The 25 Best Halloween Movies Ever, Ranked

Based on a John Updike novel and directed by George Miller, The Witches of Eastwick is as flamboyant as it is packed with stars. Cher, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Susan Sarandon star as three best friends who are all targeted by Jack Nicholson’s impish take on the devil. It’s as much about friendship as it is about feminism, following the women as they reclaim their own agency from both their seducer and the town at large. Watch this one with your friends, but be prepared to quote from the script for the rest of the season.

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Director Nia DeCosta and cowriter Jordan Peele take their time building the suspense in this poignant interpretation of a short story first published in the 1980s. (Contrary to popular belief, it’s also not a remake; instead, it’s the fourth film in an overall franchise that centers on the titular spirit.) Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, and Colman Domingo bring to life a suspenseful script that discusses police brutality, housing injustice, and how injustice can transform into myth if we’re not careful. It’s the kind of horror movie that leaves you both scared and thinking about its core themes for a long, long time.

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Halloween is as good a time as any to catch up on the classic cinema you might have missed the first time around. If you’ve never seen Silence of the Lambs, which swept the 1992 Oscars with Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay wins, now’s the time to hit Play. It stars Jodie Foster as an FBI cadet who is tasked with interviewing Anthony Hopkins’s cannibalistic murderer to better understand and catch another serial killer. As psychologically twisted as it is compelling, this is an all-time example of suspense and plot twists.

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Tim Burton might be the unofficial grand master of Halloween. After all, he directed three of the movies on this list. The animated feature opens on the brink of an arranged marriage between two sweet introverts without much say in their parents’ scheming. Nervousness and bumbling lead to the groom’s accidental betrothal to a half-buried corpse. As much about what it means to live happily ever after as it is about honoring the deceased in your life, this is a surprisingly touching story with plenty of songs, spiders, and plot twists.

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If you ever dreamed of serving on your school’s prom court, perhaps you’ll feel differently after watching Carrie. The iconic horror film stars Sissy Spacek as a sheltered and outcast teenager with an overbearingly zealous mother and classmates who openly hate her. Whether you believe her actions are justified or not, you’ll be glued to the couch as Carrie exacts her revenge on everyone who has wronged her.

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Come for Nicole Kidman’s wardrobe, stay for how she and Sandra Bullock bond as sisters who couldn’t be more different but love each other fiercely all the same. The movie follows the Owens sisters, who come from a long line of Massachusetts witches and who have initially spent much of their youth running from their powers. Part romance, part suspense, and entirely supported by heartwarming performances from Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest, this movie will have you swooning at the inevitability of love.

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Set in 14th-century feudal Japan, this movie follows the widow and mother of a slain soldier who are working together to ensure their survival in a desolate landscape. The black-and-white treatment and rhythmic soundtrack add to the poignant and purposefully shot film. The most insufferable art bro you knew in college was likely obsessed with this movie, and with good reason; its point of view and symbolism make it a true classic. Pair this with a glass of wine on a chilly night.

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Part campy classic, part hyperbole for a fear of aging gone way, way, way too far, Death Becomes Her is as funny as it is glitzy. Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn star as two former friends with plenty of bad blood between them: Meryl’s Madeline is now married to Goldie’s Helen. A mysterious potion not unlike the fountain of youth and supporting roles from Bruce Willis and Isabella Rosellini round out this zingy comedy, which also serves as the inspiration for the Broadway musical of the same name.

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While slasher villain Jason Voorhees is the most memorable part of the Friday the 13th franchise, he doesn’t appear until the second film in the horror franchise. Even then, he looks different than the white-faced Jason of Halloween-costume infamy; the hockey mask shows up in the third movie. The plot for The Final Chapter is as campy as can be: Jason is presumed dead, only to escape from the morgue and terrorize a new group of victims vacationing at Crystal Lake. The pacing will keep you interested, while the characters stick around long enough for you to actually get invested. Fair warning, though: It might be called The Final Chapter, but producers cranked out eight more Friday the 13th films after this one.

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If you’ve ever wanted to jet away to Sweden during an idyllic summer vacation, maybe you’ll rethink that after watching this psychological thriller. After Florence Pugh’s Dani suffers a horrible loss in her family, she joins her boyfriend and his friends on a group trip to a summer solstice festival. The sunshine and rustic rituals quickly give way to something far more sinister, and Dani finds herself caught in the middle of it all. Directed by Ari Aster, this is the kind of tense watch that is now a hallmark for production company A24.

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Based on the Stephen King book of the same name and building off the TV miniseries starring Tim Curry, this film is the first of a two-part franchise. It focuses on the children of Derry, Maine, who are as terrorized by demons in their lives as they are by a malevolent clown named Pennywise. Bill Skarsgaard’s turn as the sewer-dwelling poltergeist is as creepy as can be, and the horrors to which the Losers’ Club are subjected will make you remember how much being a kid can … well, be a nightmare.

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If there’s one movie on this list that you should make the time to see in theaters, it’s this one. Starring Tim Curry and Susan Sarandon, Rocky Horror is a campy cult classic that takes the subtext of Frankenstein and twists it into song, dance, and plenty of sexual awakening. The movie is so beloved that plenty of independent theaters regularly hold midnight showings around Halloween. Audience participation is encouraged.

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A zombie movie for the ages, Train to Busan explores selflessness, survival, and community. Set on a high-speed train in South Korea, the film follows a father and daughter as they try to stay alive when a mysterious outbreak washes over the earth. Fellow train passengers become infected with dizzying speed, and the film excels at raising the stakes from one climax to the next. It’s as much an action movie as it is a horror film, so be prepared to sit for the two-hour duration—most likely with your eyes peeled and one hand over your mouth in shock.

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Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall star in one of the most influential horror movies of all time, which blends psychological horror with plenty of gore. The Stanley Kubrick–directed movie takes us to the Overlook Hotel, an all-but-abandoned resort where Nicholson’s Jack Torrance works as the off-season caretaker. Slowly, he, his wife, and their son, Danny, learn the secrets of the Overlook hotel—which ends in disaster, with plenty of jump-scares along the way. The pacing is intentionally slow and suspenseful, but The Shining’s influence on nearly every horror movie that came after it is obvious.

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If you went to Catholic school, dabbled in magic as a teenager, or simply felt like a weirdo, this is the ’90s cult classic for you. Robin Tunney stars as an introverted teen named Sarah who is grieving her mother’s death and trying to fit in at a new school, with all the crushes and rumors that come with. She quickly falls in with three other girls—played by Fairuza Balk, Neve Cambell, and Rachel True—who believe in magic. When it turns out that Sarah can actually perform magic, the group begins using her powers for their own personal gain. Skeet Ulrich and Breckin Meyer coastar in this supernatural thriller, which has since been given the remake treatment and will always endure as a quick-and-easy Halloween costume idea.

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