Halloween Movies to Watch 2021

We all have the urge to watch some spooky movies when it comes to Halloween. I’ve put down 5 of my best in each category;

• Halloween Movies for Kids
• Halloween Comedy Movies
• Best Halloween Movies
• Scariest Halloween Movies
• Good Halloween Movies

There is something to watch for Everyone. Most of the genres are in there (even if it’s predominantly horror). Click on the movie title to read more about the movie. and picture for the trailer. Hope you have a Happy Halloween!

Halloween Movies for Kids

Scooby-Doo – The Movie & Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed

Who doesn’t love scooby doo? This is a really great movie for the family and won’t cause the little ones night terrors. Also it has a pretty good sequel, if you enjoy the first one.

Scooby-Doo – The Movie (2002, G) Director – Raja Gosnell

Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby are reunited at a spooky amusement park after a long gap of two years. Here, they investigate strange occurrences that the visitors are subjected to.

Starring – Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, Rowan Atkinson

Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004, PG) Director – Raja Gosnell

Scooby-Doo and his friend Shaggy, Velma, Fred and Daphne are challenged to save Coolsville from the attack of monsters. They also deal with a journalist who tries to discredit their investigations.

Starring – Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, Seth Green, Peter Boyle, Tim Blake Nelson, Alicia Silverstone

The Nightmare Before Christmas

(1993, G) Director – Henry Selick

This is one of my favourite movies from childhood. The story and Characters are created by the amazing Tim Burton and he is truly remarkable with these types of movies. The songs are incredibly catchy too!

Jack Skellington, a being from Halloween Town, finds Christmas Town and is instantly enchanted. The situation becomes riveting when his obsession with Christmas leads him to abduct Santa Claus.

Starring (voice) – Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O’Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Paul Reubens, Ken Page

Casper

(1995, PG) Director – Brad Silberling

Another great one for kids. Plus makes them laugh rather than be scared.

Carrigan Crittenden hires paranormal expert Dr James Harvey to exorcise the ghosts from her mansion. The situation changes when Harvey’s daughter befriends Casper, a friendly ghost.

Starring – Malachi Pearson, Christina Ricci, Bill Pullman, Cathy Moriarty, Eric Idle

Hocus Pocus

(1993, PG) Director – Kenny Ortega

A Halloween cult classic and fun for the kids to watch on their spooky Halloween night.

Three witches resurrect after 300 years to exact revenge and begin a reign of terror after Max, a young boy who moves to Salem with his family, lights the cursed Candle of Black Flame.

Starring – Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy, Omri Katz, Thora Birch, Vinessa Shaw

Goosebumps

(2015, PG) Director – Rob Letterman

We all remember being kids and reading the Goosebumps books. This movie is a fun lookback at all the scary stories and the tv show. It combines the stories and gives good memories. Plus Jack Black is always funny.

R L Stine, the author of ‘Goosebumps’, is shocked when demons from his books come to life and create havoc in Delaware. Later, he, his daughter, Hannah, and her friend Zach strive to put things right.

Starring – Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Amy Ryan, Ryan Lee, Jillian Bell

Halloween Comedy Movies

Zombieland

(2009, MA) Director – Ruben Fleischer

This movie still cracks me up. Truly worth watching, if you prefer to giggle rather than to scream in a movie.

A student in search of his parents, a man in search of his last Twinkie and two sisters join forces to survive the zombie infestation while travelling across America.

Starring – Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin

Shaun of the Dead

(2004, MA) Director – Edgar Wright

I love zombie movies (as you can tell by most of this list), and this one is no exception. I also love Simon Pegg’s comedy style.

Shaun is a salesman whose life has no direction. However, his uneventful life takes a sudden turn when he has to singlehandedly deal with an entire community of zombies.

Starring – Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Nick Frost, Dylan Moran, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton

Little Evil

(2017, M) Director – Eli Craig

I really enjoyed this movie as it is a funny take on the Anti-Christ and loved Adam Scott in it. I found it hilarious.

A newly married man starts to believe that his 5-year-old stepson is the spawn of Satan.

Starring – Evangeline Lilly, Adam Scott, Bridget Everett, Owen Atlas, Kyle Bornheimer, Chris D’Elia, Donald Faison, Carla Gallo, Tyler Labine, Brad Williams, Clancy Brown, Sally Field

Mars Attacks!

(1996, M) Director – Tim Burton

This has always been one of the movies I remember as a very young kid, when my parents were watching it and there was a scene, where aliens are destroying everything and one of the aliens say “We come in Peace.” Don’t know why I’m still laughing about it, but I am.

An army of aliens from Mars visit Earth and meet the president of the United states under peaceful pretences. However, they reveal their true intentions when they start attacking cities.

Starring – Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, Tom Jones, Lukas Haas, Natalie Portman, Jim Brown, Lisa Marie, Sylvia Sidney

Zombie Strippers

(2008, MA) Director – Jay Lee

This is a hilarious movie. I honestly can not stop laughing at the premise. If you like really bad “horror” then you will love this movie. Plus it has Jenna Jameson as the lead bitchy stripper… what more could guys want?

Kat, a stripper, who works at an underground strip club called Rhino, gets infected by a virus that turns humans into zombies. However, soon, the club gets overrun by zombies.

Starring – Robert Englund, Jenna Jameson, Penny Drake, Roxy Saint

Best Halloween Movies

World War Z

(2013, M) Director – Marc Forster

This is possibly the best zombie movie out there. I loved the build up and action, that this movie portrayed. Plus had my favourite actor Brad Pitt. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bad movie that he has acted in.

Out of nowhere, Gerry, an ex-United Nations employee, finds himself in a race against time as he investigates a threatening virus that turns humans into zombies.

Starring – Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, James Badge Dale, Matthew Fox

Sleepy Hollow

(1999, MA) Director – Tim Burton

Anything directed by  Tim Burton is good. This is a movie that I will happily watch again and again.

Ichabod Crane, a police officer, gets transferred to the Westchester County hamlet of Sleepy Hollow, New York for using unacceptable methods of investigation.

Starring – Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Casper Van Dien, Jeffrey Jones

Resident Evil

(2002, MA) Director – Paul W. S. Anderson

The movie is based off of the game and I loved both of them. I like the other resident evils in the series as well, but the first was my favourite. Probably because it combines science fiction, zombies and apocalypse themes from the shady Umbrella Corporation. Plus high action rating.

A special team of commandos are entrusted with the responsibility of shutting down a genetics laboratory after it is affected by a virus breakout and its employees are turned into zombies.

Starring – Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy, Martin Crewes, Colin Salmon

Hannibal Lecter Movies

Who couldn’t love the Hannibal Lecter movies. Anthony Hopkins is truly terrifying as the extremely intelligent cannibal. I also highly recommend the Hannibal (TV series). Though suggest to watch the movies first, as the Series mostly focuses on the novel “Red Dragon” by  Thomas Harris.

Red Dragon (2002, MA) Director – Brett Ratner,

Will Graham, a retired FBI agent with special psychological abilities, is assigned a job to capture an enigmatic serial killer. However, he must seek help from his rival, Dr Hannibal Lecter.

Starring – Edward Norton, Anthony Hopkins, Ralph Fiennes, Harvey Keitel, Emily Watson, Mary-Louise Parker, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Silence of the Lambs (1991, R) Director – Jonathan Demme

Clarice Starling, an FBI trainee, seeks help from Hannibal Lecter, a psychopathic serial killer and former psychiatrist, in order to apprehend another murderer who has been claiming female victims.

Starring – Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine

Hannibal (2001, R) Director – Ridley Scott

Dr Hannibal Lecter, who was arrested for cannibalism, now lives at an unknown location under a new identity. One of the victims, Mason Verger, makes an elaborate plan to find him and avenge himself.

Starring – Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore, Ray Liotta, Frankie R. Faison, Giancarlo Giannini, Francesca Neri

The Belko Experiment

(2016, MA) Director – Greg McLean

This movie really was good. It shows how quickly a workplace can go crazy in high pressure situations, and that really makes you question how you would survive if it happened within your workplace…

Eighty Americans fall prey to a deadly experiment when they are locked in their company’s corporate office and an anonymous voice orders them to kill each other in order to survive.

Starring – John Gallagher Jr., Tony Goldwyn, Adria Arjona, John C. McGinley, Melonie Diaz, Josh Brener, Michael Rooker

Scariest Halloween Movies

Paranormal Activity

I got so scared, after watching the first movie, that I didn’t sleep for a few nights. My partner walked through a door and I almost jumped to the ceiling! The first 3 movies were good, but don’t suggest watching after that, as it gets a bit boring.

Paranormal Activity (2007, M) Director – Oren Peli

Katie and Micah, a young couple, move into a suburban residence and feel the presence of evil forces. They install cameras which capture all the incidents, noises and evil occurrences in the house.

Starring – Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat

Paranormal Activity 2 (2010, M) Director – Tod Williams

Daniel moves to a new house in California along with his family and hire a Spanish speaking nanny to look after his son. Things start to go downhill after a paranormal entity makes its presence felt.

Starring – Sprague Grayden, Brian Boland, Molly Ephraim, Seth Ginsberg, Micah Sloat, Katie Featherston

Paranormal Activity 3 (2011, M) Director – Ariel Schulman, Henry Joost

Siblings Katie and Kristi live with their mother Julie and her boyfriend. Paranormal situations trigger off in their house when the two girls befriend an invisible entity, Toby.

Starring – Lauren Bittner, Chris Smith, Chloe Csengery, Jessica Tyler Brown, Katie Featherston

The Ring

(2002, MA) Director – Gore Verbinski

The Ring was another one that scared me. I was in high school at the time and was having a slumber party with a few friends. We all had to make sure that in seven days we were on the phone or with each other in case Samara was real lol.

After a series of mysterious deaths, an investigative journalist must find the cause behind them before the same fate comes knocking on her door.

Starring – Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox

The Conjuring Series

(See dates in table under the descriptions – this list is in chronilogical order)

The Nun (2018, MA) Director – Corin Hardy

A priest and a novice arrive in Romania to investigate the death of a young nun. However, things take an ugly turn after they encounter a supernatural force.

Starring – Demián Bichir, Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet

Annabelle: Creation (2017, MA) Director – David F. Sandberg

A doll-maker and his wife embed the spirit of their deceased daughter inside a doll. Years later, a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage become victims of the possessed doll, Anabelle.

Starring – Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, Lulu Wilson, Anthony LaPaglia, Miranda Otto

Annabelle (2014, MA) Director – John R. Leonetti

John and Mia Form are attacked by members of a satanic cult that uses their old doll as a conduit to make their life miserable. This unleashes a string of paranormal events in the Forms’ residence.

Starring – Annabelle Wallis, Ward Horton, Alfre Woodard

The Conjuring (2013, MA) Director – James Wan

Rod and Carolyn find their pet dog dead under mysterious circumstances and experience a spirit that harms their daughter Andrea. They finally call investigators who can help them get out of the mess.

Starring – Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor

Annabelle Comes Home (2019, M) Director – Gary Dauberman

Judy and her babysitter are left alone in her house after her parents leave to investigate a case. However, an unexpected guest sets Annabelle free, unleashing demonic activity in the house.

Starring – Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman, Katie Sarife, Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson

The Curse of La Llorona (2019, M) Director – Michael Chaves

When Patricia is found endangering the lives of her sons, Anna puts her behind bars. However, when Anna’s own children are endangered, she suspects that there is more than human involvement at play.

Starring – Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velásquez

The Conjuring 2 (2016, MA) Director – James Wan

Peggy, a single mother of four children, seeks the help of occult investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren when she and her children witness strange, paranormal events in their house.

Starring – Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Frances O’Connor, Madison Wolfe, Simon McBurney, Franka Potente

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021, MA) Director – Michael Chaves

Arne Cheyenne Johnson stabs and murders his landlord, claiming to be under demonic possession while Ed and Lorraine Warren investigate the case and try to prove his innocence.

Starring – Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ruairi O’Connor, Sarah Catherine Hook, Julian Hilliard

Film	Director	Chronological Year	Year Released
The Nun	Corin Hardy	1952	2018
Annabelle: Creation	David F. Sandberg	1955	2017
Annabelle	John R. Leonetti	1967	2014
The Conjuring	James Wan	1971	2013
Annabelle Comes Home	Gary Dauberman	1972	2019
The Curse of La Llorona	Michael Chaves	1973	2019
The Conjuring 2	James Wan	1977	2016
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It	Michael Chaves	1981	2021

Sinister

(2012, MA) Director – Scott Derrickson

I liked Sinister, as the scary parts, were not where or when you actually expected them. They sneak up on you and have you riveted by the story.

Ellison, a crime writer, moves his family to a house that once witnessed gruesome murders. Soon, when his research leads him to some eerie footage, things take a dark and harrowing turn.

Starring – Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Thompson, James Ransone, Clare Foley, Michael Hall D’Addario

The Blair Witch Project

(1999, M) Director – Eduardo Sánchez, Daniel Myrick

This was another movie I watched as a teenager. It scared me so much when I first saw it. Plus it’s amazing how much they did, with such a small budget.

Three students decide to go into the Maryland backwoods to cover the mystery behind the Blair Witch incidents. However, they lose their map and things take an unexpected turn.

Starring –
Heather Donahue, Michael Williams, Joshua Leonard

Good Halloween Movies

Mirrors

(2008, MA) Director – Alexandre Aja

I don’t know about you, but after hearing all the mythology and spooky stories about mirrors, they can be pretty freaky. Like the story of Bloody Mary. This movie is brilliant and makes you a bit paranoid about your reflection. I still get freaked out (not just because I’m not wearing any make-up) when I see a mirror at night time. Keep checking that it’s still following my movements after seeing this movie!

Ben guards a partly destroyed property during the nights but begins to see strange images in its impeccable mirrors. After his sister is killed, he is convinced that evil forces are out to get him.

Starring – Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Amy Smart, Jason Flemyng, Cameron Boyce, Arika Gluck, Mary Beth Peil

Dead Silence

(2007, M) Director – James Wan

All horror movie dolls are creepy enough, but ventriloquist possessed dolls… Definite creep factor. Plus it has a twist in the ending, that really got me. I love surprises. If you like this one, you might also like The Boy. Another creepy doll movie.

After the delivery of a mysterious package, Jamie’s wife is found murdered. When he digs deeper, he realises that her death might have a connection with a deceased ventriloquist and her dummy.

Starring – Ryan Kwanten, Amber Valletta, Donnie Wahlberg, Bob Gunton

The Grudge

(2000, M) Director – Takashi Shimizu

The Grudge is a good movie. I got pretty freaked out by the way it went down the stairs. I also now get a bit paranoid by random shadowed ceiling areas.

Karen Davis moves to Tokyo, where she encounters a supernatural spirit that possesses its victims. After a series of horrifying and mysterious deaths, Karen makes a vow to stop any further deaths.

Starring – Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, KaDee Strickland, Clea DuVall, Bill Pullman

Gothika

(2003, MA) Director – Mathieu Kassovitz

Gothika is another surprise ending one. It’s a little bit slow paced, but it’s worth it for the ending.

A psychiatrist awakens as a patient in a mental institution, with no memory of the murder she’s accused of committing. As she tries to regain her memory, a vengeful spirit manipulates her.

Starring – Halle Berry, Robert Downey Jr., Charles S. Dutton, John Carroll Lynch, Bernard Hill, Penélope Cruz.

The Cube (Series)

The Cube series is awesome and gets you thinking. It’s very science fiction based, think of it as Saw on steroids.

Cube (1997, MA) Director – Vincenzo Natali

Cube, the first film in the series, follows a group of seven frightened strangers who find themselves trapped in a bizarre maze of cubical rooms, with no memory of how they arrived there. Searching for a way out, they soon discover that many rooms contain lethal booby traps, while others are safe.

Starring – Nicole de Boer, Nicky Guadagni, David Hewlett, Andrew Miller, Julian Richings, Wayne Robson, Maurice Dean Wint

Cube 2: Hypercube (2002, MA) Director – Andrzej Sekuła

Cube 2: Hypercube is a sequel to the film Cube. The dusky, dingy rooms of the first film are replaced with high-tech, brightly lit rooms, and the conventional technology of the original traps are replaced with threats based on abstract mathematics.

Starring – Kari Matchett, Geraint Wyn Davies, Grace Lynn Kung, Matthew Ferguson, Neil Crone

Cube Zero (2004, MA) Director – Ernie Barbarash

Cube Zero is a prequel to the film Cube. Unlike the first two films, which were limited to the prisoners’ point of view, the film concerns two characters, Eric Wynn and Dodd, who are technicians observing the prisoners.

Starring – Zachary Bennett, David Huband, Stephanie Moore, Michael Riley, Martin Roach, Mike “Nug” Nahrgang, Terri Hawkes, Richard McMillan, Tony Munch, Jasmin Geljo

That’s all for my top Halloween Movie lists! I couldn’t include all my favourites and really thought hard about which ones to include. Let me know of any great movies, in your comments and which Horror movies that you think I should add for next year?

Thanks for reading.