5 Gothic Films for Your Halloween Movie Marathon

Maybe you already have a list of slasher films lined up for your Halloween movie marathon, but I’d like to humbly offer some classic gothic horror to mix up your rotation. If you’re willing to trade out gore for some psychological horror (and trade out color for black and white films), here are my spooky recommendations. Of course, if you have any content concerns, don’t forget to check out DoesTheDogDie.com to see if any of these movies have themes or scenes that would be too distressing!

1. Rebecca (1940)

Based solely on my former high school English teacher’s recollection of living down the street from Alfred Hitchcock as a child, the man creeps me out for the wrong reasons. The movies he has directed, on the other hand, creep me out for all of the right reasons--and Rebecca is my favorite of his works.

Rebecca is about the haunting of Manderley, but more of a psychological haunting rather than a ghostly one. The characters are haunted by the deceased first lady of the mansion, yes, but through the legacy and expectations she left behind, as well as her many secrets.

Don’t worry, our living characters are unsettling too. Our unnamed protagonist can sense it, and so can we. What is Maxim hiding? Why is the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, so damn creepy? You’ll have to watch it to find out.

2. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

Perhaps more than any other movie on this list, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? had me feeling trapped and suffocated with despair. I’m talking genuinely tight-chested, unable to take a deep breath until after the movie ended. It is unbelievably stressful, and equally as good. It’s intense as hell, with a bit of camp.

This movie follows Jane (Bette Davis), a former child star, and her sister Blanche (Joan Crawford), a former movie star. The two sisters are quite opposite from one another. Jane sees much success as a child while her shy sister is overlooked, but the roles reverse as adults due to Jane’s falling stardom as she aged and fell into alcoholism, and Blanche’s growing fame due to her successful Hollywood roles.

Blanche’s career comes to a tragic end following a car accident that leaves her paraplegic, but the two sisters still live in a mansion thanks to Blanche’s movie star earnings. However, Jane resents her sister’s success, and acts on this resentment.

3. The Bad Seed (1956)

Though The Bad Seed has been remade in recent years, the original 1956 film directed by Mervyn LeRoy holds a special place in my heart (or chilling place down my spine). This movie is a great watch if evil children are your favorite villains, or if you suspect all children of being evil in general.

Patty McCormack plays Rhoda, a cute as a button grade schooler complete with blonde pigtails and a dreadful temper. When one of her classmates dies tragically, Rhoda’s mother becomes alarmingly suspicious of her daughter’s potential involvement.

I always appreciate a gothic film in black and white for the added ambiance, but if that isn’t really your thing you can still catch Patty McCormack in the 2018 remake of The Bad Seed instead! Just, you know, no longer playing the role of a creepy child so many decades later.

4. The Night of the Hunter (1955)

If the evil child in The Bad Seed isn’t your ideal watch, then I inversely recommend The Night of the Hunter. This is a case of children trying to escape from evil when seemingly all of the adults in their lives are oblivious or unable to help.

In this film, our villain is a fake preacher who is delusionally driven to be a serial killer, rationalizing the murders he enacts on widowed women as the will of God. While imprisoned, the preacher’s bank robber cellmate reveals that he still has stolen money stashed away, and the preacher is determined to find it. The bank robber’s widowed wife does not know the location of the money, but her children do.

5. Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Okay, one movie that isn’t in black and white has made my gothic horror list. If you want a movie that feels both isolating and smothering, Rosemary’s Baby is for you. With nightmares that bleed into reality and anxiety inducing whispers of witchcraft, most of your horror checklist should be marked off with this movie. It has everything from death to birth, and might be more than you bargained for.

Just like Rosemary (Mia Farrow), you will be nervously questioning the motives of everyone around her. After all, you never can be sure about which of your neighbors are working with the devil.