Scare-O-Meter scores (out of 5)

Paranormal Activity (based on 7 ratings) - 3.3
Sinister (based on 4 ratings) - 3.5
Drag Me To Hell (based on 6 ratings) - 2.5


Sam Raimi's latest passes off with an average score, while the other two contemporary BO sensations rank pretty well.

All 3 films are added to the opening post.

House on Haunted Hill- 1

13 Ghosts- seen, but don't remember

Carnival of Souls- 2

For Carnival of Souls, I am not sure if there has been a remake, so I want to just make sure that it is the one from the 1960s? Also, the one I saw was in black and white, not color, if that matters.

House on Haunted Hill - 2
13 Ghosts - 2
Carnival of Souls - 3

Yah, is that the remake of Carnival of Souls? The comment about color makes me wonder.

And while I generally applaud the idea of this scare-o-meter ranking thing... I'm noticing no matter how scary or spooky a movie is, the act of averaging out the scores renders most films a rather average rating.

Yes it is. The image of Candace Hilligoss coming out of the water, and of The Man in the background is proof. Couldn't find a bigger pic/poster of it on Amazon to hotlink.

Plus, the remake goes by the tag of "Wes Craven Presents...", so that is another big distinguishing factor.

The film sets are of the same period/nearby years, if you have noticed from the beginning. They share the same period (almost) and sometimes, the same maker(s).

EDIT - Found the original poster.

House on Haunted Hill - 1
13 Ghosts - 1
Both are really excellent films that I love, but neither is very spooky or frightening.

Carnival of Souls - 3
Lots of effective imagery and atmosphere make this a spooky watch.

House on Haunted Hill - 1
13 Ghosts - 2
Carnival of Souls - 1

(But I like all 3 of them)

Hi Villain im ok thanks had no internet and can only get online using my phone till i can get the net sorted hopefully in the next month or so. How are you doing? I've sure missed this place.

House on haunted hill-3

13 ghosts-not seen

carnival of souls-4

I've been good. Been on here a lot lately. Good to see you back, hopefully you'll be around more.

Scare-O-Meter scores (out of 5)

House on Haunted Hill (based on 5 ratings) - 1.6
13 Ghosts (based on 3 ratings) - 1.7
Carnival of Souls (based on 5 ratings) - 2.6


The low-budget effort scores rather well, while the two mainstreamers get much below-average ranks.

All films are added to the opening post.

NOTLD - 5
Rosemary's Baby - 5
Spirits of the Dead - 3 (only for the Toby Dammit sequence)

NOTLD - 5
Rosemary's Baby - 5

Night of the Living Dead - 4
Rosemary's Baby - 1
Spirits of the Dead - Haven't seen it

Night of the Living Dead - 5

Rosemary's Baby - 5

Wow - I'm surprised to see how well "Rosemary's Baby" is doing. Not that there's anything wrong with it, because obviously what scares you is a very individual thing. But I've watched it twice, and found it extremely boring and not at all scary. Everyone else seems to think it's so super scary, though. I wish I could see what everyone else is seeing. Obviously, anyone would be terrified of anything happening to their child, but I don't think the movie works on a psychological level at all. At least not for me.

Night of the Living Dead-1

Rosemary's Baby- 2

I haven't seen the other one

Both of the film that I have seen are amazing movies, which would probably reach my top 20 or at least 25. It is just that I do not consider them scary. Zombies do not scare me and well Rosemary's Baby is beautifully done, but again, I just don't find it scary (plus, I do not believe in demons, the devil, or the Antichrist).

I have to say that I have to agree with Kandarian Demon that I am surprised that Rosemary's Baby is scoring so high on the scare level. I disagree that it is boring because I have always loved it, but I simply never thought it was scary.

NOTLD - 3
Rose - 1

The scene in Rosemary's baby where she gets impregnated by the devil has always given me the willies. The rest of the movie is not all that spooky, although a bunch of old people chanting "hail Satan" does creep me out. I've always wished they would have shown the baby at the end though. "The eyes!" C'mon, show us the eyes! I'm sticking with the 5 though.

Rosemary's Baby is one of those movies, like Paranormal Activity, where you have to be able to empathise with the main character in order to understand why it is scary. If you can't share her feelings of betrayal and uncertainty, her complete isolation, not knowing who, if anyone, she can trust, or if she can even trust her own senses, then you won't find this movie scary.

It's not a judgemental statement- it's just a matter of fact- some people are not able to feel ampathy, to put themselves in someone else's world and feel what they feel. Certain movies require this in order to get the full effect.

Although I agree that that's true for many people, I'm actually diagnosed as hypersensitive and usually react strongly to the emotions of people around me, so I don't really think that's my own problem with the movie. But for me to feel empathy for a character in a movie, the character has to be believeable - and whatever happens around them has to be believeable too. If it's not, then it's "just a movie", and it won't trigger any emotions in me at all.

If the mother was a REAL person, and not a character in a movie, obviously I'd feel emapthy for her. Some movies or actors are so good that they kind of make you "forget" that what you're watching isn't real, but that's not the case with Rosemary's Baby - in my opinion.

This. I also first saw this when my ex girlfriend was pregnant with my daughter and so I could empathize with her fears of anyone harming the baby and her own fear of the baby

I guess you'll have to be content to be in the minority on that point. Mia Farrow was nominated for a BAFTA and a Golden Globe for her portrayal. Variety called her performance "outstanding." Rotten Tomatoes consensus on the film (which maintains a 98% fresh rating) states "A frightening tale of Satanism and pregnancy that is even more disturbing than it sounds thanks to convincing and committed performances by Mia Farrow and Ruth Gordon." Ira Levin, who wrote the book, liked her performance so much he dedicated his sequel to her.

And of course, the status of the film as a true classic, which it would not be able to maintain if the performance of the central character was weak.

I definitely agree that the film is absolutely brilliant and when I watched it I was absolutely captivated. It is an all-round amazing film. I also agree that Mia Farrow's performance was excellent; she definitely deserved any awards she won or was nominated for. To me, she seemed like a genuine person and not just a movie character. I completely understand all the arguments presented here. I simply never regarded the film as scary. Of course, I have Asperger's Syndrome (a form of autism), so sympathy/empathy have always been difficult concepts for me. Ultimately, I understand why some of you think it is scary; I simply never thought of it as such.

NOTLD - 5

My earliest zombie-based nightmares can all be attributed to this movie (though there was never a house handy to hole up in; I would find myself climbing trees)

Rosemary's Baby - 5

One of the single most genuinely unsettling movies I've ever seen.

Night of the Living Dead - 4
Rosemary's Baby - 5
Spirits of the Dead - haven't seen it

A lot of bad actors and crappy movies have won awards - but I'm not really saying the movie is crap, because obviously a lot of people love it. It just doesn't work for me. To be honest with you though, I think the fact that I was raised as a Jehovas Witness - and my struggles as a teen to break free from i - might influence how I respond to movies with similar themes in general.

I think the way I respond to movies such as Rosemary's Baby or The Exorcist might be very different than it would have been if I had grown up as a "normal" kid. Then again, there are movies in that genre of horror that definitely made me uncomfortable.

Night of the Living Dead: 4
Rosemary's Baby: 4
Spirits of the Dead: Not seen it, but that is quite a cast.

Ah yes, the overtly scary scenes are the ones I remember visually, but -- memory refreshed -- the primary cause of the viewer's discomfort is the unthinkable situation Farrow's character finds herself in, where everyone, even her husband, has betrayed her, and the impossible feat of breaking free from it. The milkshakes! It's been a couple years. I'm due for another watch. :)

It's on Netflix Instant View.

Scare-O-Meter scores (out of 5)

Night of the Living Dead (based on 9 ratings) - 4.0
Rosemary's Baby (based on 9 ratings) - 3.7
Spirits of the Dead - Insufficient Data


An underrated Fellini gem which needs to be seen by more people, most definitely. The other two genre heavyweights score solidly in the rankings.

All 3 added to the opening post.

Netflix and Movies Unlimited don't have it. Haven't checked Amazon yet.

Halloween - 5
Audrey Rose - 4
Salem's Lot - 4

Thanks for the tip!


Halloween - 5
Audrey Rose - 2
Salem's Lot - It's been too long, so I won't vote.

Halloween - 3
Audrey Rose - 2
Salem's Lot - 1

Halloween- 4

Haven't seen the other two, although I have heard of Salem's Lot. I think that I own it. I have not even heard of the other one.

Halloween - 2
Audrey Rose - Haven't seen it
Salem's Lot - 5