# Good ghost films? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 19, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551 "2012-12-19T17:51:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/1 "2012-12-19T17:51:00Z")
In companion to[this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=675613), I’m looking for suggestions of good, gripping ghost stories in film. My problem is that my partner LOVES horror films. No matter how bad, how predictable, how corny, she’ll watch them all. I pretty much can’t stand them. However, I’m very happy with a good ghostly thriller, as is she, and am hoping I can find some films that we can _both_ enjoy. A stand-out one for me is _The Others_. I did also really enjoy _The Orphanage_, which crosses into horror-land. I also enjoyed the recent remake of the _Woman in Black_. What I enjoyed, particularly with the first two, is the genuine suspense and twist in the tail. Are there other similar films I should be looking at? They don’t have to be recent releases. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/2 "2012-12-19T17:59:07Z")
[Session 9.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261983/) ---
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/3 "2012-12-19T18:04:17Z")
The Ring The Grudge I have seen the originals and the American versions, and prefer the American versions. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/4 "2012-12-19T18:06:13Z")
[The Devil’s Backbone](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0256009/) I loved _The Orphanage_. Not scary, but if you can handle some romance, _The Ghost and Mrs. Muir_ is wonderfully sweet. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/5 "2012-12-19T18:07:57Z")
Not a hard-core horror film, but I recently re-watched The Frighteners. It’s a pretty enjoyable movie. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/6 "2012-12-19T18:12:38Z")
“The Haunting” (1963) directed by Robert Wise is a hard-to-beat terrifying haunted house film. And if ghosts and haunted houses appeal to you, the British film, “The Legend of Hell House” (1973) is also very chilling. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/7 "2012-12-19T18:51:27Z")
I’ve never really been one for actually _scary_ ghost films—heck, I don’t find too many films that scary to begin with, even with horror aside—but 2002’s [Below](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Below_%28film%29) I found genuinely chilling. (This year’s [The Grey](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grey_%28film%29), however, was the scariest movie I’ve ever seen.) ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/8 "2012-12-19T19:07:43Z")
_[Lady in White](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095484/)_ (1988) _[Something Wicked This Way Comes](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086336/)_ (1983) ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/9 "2012-12-19T19:30:07Z")
The only movie that scared the living bejeezus out of me was the old “The Changeling” with George C. Scott. I saw one recently that was really good but I can’t remember the name of it. It’s from the olden days, black & white, and it’s the story of a teacher who gets hired to look after a brother and sister because their rich absentee father can’t be arsed with them. She goes to live in the mansion with the kids and their housekeeper and all sorts of scary things happen involving the kids. It was on TCM a few months ago. I bet fellow dopers will figure it out - I think it was made in the 1930’s or early 1940’s. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/10 "2012-12-19T19:41:07Z")
Turn of the Screw? I’ve never seen it but the description on Netflix (there are 4 or 5 versions of it available) sounds like what you described. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/11 "2012-12-19T20:04:37Z")
> [@congodwarf](#): > > Turn of the Screw? > > I’ve never seen it but the description on Netflix (there are 4 or 5 versions of it available) sounds like what you described. Ooh, yes, the [BBC did a remake for TV](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pk76h) just this year, loved it (and it stars Lady Mary from Downton Abbey, which can never be a bad thing) ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/12 "2012-12-19T20:08:30Z")
> [@congodwarf](#): > > Turn of the Screw? > > I’ve never seen it but the description on Netflix (there are 4 or 5 versions of it available) sounds like what you described. [The Innocents](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055018/), from 1961 and starring Deborah Kerr, is a really, really effective adaptation of _The Turn of the Screw_. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/13 "2012-12-19T20:18:34Z")
Too late to edit: Reviewing [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=675613), I was reminded of [Insidious](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1591095/)– it’s 95% a great movie (the ending falls apart a little bit for me). There’s a scene in \*Insidious \*that chilled me like none other I’ve ever seen – and I don’t think most viewers see it. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/14 "2012-12-19T20:56:22Z")
> [@Gordon\_Urquhart](#): > > [The Innocents](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055018/), from 1961 and starring Deborah Kerr, is a really, really effective adaptation of _The Turn of the Screw_. That’s it! Thank you. Wow, I was really off on the date. But yeah, that movie is scary as hell. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/15 "2012-12-19T21:09:01Z")
The best Ghost Movie for my money is still _The Changeling_. > **[The Changeling (1980) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080516/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)** > > The Changeling: Directed by Peter Medak. With George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, Melvyn Douglas, Jean Marsh. After the death of his wife and daughter in a car crash, a music professor staying at a long-vacant Seattle mansion is dragged into a... ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/16 "2012-12-19T21:09:41Z")
_[Ghost Story](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082449/)_ - With Fred Astaire, doesn’t seem to get much love but I’ve always enjoyed it. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/17 "2012-12-19T21:13:43Z")
> [@Gordon\_Urquhart](#): > > Too late to edit: > > Reviewing [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=675613), I was reminded of [Insidious](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1591095/)– it’s 95% a great movie (the ending falls apart a little bit for me). There’s a scene in \*Insidious \*that chilled me like none other I’ve ever seen – and I don’t think most viewers see it. The half-seen human-like shape dancing to “tiptoe through the tulips” Rose Byrne sees from outside her house? That was the one that got to me. In the same vein, a good one is the recent “Sinister”. A flawed movie, don’t get me wrong, but the use of the found footage is quite well thought. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/18 "2012-12-19T21:37:37Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > The half-seen human-like shape dancing to “tiptoe through the tulips” Rose Byrne sees from outside her house? That was the one that got to me. Spoiler for \*Insidious \*(and maybe something new for those who’ve seen the movie): [spoiler]The “Tiptoe” newsie was disturbing, all right – here’s a [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7UUtLZ1Sgw) cut of it. The uploader of that video noticed that same thing that really got me (at about 38 seconds into the clip). What’s really great about that is that it gives the audience an uncomfortable thrill without Rose Byrne’s character noticing anything out of the ordinary. There is no way to describe it in words as effectively as it works on screen (“She put the clothes in the hamper, not noticing the ghost of a little boy three feet away” doesn’t quite work)-- it’s something that can only be conveyed visually. I was really unsure of what I’d seen the first time, and I ended up seeing the movie in the theater again to confirm it. It’s an example of one of the (few) advantages that visual media have over the written word. [/spoiler] > [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > In the same vein, a good one is the recent “Sinister”. A flawed movie, don’t get me wrong, but the use of the found footage is quite well thought. I’ve heard good things about \*Sinister \*before – will have to check it out. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/19 "2012-12-19T22:01:35Z")
_13 Ghosts_ (the 1960 original, not the gore-fest starring Tony Shalhoub). ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551/20 "2012-12-19T22:16:48Z")
Did they ever show the burlap sack boy’s face in The Orphanage? I didn’t see the movie, I just wanted to see what his face looked like [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-ghost-films/644551.md?page=2)