
Mike Enslin: Oh, I'm sorry. Uh, Spirit? Specter?
Gerald Olin: No, you misunderstand. Whatever's in 1408 is nothing like that.
Mike Enslin: Then what is it?
Gerald Olin: It's an evil f-cking room!

IMDB rating 6.8

Paranormal Activity (2009) Directed by Oren Peli. 86mins (97mins)

Katie Featherston - Katie
Micah Sloat - Micah
Mark Fredrichs - Psychic
Amber Armstrong - Amber
Ashley Palmer - Diane

A surprise horror hit and reportedly the most profitable film of all time.

The entire film is made up of found video footage of a haunting taking place inside an ordinary suburban house. A young lady who claims to have been haunted by an evil presence since childhood has her boyfriend set up a video camera in their bedroom to record any unusual activity. The filming ends tragically for both of them.

A haunted - house in the suburbs.

Haunted by - an unseen evil ghost, the camera records a shadow.

The movie was shot in 2006, shown at film festivals in 2007 and was released in theaters across the USA in October 2009.

Several different endings were filmed, the DVD gives you the option to watch the film with alternate endings.

"An Amityville for the YouTube age: potent, primal and genuinely frightening." Empire Magazine.

Paranormal Activity cost just $15,000 to make and went on to gross $193m worldwide.

Katie: I feel it. I feel it breathing on me.

IMDB rating 6.4

Three more films in the series have been released -

Paranormal Activity 2 (2010) cost $5m and has grossed $177.5m worldwide.

Paranormal Activity 3 (2011) cost $5m and has grossed $207m worldwide.

Paranormal Activity 4 (2012) cost $5m and has grossed $140.7m worldwide

The Haunting in Connecticut (2009) Directed by Peter Cornwell. 92mins (102mins)

Virginia Madsen - Sara Campbell
Kyle Gallner - Matt Campbell
Elias Koteas - Reverend Popescu
Amanda Crew - Wendy
Martin Donovan - Peter Campbell
Sophi Knight - Mary

Loosely based on an allegedly true story of a haunting which took place in Connecticut at the home of Carmen Snedeker and her family. They were plagued by a "demonic presence" and later discovered their home was once a funeral parlour.

A haunted - Victorian house in upstate Connecticut.

Haunted by - the ghosts of dead people who were not given proper burial.

Sara Campbell: [sobbing while praying] No, you can't have him! You can't take my son!

"Gives you the creeps, the giggles and the groans in almost equal measure." New York Times.

The Haunting in Connecticut has grossed $77.5m worldwide.

IMDB rating 5.8

Insidious (2010) Directed by James Wan. 103mins.

Patrick Wilson - Josh Lambert
Rose Byrne - Renai Lambert
Ty Simpkins - Dalton Lambert
Lin Shaye - Elise Rainier
Barbara Hershey - Lorraine Lambert

An above average horror thriller with some good scares.

A haunted - child.

Haunted by - a red-faced demon looking a little like Darth Maul's uglier brother. And a creepy old woman.

Elise Reiner: It's not the house that is haunted. It's your son.

"Here's a better-than-average spook house movie, mostly because Insidious decides it can haunt an audience without spraying it with blood." Peter Travers, Rolling Stone.

Insidious cost $15m to make and has grossed $97m worldwide.

IMDB rating 6.8

The Woman in Black (2012) Directed by James Watkins. 95mins.

Daniel Radcliffe - Arthur Kipps
Ciarán Hinds - Sam Daily
Janet McTeer - Elisabeth Daily
Liz White - Jennet Humfrye (The Woman in Black)
Roger Allam - Mr. Bentley

An old fashioned ghost story guaranteed to make audiences jump and send a shiver down the spine.

Based on the novel of the same name by Susan Hill, it was adapted for the stage in 1987 and filmed for TV in 1989.

A haunted - house "Eel Marsh" in the English town of Crithin Gifford.

Haunted by - the ghost of Jennet Humfrye, the Woman in Black. She cursed the town after her child was taken away from her.

Actor Adrian Rawlins played the lead role in the 1989 TV movie of The Woman in Black, Rawlins played Daniel Radcliffe's father in the Harry Potter series.

The Woman in Black cost $15m to make and has grossed $127.7m worldwide.

Tagline - What did they see?

IMDB rating 6.5

Sinister (2012) Directed by Scott Derrickson. 110mins.

Ethan Hawke - Ellison Oswalt
Juliet Rylance - Tracy
Fred Dalton Thompson - Sheriff
James Ransone - Deputy
Michael Hall D'Addario - Trevor
Clare Foley - Ashley

Ellison (Ethan Hawke) discovers reels of 8mm film in the attic, he views the film which shows the family that used to live in the house being slaughtered, he also notices a demonic face in the background in each reel of film. He decides to investigate the murders but starts to fear for his life when he plays the film again and notices the demonic figure is now closer to the camera and staring straight at him.

A haunted - batch of 8mm film reels.

Haunted by - a dark demonic entity.

"Your pants. Do you like having them scared off you? Then you and your pants will enjoy “Sinister”, a deeply frightening horror film that takes its obligation to alarm very seriously." Film.com

Sinister cost $3m to make and has grossed $87.7m worldwide.

Tagline - Once you see him, nothing can save you.

IMDB rating 7.2

The Conjuring (2013) Directed by James Wan. 112mins.

Vera Farmiga - Lorraine Warren
Patrick Wilson - Ed Warren
Lili Taylor - Carolyn Perron
Ron Livingston - Roger Perron
Shanley Caswell - Andrea
Hayley McFarland - Nancy
Joey King - Christine
Mackenzie Foy - Cindy

Carolyn Perron: There is something horrible happening in my house.

A haunted - farmhouse in Harrisville, Rhode Island.

Haunted by - Bathsheba, a woman accused of witchcraft, she committed suicide in 1863.

(The real Bathsheba Sherman was cleared of witchcraft by court of law and died of natural causes in 1885.)

The Conjuring was very successful grossing $312.4m worldwide.

Tagline - Based on the true case files of the Warrens.

IMDB rating 7.6

Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013) Directed by James Wan. 106mins.

Patrick Wilson - Josh Lambert
Rose Byrne - Renai Lambert
Ty Simpkins - Dalton Lambert
Lin Shaye - Elise Rainier
Barbara Hershey - Lorraine Lambert
Garrett Ryan - Young Josh

A sequel to Insidious (2011) the Lambert family are still being haunted by evil spirits.

A haunted - family.

Haunted by - the evil spirit of an old woman and various demonic entities.

James Wan also directed the first Insidious and The Conjuring, both also starring Patrick Wilson.

Insidious: Chapter 2 has grossed $137.2m worldwide.

"A modestly scaled and highly pleasurable sequel to Wan’s low-budget 2011 smash that should have genre fans begging for thirds." Scott Foundas, Variety.

Tagline - It Will Take What You Love Most.

IMDB rating 7.0