In this day and age, Blumhouse Productions is easily the most prolific horror production company. They have, for the most part, taken over the industry in Hollywood. But before Blumhouse came into prominence, Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures was keeping horror alive in the mainstream.
Ghost House Pictures was founded in 2000, and its first major release was the 2004 remake of The Grudge. The film made a staggering $187 million against a $10 million budget. This was a clear sign that Ghost House was here to stay. Although the company hasn't made as many movies as Blumhouse, it definitely houses some great ones. So, let's revisit ten of the best ranked Ghost House productions according to IMDb.
Boogeyman 2 (2007) — 5.0
As children, Laura and Henry witnessed their parents' murders. Now as adults, they have crippling fears of the boogeyman. Henry goes out of town for a job interview while his sister checks into a psychiatric clinic. While there, she and the other patients are hunted down by the one thing Laura fears the most.
It may seem strange that the sequel has a higher rating than the first Boogeyman, but anyone who has seen both movies can understand why. This movie has little ties to the original, which may be for the best. Boogeyman 2 is essentially a slasher with a more straightforward story.
The Grudge 2 (2006) — 5.0
As a woman visits her traumatized sister in Tokyo, she encounters the same spirit that now haunts her sibling. Meanwhile, the same evil spreads to other people, including a group of students who enter the infamous Saeki house, and a Chicago family whose apartment is under attack by a paranormal entity.
Critics and audiences alike ultimately found The Grudge 2 to be too confusing. It's told in a non-linear manner so the movie is more convoluted than necessary. In the movie's defense, some viewers state the sequel should be owed credit for its eerie atmosphere.
The Tattooist (2007) — 5.1
To learn more about Samoan tattooing, an American tattoo artist moves to New Zealand. In his pursuit, he accidentally unleashes an ancient evil.
Jason Behr from The Grudge starred in this Ghost Pictures Underground movie. The film tackles a topic rarely seen in movies despite the growing presence of tattoos in popular culture. Ingenue notwithstanding, the general consensus is that The Tattooist succumbs to a plodding pace and one too many clichés. Less critical viewers, on the other hand, found the movie to be a change of pace.
The Messengers (2007) — 5.4
A teenage daughter has lost the confidence of her parents after she drove drunk with her young brother in the car. To move on, the family moves from the city to a rural farming town. As the father tends to the crops, the daughter butts heads with her mother. And amidst the family drama, a dormant, supernatural force is awakened.
The Pang Brothers wowed audiences with The Eye, a Hong Kong-Singaporean movie that later served as the basis for a remake starring Jessica Alba. Their English-language debut, however, was met with mixed reviews. It's a hodgepodge of ideas, but The Messengers is at the very least an attractive ghost story.
The Possession (2012) — 5.9
A teenager becomes dangerously obsessed with an antique box she found at a yard sale. As times passes, her behavior becomes erratic. This forces the parents to look into the box, which is revealed to be a container for an unspeakable evil.
The Possession doesn't break any sort of new ground. In fact, plenty of critics harped on its heavy use of worn out tropes upon the film's initial release. On the other hand, Roger Ebert praised The Possession so much he said it was "one of the better" movies influenced by The Exorcist.
The Grudge (2004) — 5.9
Two Americans living abroad in Japan are afflicted with a supernatural curse. Karen is assigned a caretaking job when the original nurse doesn't show up. But when Karen sets foot in the patient's house, she's marked for death by a vengeful spirit.
Takashi Shimizu was given the opportunity to retell his story in The Grudge, an English-language remake of Ju-on: The Grudge. Unlike other remakes of East Asian horror movies at the time, The Grudge isn't a total localization. The setting remains in Japan, and the ghost is played by the same actress from the original films. It's a worthy remake of an iconic Japanese horror movie.
A reboot — directed by Nicolas Pesce (Piercing) — will be released in 2020.
Drag Me to Hell (2009) — 6.5
In a bid to prove she can do her job, a loan officer named Christine evicts an elderly woman from her house. Her decision has consequences, though. The woman places a curse on Christine, and her very soul is at risk of being lost forever.
To many people's surprise, Sam Raimi's horror comedy Drag Me to Hell has a lot of heart at its core. Which is why the events of this gross-out, supernatural parable resonate with fans to this very day. Raimi outdid himself with a movie that is both diverting and emotional.
Evil Dead (2013) — 6.5
A young addict is taken to a remote cabin in the woods by her brother and their friends. There, they help her through her withdrawal symptoms. In the meantime, someone finds a suspicious book. When a certain passage is read aloud from said book, something wicked is unleashed.
The slapstick tone of the original Evil Dead films is absent in this severe remake. Though this update follows many of the same beats as its 1981 counterpart, the remake incorporates some significant changes that bode well with audiences.
It's unclear, at this point, if Sam Raimi will produce a sequel to this movie, or simply reboot the series altogether.
30 Days of Night (2007) — 6.6
The small Alaskan town of Barrow endures a whole month of total darkness once a year. And one particular year, a gang of bloodthirsty and ruthless vampires lay waste to this unsuspecting community.
The movie came out at a time when vampires in pop culture were either depicted as romantic and docile, or brutal and willful. 30 Days of Night falls into the second category and stays there. Based on a graphic novel series of the same name, 30 Days of Night is an incessantly violent and grim vampire actioner.
Don't Breathe (2016) — 7.1
Three small-time criminals living in a struggling economy all seek a better life. For their next heist, they set their sights on a house believed to hold a small fortune. Seems like such an easy job, too, because the owner is blind. Little do they know, though, is their would-be victim is more than prepared. After all, he's hiding a secret of his own, and he's willing to kill to protect it.
Don't Breathe is aptly titled. This thriller feels very no-holds-barred in terms of plot developments and character fates. It's no wonder a sequel is already in the works.