10 Forgotten (But Terrifying) Haunted House Horror Movies From The ’90s

From creaking floors to mysteriously open windows to figures looming in the dark shadows, the haunted house is one of the most hallowed tropes in horror. While the ’90s is known for its psychological scary features, from The Silence of the Lambs to The Sixth Sense, the decade is also host to a plethora of good haunted house movies.

Many of these films have fallen by the wayside with the passage of time. Some for good reason: they are more cheesy than horrifying. However, the often visually appealing and character-driven haunted house features on this list deserve another day in the sun.

10 Ghostwatch (1992)

In 1992, the BBC pulled a fast one on viewers when it aired this mockumentary on Halloween night. Even though it was recorded in advance, Ghostwatch was marketed as a live television broadcast following a camera crew as they investigate the most haunted house in Britain.

The journalists travel to a house outside London where poltergeist activity has been reported. Events take a violent and creepy turn as the forces within the home make themselves known.

9 Stir Of Echoes (1999)

Adapted from the 1959 novel by Richard Matheson, Stir of Echoes centers around the spirit of a teenage girl who haunts the homes and minds of her Chicago neighbors in her search for justice against those responsible for her death. Kevin Bacon stars as a phone lineman who opens up a special line of communication with the girl after undergoing hypnosis.

Between Bacon’s stellar, genuine performance and director David Koepp’s ability to build suspense, Stir of Echoes is a first-rate ghost story. It also functions as a thrilling psychodrama set in a working-class neighborhood.

8 Haunted (1995)

Set in 1928, Haunted follows an American professor who travels to a British estate to investigate alleged paranormal occurrences there. Aidan Quinn plays the professor, a debunker of the supernatural who is dead set proving the hauntings a hoax.

However, when he arrives at Edbrook House outside Sussex, his skepticism quickly subsides once he gets a taste of what’s really happening there. A young Kate Beckinsale co-stars as Christina Mariell, one of the estate’s inheritors who develops a romance with Quinn’s character David Ash.

7 Amityville: It’s About Time (1992)

This eccentric addition to the Amityville Horror franchise is a surreal, acerbic nightmare about an architect who brings a click from the original Amityville house into his living room. The possessed clock sets off a series of strange events.

The family who live in the house, decorated like a plush suburban McMansion, experience hallucinations, mental breakdowns, and murderous inclinations as the clock’s power takes hold. Equal parts comedic and horrific, It’s About Time is a testament to ’90s interior design and demonic excess.

6 The Haunted (1991)

Long before Patrick Wilson and Ver Farminga portrayed Ed and Lorraine Warren in James Wan’s The Conjuring films, Stephen Markle and Diane Baker played the Warrens in this made-for-TV movie. The Haunted is inspired by the real-life case of the Smurls, a Pennslyvania couple who claimed their home was possessed by ghosts and demons.

For years, the Smurls dealt with violent paranormal attacks and incidents before they sought the help of the Warrens, married demonologists. The film is inspired by the book the Smurls wrote with the Warrens.

5 Nang Nak (1999)

This Thai horror film is based on the story of Mae Nak Phra Khanong, a well-known female ghost in Thai lore. During the Siamese-Vietnamese War in the 1800s, a villager is conscripted to participate and leaves for battle with a pregnant wife at home.

When the man finally returns from the war, he is greeted by his wife and their child. Unaware the woman died during his absence, villagers try to warn the man it’s the ghost of his heartbroken wife who now resides with him.

4 Raat (1992)

Bollywood tackles ghosts in Raat, an Indian horror movie that retains cult status to this day. In the film, the Sharma family relocates into a new house notorious for supernatural events, only to discover the rumors are true.

The ghost targets the family’s only daughter, nicknamed Mini, using her body as a vessel for conducting evil. The result is an atmospheric and unsettling story that develops slowly without the use of jump scares.

3 Yumeji (1991)

A haunting, phantasmagoric masterpiece from Japanese director Suzuki Seijun, Yumeji is a lake-side haunted house film. Loosely based on the life of Japanese painter Takehisa Yumeji, it follows the title artist as he chases after beautiful women – many of whom are the subject of his paintings.

When Yumeji encounters the stunning ghost of a woman in a nearby lake, he dives headfirst into a fantastical flirtation. While the ghost wants to bring the bandit who killed her to justice, Yumeji just wants to soak up her beauty.

2 Whispering Corridors (1998)

A prime example of Korean horror, Whispering Corridors uses the haunted house trope to make bold statements about South Korea’s historically authoritarian education system. Instead of a home, the possessed building is an all girl’s school full of terrible secrets.

Traumatized, vengeful ghosts lurk in the shadows while a sadistic teacher known as Mrs. Park makes life even worse for the teenagers at the school. A hit in South Korea, Whispering Corridors was followed by four sequels that all explore taboo subjects.

1 The Frighteners (1996)

Made between Peter Jackson’s splatter phase and his ascension into directing blockbusters, The Frighteners is an underrated and hilarious horror venture about a former architect who decides to try his luck as an in-home exorcist for folks with haunted houses.

Michael J. Fox stars as the psychic, Frank Bannister, who practices necromancy to hone his skills. Bannister works with the ghosts he meets along the way to scam his clients, eventually running into a ghostly serial killer who poses a major threat to both the spirit and human worlds.

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