Well, slowing down any piece of music can make it creepy, but I agree it’s particularly effective in that movie, especially since the lyrics also take on a very different meaning…
By the way, 1408 is the only recentish horror movie that I found unsettling. The whole premise is unconfortably close to some nightmares I used to have : being trapped in a place where spooky things keep on happening and each “escape” is only an illusion, leaving you exactly where you started.
In Stephen King’s novel (just before the final confrontation in the garage), Christine’s radio is blasting out “Waitin’ In School” by Ricky Nelson.
How about Westworld (First Episode) when it uses the orchestral version of “Paint It Black”?
London Bridges in the Dark Shadows series.
Although Quentin’s Theme was written for Dark Shadows it sounds a lot like Shadow of Your Smile.
Waltzing Matilda in the Movie On the Beach
The Merry Widow Waltz in the movie The Merry Widow.
Not to mention the Merry Widow Waltz in Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt.
“…Widows…horrible, faded, fat, greedy woman. Are they human, or are they fat, wheezing animals? And what happens to animals when they get too fat and too old…?” – Uncle Charlie
“When he Gang Away, Jamie” in The Body Snatcher. Not so much as when it’s sung,as when the singing suddenly stops.
“Close To You” in Mirrormask.
The Odessa Files - a film about escaped Nazis
Perry Como - Christmas Dream
Edelweiss, over the opening montage that shows for The Man in High Castle.
I was going to post this too. It’s haunting, and some days just rolls around in my head. Unpleasant.
The insistence that the edelweiss is white, clean, etc. does take on a new meaning…
Similarly, Queen’s “One Vision” has creepy lyrics, especially after Laibach got their hands on it and added their Teutonic mark.