Best Scary Halloween Movies
There are hundred of “Best Scary Halloween Movies” articles on the internet. We took a detour and sought out the best unique scary Halloween movies. Most of these are not your typical fare, so if you’re looking for something extra scary that you probably haven’t seen before, this list is for you!
What makes a Halloween movie good? Is it the Halloween nostalgia, the scares, or the ambiance? A good scare still thrills and terrifies us all at once, and find the balance of scary moments as well as a scary plot is the perfect recipe.
When it comes to Halloween movies, there are a lot of choices. Some are scary, some are comedic but one thing that every good Halloween movie has to have: a true sense of the holiday that we all love to celebrate. If you are looking to settle in for a scary movie about Halloween, check out our recommendations below.
Hell Fest (2018)
Starring: Bex Taylor-Klaus, Amy Forsyth, Reign Edwards
Runtime: 89 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: Three teenagers venture out on Halloween night to a traveling carnival that promises a night filled with scares and thrills. The only problem, the group is being stalked by a masked man that soon turns the festival into his own horror movie.
Review: It is a campy teen flick, but it has the right amount of Halloween nuance.
The Houses October Built (2014)
Starring: Brandy Schaefer, Zack Andrews, Bobby Roe
Runtime: 91 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Plot: Five thrill-seeking friends go on a road trip to explore the scariest haunted houses in the country. Things begin to turn gruesome as the friends are hunted by disturbed psychopaths.
Review: If you love haunted houses, Halloween, and found footage, this is your pick.
Halloween (1978)
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Tony Moran
Runtime: 91 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: A young babysitter, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is silently stalked on Halloween night by a murderer named Michael Myers who recently escaped from a mental institution several years after murdering his sister.
Review: No Halloween movie list would be complete without John Carpenter’s Halloween. It is the classic Halloween movie.
Trick ‘r Treat (2007)
Starring: Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Dylan Baker
Runtime: 82 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: In this horror anthology starring Dylan Baker and Anna Paquin, we follow several interwoven tales that take place on Halloween night in a small town.
Review: Trick ‘r Treat had a limited release but has gained a cult following especially among horror aficionados. It borders horror/comedy but is still filled with enough “scares” to warrant a spot on our list.
Trick (2019)
Starring: Jamie Kennedy, Omar Epps, Melody Hurd
Runtime: 100 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Plot: A seemingly supernatural individual terrorizes a town on Halloween night. After being shot by Detective Mike Denver (Omar Epps), everyone thinks the killer is dead, but he suddenly reappears one year later to commit even more gruesome acts.
Review: Halloween is pretty much the perfect night to go on a masked serial killing spree and anyone could be the killer, including your best friend. It may not be the best slasher on the list, but it is definitely filled with ample amounts of Halloween dread.
Halloween (2018)
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer Andi Matichak
Runtime: 106 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: 40-years after the original events of Halloween (1978), Laurie Strode still lives in fear and her wildest dreams come true when Michael Myers escapes the mental institution on Halloween night.
Review: The Halloween franchise has gone through some ups-and-downs, but the 2018 version of Halloween is a gem when it comes to horror remakes/reboots.
Haunt (2019)
Starring: Katie Stevens, Will Brittain, Lauryn Alisa McClain
Runtime: 92 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: A group of friends goes out on Halloween night looking for an “extreme” haunted house. They find one they think fits the bill, but the night slowly begins to turn deadly as the haunted house organizers begin to pick off the teens one by one.
Review: Haunt is a real Halloween delight and would make any haunted house lover think twice before venturing out to any remote haunted house.
Hell House, LLC (2015)
Starring: Gore Abrams, Alice Bahlke, Danny Bellini
Runtime: 93 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Plot: Hell House, LLC is a classic found footage horror film. It tells a documentary-style story about how 15 people were killed during a haunted house five years earlier.
Review: There is a real anxiety and dread that builds up as you watch Hell House, LLC. That is something that you do not find in many horror movies but this one is definitely one we wouldn’t recommend watching alone.
Pumpkinhead (1988)
Starring: Lance Henriksen, Jeff East, John D’Aquino
Runtime: 86 minutes
Rating: R
Plot: A grief-stricken dad seeks revenge on the teenagers responsible for killing his son in a hit-and-run accident. He manages to summon a vengeful demon also known as Pumpkinhead to terrorize the teens.
Review: Pumpkinhead is a classic Halloween monster horror movie. It is an older movie, but it still holds up more than 30 years later.
Terrifier (2016)
Starring: Jenna Kannell, Samantha Scaffidi, David Howard Thornton
Runtime: 82 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Plot: A creepy clown stalks and terrorizes several women on Halloween night and wreaks havoc on anyone that gets in his way.
Review: Clowns, that’s all you really need to know. Not only is Terrifier, well, terrifying, but it is also filled with a ton of graphic and gruesome killings. Definitely not one for the faint of heart.
We hope you enjoyed our recommendations of the best scary Halloween movies, and found a few that are new to you!
More Halloween Movie Lists
We add new movie posts regularly. Here are a few Halloween posts you might also enjoy.
We also list a bunch of movie marathons which include a few Halloween-themed series’.
[mashshare]
