With Halloween just around the corner, there’s no better way to embrace the spooky season than with a movie. From a cheerful kids’ favorite to a classic psychological thriller, here are the top 10 Halloween films ranked by IMDb ratings.
The five honorable mentions below fell just short of the list, but they’re time-tested classics that plenty of viewers love.
“Scream” (1996):
A masked killer known as Ghostface starts hunting a group of high schoolers in Woodsboro.
“Practical Magic” (1998):
Two witch sisters carry a curse handed down through their family line, and they struggle to find lasting love along the way.
“Corpse Bride” (2005):
Tim Burton’s creepy stop-motion story centers on a young man set to marry a local girl, who instead winds up accidentally wed to a mysterious corpse bride.
“Hocus Pocus” (1993):
On Halloween night in Salem, a boy new to town accidentally brings three witches back from the dead. He and his friends must race to save their town from disaster.
“Beetlejuice “(1988):
A recently deceased couple hires the mischievous spirit Beetlejuice to scare off the new tenants who moved into their home.
- “Halloween” (1978): 7.7
Fifteen years after a terrible crime in his childhood, Michael Myers breaks free and heads back to the quiet town of Haddonfield, where a group of teens is stalked on Halloween night.
- Ghostbusters (1984): 7.8
This comedy follows a crew of parapsychologists as they launch a ghost-catching business in New York City and chase down all kinds of wild, wacky hauntings.
- Get Out (2017): 7.8
A young Black man spends a weekend meeting his white girlfriend’s family. A string of odd encounters makes him suspect that something far more sinister is going on.
- Rosemary’s Baby (1968): 8.0
A young couple settles into a New York City apartment hoping to start a family. Once she learns she’s pregnant, her neighbor’s odd behavior makes her fear what could be growing inside her.
- The Exorcist (1973): 8.1
A young girl starts showing disturbing behavior brought on by demonic possession. As the supernatural forces grow stronger and more terrifying, her family turns to a priest to save her.
- It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown (1966): 8.1
This warm, lighthearted film follows Charlie Brown and his friends through Halloween and trick-or-treating. Linus waits patiently for the legendary “Great Pumpkin” to bring presents to the pumpkin patch.
- The Sixth Sense (1999): 8.2
A child psychologist in Philadelphia tries to help a troubled boy who says he can talk to the dead. As they dig for the truth, a shocking twist comes to light.
- The Shining (1980): 8.4
Aspiring writer Jack Torrance and his family take a job looking after a hotel. The hotel’s supernatural activity drives Torrance into madness while his family is trapped with him.
- Alien (1979): 8.5
This sci-fi horror classic follows a space crew answering mysterious distress signals from another planet. Without realizing it, they bring a deadly alien organism aboard their ship.
- Psycho (1960): 8.5
This iconic thriller follows a secretary on the run for embezzlement who checks into the eerie Bates Motel—a choice she soon regrets. The film quickly turns into a psychological thriller with an infamous twist.
