TOP 10 GHOST MOVIES OF ALL TIME
BY THAN NILES FOR THE MDM WONDERLANCE
Lists of this nature usually bother me because they always appear to be compilations of the author’s favorite movies, instead of truly important films in a genre. If I am to write about the top of the top in the ghoul, spectral and spirit department then I am going to include movies that changed the game and are, in my opinion, necessary to see before you become a ghost yourself. This list is in no particular order except that I did try to put the most obvious ones, once again: in my opinion, at the top. Enjoy…
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The Sixth Sense (1999)
The film that made M. Night Shamalan a tolerably pronounceable household name more than a decade ago is still being felt in the psychological horror world today. Containing, probably, one of the most memorable twist endings in film history, the Sixth Sense had everyone and their adorable 10 year-old inner Haley Joel Osment “seeing dead people.” If you have not already seen it, someone around you will make sure that changes. |
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The Shining (1980)
When it released, even Stephen King gave it a poor review. The film got Kubrick very little praise from critics and no nods from the academy. Also, the filming process on the Shining went down in infamy as being one of the most arduous thanks to the director’s painfully methodical style. But, as Kubrick showed time and again, the movie was ahead of its time. The Overlook hotel is an agoraphobic nightmare that makes audiences question what is real while forcing them to inhabit the unbearably unsettling space; we get to go mad right along with Jack and the family. The film that almost made Shelly Duvall bald, the Shining is a cinematic masterpiece that I dare you to watch alone. |
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Poltergeist (1982)
Directed by Tobe Hooper with a story by a guy named Stephen Spielberg, Poltergeist is the movie that had us afraid of the trees outside our bedroom windows and the meat on our dinner plates. The film’s special effects are still spectacular by today’s standards and it stars Craig T. Nelson, what more could you want?
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Ghostbusters (1984)
If there’s something strange in the neighborhood, it is probably someone who doesn’t know the ghost busters. The tried and true team of Ivan Reitman, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis mixed with the improvised shtick of Bill Murray comes together to make the quintessential ghost comedy. Since its initial box office success there has not been a more timeless film of its kind. Seeing Mr. Stay Puft terrorize Manhattan still hits the mushy, “marshmallowy” core every time I see it.
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Ghost (1990)
I want more Whoopi Goldberg; she has been so quiet lately, Her performance in Jerry Zucker’s Ghost is almost enough to make me like Demi Moore. But, despite my personal issues with the cast, this simple but touching paranormal love story is the kind you revisit again and again. |
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The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947)
The original specter love story and still the best. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir was so successful in its time that it eventually helped spawn a television series in 1968 by the same name. The cinematography and look of the film is eternal and the story is as endearing as it is satisfying. The ghost of an old seafaring Rex Harrison falls in love with a widowed Gene Tierney, I like it. See the movie that paved the way for Swayze’s Ghost. |
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The Blair Witch Project (1999)/ Paranormal Activity (2007)
These two films go together because of why they made the list. Both the Blair Witch and Paranormal Activity are stories of the little indie films that could. Introducing the handheld home movie feel, Blair Witch was the beginning of a new age of advertising and distribution in the film industry. Because of the mystery surrounding the film, the use of the internet and a modern audience’s curiosity, the Blair Witch Project ran with itself while costing next to nothing to make; It just so happened to scare the pants off of everyone it wasn’t making motion sick, also. Years later, Paranormal Activity built on the style of Blair Witch and made us scared to go home again. These films are terrifying because the haunted could just as easily be us with our own video cameras. |
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Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Now, if you have an issue with this choice, let me just say that Freddy dies and then haunts people, therefore he is a ghost and this is a ghost movie. A Nightmare on Elm Street is one of the most effectively scary concept movies of all time. Basically a “slasher” film, it is most noteworthy for how it plays with the audience’s perception of reality. As Freddy K. stalks the promiscuous, alcohol consuming teenagers of Elm Street, the question is constantly being asked: “Are they awake or asleep?” This is a terrifying ride no matter how many times you watch it. |
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Spirited Away (2001)
If we are talking spirits, I must mention this film. Ripe with Japanese folklore, Spirited Away is a beautifully animated, highly imaginative story that is, understandably, one of the highest grossing films in the history of Japan. Hayao Miyazaki creates a world filled with the old spirits of the Gods and a heroin who we are lucky to get to grow with throughout the narrative. |
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House (1986)
When I first saw House, I do not believe the smile left my face for the entirety of the film. Actually, in all honesty, every time I think about this film I cannot get the grin off my cheeks. This movie is just plain fun; you know you’re watching brilliance by the time the man goes into the bathroom mirror to find his stolen son and is shot at by ghoul bats as he dangles in infinite black. The effects are great, the cast is spot on and hilarious and the ghouls inhabiting the house are fantastic. House is goofy, ghostly fun that is as entertaining as it is ridiculous.
So there you have it, the ten ghost and or spirit movies that you have to see.
Ghosts fascinate us because of how impossible the concept of them is to know. We humans are limitlessly curious and, at the same time, terrified of the unknown, which is why the notion of the dead walking among us and revealing themselves to us in mysterious ways is so exciting and chilling. Whether you believe in them or not, I hope we can all agree on one thing: ghost movies are rad.
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Honorable Mentions:
What Lies Beneath (2000)
The Orphanage (2007)
Stir of Echoes (1999)
The Others (2001)
BY THAN NILES FOR THE MDM WONDERLANCE |
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