The 8 Best Scary Movies For Scaredy Cats to Watch This Halloween
By: Denise Hauf Miotke
Tags: Movies, Horror, Thriller, Scary, Halloween

The 8 Best Scary Movies For Scaredy Cats to Watch This Halloween

I love a scary thriller, but not slasher movies that exist merely to make us scream. Give me horror with a conscience!

I enjoy an exciting edge-of-your-seat thriller. A good ghost story is fantastic. I’m down for a movie that makes me want to hide behind the couch. But I don’t find much joy in a movie that is filled with gruesome violence merely for violence’s sake.

I want to watch a protagonist go through a journey and learn something from their adventure. I want more than just fear.

Some have called me a scaredy cat. I don’t want to watch a show with dolls that come to life, aka the stuff of my childhood nightmares. I have no interest in movie with a for-no-good-reason-co-ed killer on the loose. A maniac with a zipper or saw in his head and a machete in his hand? Barf.

So where does that leave me? I want a movie with a heart, even if there’s blood splattered on the walls. That will be an hour or two well spent.

Beware, those of you even more scared scaredy-cats than me

The following movies all have plenty of blood and killing. However I think they are a cut above the usual horror film. They all have a daring protagonist that must overcome an important challenge, and in the process they learn something about themselves and the people they love.

Shaun of the Dead, screenplay by Edgar Wright and ‎Simon Pegg

1. Shaun of the Dead

Simon Pegg stars and co-wrote this hilarious reimagining of the usual zombie apocalypse movie. A funny nail-biter, the real delight is in the metaphor: Shaun, who thinks and acts a bit like a zombie in his everyday life, is suddenly catapulted into action and finds his life purpose when those around him actually do turn into brain eating zombies. Shaun learns to appreciate those he loves, and develops an even deeper friendship with his couch-surfing, video-game-playing best friend.

The Cabin in the Woods, Drew Goddard, Joss Whedon

2. The Cabin in the Woods

One of the bloodiest on my list, I love how this one uses all the scary movie common conventions in one massive mashup. But there’s a deeper message afoot, and an unexpected outcome the heroes choose to make at the end.

The Others, screenplay by Alejandro Amenábar

3. The Others

A tense psychological thriller about a mom left alone with her two young children on a somewhat deserted, foggy island. She awaits her husband’s return and the children start to see ghosts, ghosts who start messing with their house. Great acting by Nicole Kidman and her child co-stars make for an intense story, with a gut-punch of an ending.

A Ghost Story, screenplay by David Lowery

4. A Ghost Story

This is my favorite ghost story. It is simply the tale of a man who unexpectedly dies and becomes a ghost, wearing a full white sheet with holes cut out for eyes so he can see. He stays in the house he lived in with his wife, and spends years… eons really, trying to get to a note she writes and leaves in the wall. This movie speaks to the human condition of love, loss, regret, and stubbornness, and shows that if you don’t figure these things out in your life while you are alive, the problems aren’t going to just magically disappear when you die. You gotta deal with them! It really is a haunting story.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, screenplay by Eli Craig and Morgan Jurgenson

5. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil

All Tucker and Dale want to do is take a vacation and fix up their cabin. A group of college students get it all wrong when they think Tucker and Dale are murderous villains on the loose. Mishap after mistake results in the bloody body count going up, and they discover there is another murderer hunting them all down. Gross and hilarious.

Ready or Not, screenplay by Guy Busick and Ryan Murphy

6. Ready or Not

A bride on her wedding day is forced to play a special game with her new in-laws, and quickly discovers that the game is not so fun. With a minute to hide, Grace is hunted with murderous intent, and she realizes there is something far worse in her fiancé’s history than she could have ever imagined. This female protagonist kicks ass as she figures out the mystery, and we root for her the entire, blood-soaked journey.

Get Out, screenplay by Jordan Peele

7. Get Out

Chris goes to meet his girlfriend’s rich, white parents, and there’s more than just racism on the menu. Things are not as they seem, and Chris finds out that he can be hypnotized by his girlfriend’s mother, against his wishes. The other African-American party guest sure doesn’t act or speak as he should, either. When Chris realizes his girlfriend has a startling secret, he finds he might not be able to make it out of the house in one piece.

What We Do in the Shadows, screenplay by Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement

8. What We Do in the Shadows

What if vampires were real, and living next door? The ones in this show try to fit into modern day life, but finding delicious virgins to suck the life out of can get tricky! The vampires are charming, hilarious, and horrifying as they figure out how to live and share a house together. Both the film and tv show versions are wonderful.