Blumhouse Productions is the brainchild of Jason Blum, who founded the company almost 20 years ago as a vehicle for directors who wanted full creative control over their projects. Budgets on Blumhouse films are generally low, but that hasn’t stopped them from performing at the box office.
Movies like Insidious, The Purge, Happy Death Day and, of course, Best Picture nominee, Get Out, are already considered cult classics and Blumhouse has established itself as the “go-to” production house for visionary directors like Jordan Peele (Get Out), James Wan (Insidious), and M Night Shyamalan (The Visit). So, in celebration of Halloween, just in case you need a little quality horror to watch, take your pic from IMDB’s top 10 Blumhouse movies.
Sinister (2012) 6.8/10
This undeniably creepy supernatural horror by Scott Derrickson stars Ethan Hawke as writer, Ellison Oswalt, who moves into a house with a dark past. A family that once lived there were all hanged from a tree in the back yard and one family member – their ten-year-old daughter Stephanie – was never found. Ellison, who brings his own family to live in the house, is fascinated by its past and hopes to use the home’s haunted history as inspiration for his new novel.
But horrifying things soon begin to happen. And when Ellison finds a box full of old home movies that he assumes were left behind by the murdered family, he discovers that the footage they contain is full of horrors of its own.
The Purge: Anarchy (2014) 6.4/10
The second installment of James Demonaco’s The Purge franchise takes place in the dystopian world where, once a year, the annual Purge makes all crimes are legal, with no authorities permitted to step in until Purge Night is over. The Purge: Anarchy features an ensemble cast who are left out on the streets, forced to survive the murderous mayhem that’s taking place in the city.
With no laws to protect them and nothing but their wits on their side, they’re in for a pretty rough night. The Purge Franchise is a modern-day Lord of the Flies tale that provides frightening commentary on human nature and how we really might react if we were allowed to do anything we like.
Insidious: The Last Key (2018) 5.7/10
Adam Robitel brings his flavor to the Insidious franchise. Parapsychologist, Dr. Elise Rainer (Lin Shaye) returns to her childhood home to study an alleged haunting. Her painful history with a violent father and ghostly experiences in the house makes her reluctant at first, but she decides to face the past and heads to the old house with two assistants. It turns out that Elise’s terrifying childhood experiences were not her imagination and there is an evil entity in the house.
Spine-chilling paranormal terror and psychological horror make this James Wan-produced fright-fest one to keep you up at night.
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016) 6.1/10
It’s 1967, and Widow Alice Zander (Elizabeth Reaser) and her daughters, Lina (Annalise Basso) and Doris (Lulu Wilson), live in the suburbs, where Alice makes a living as a spiritual medium - though she’s actually a fake.
When Lina suggests that Alice gets an Ouija board to boost business, Alice inadvertently invites an evil spirit into their home. Ouija: Origin of Evil is a retro-style supernatural horror that, once again, reminds everyone that Ouija boards are best left in the closet or thrown away. After all, has anything good ever come of using an Ouija board in any movie?
The Purge (2013) 5.7/10
This is the first in the franchise, directed by James DeMonaco and starring Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder, and Adelaide Kane. With no law enforcement, no emergency services and no help until the Purge ends, a rich family is held hostage by a group of thugs whose Purge target is a man they are harboring in their home.
And when the purgers break through the Sandin family’s defenses, a night of suburban terror unfolds. Innocence is lost when the family members are forced to defend themselves against the bloodthirsty attackers who have given up on right and wrong for the evening.
Happy Death Day (2017) 6.5/10
It’s Groundhog Day with a much darker twist. Christopher Landon directs this college horror about Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe), who has to relive her birthday, over and over again, until she can solve her own murder.
The script was written by prolific comic book writer, Scott Lobdell, and it’s full of twists, turns, jump scares, and surprises, with a hint of comedy. This one may not make you lose too much sleep but it’s a highly entertaining murder mystery that will have you on the edge of your seat all the way through.
Insidious (2010) 6.8/10
Horror guru James Wan and Paranormal Activity writer/director, Oren Peli, bring you a haunted house horror that’s scary from start to finish. Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne lead a convincing cast, trying to save their son from a mysterious dark force that has left him in a coma.
Their perfect new home turns out to be anything but perfect when horrifying apparitions begin to appear and darkness consumes every aspect of their lives. James Wan brings his signature atmosphere to this dark tale of a family in crisis as they are held a prisoner in their own home.
Split (2016) 7.3/10
M Night Shyamalan directs James McAvoy as Kevin – a psychologically disturbed man with 23 distinct personalities. Beneath all of them, the darkest personality of all lurks and threatens to emerge to wreak havoc and destruction.
Compelled by one of his personalities, Kevin abducts three girls and holds them captive while his personalities fight amongst each other for control. The girls must escape before “The Beast” is released or they face certain doom. Split is a chilling, fast-paced thriller that shows off James McAvoy’s acting chops at their best, along with M Night Shyamalan’s trademark twists, turns and mysteries.
Paranormal Activity (2007) 6.3/10
Oren Peli’s groundbreaking “Found Footage” horror was created on less than a shoestring budget and is essentially the Blair Witch Project of the 2000s. A young couple (Katie Featherston and Mike Sloat) move into a house in the suburbs, and soon, strange things begin to happen.
The thing that makes Paranormal Activity so terrifying is that there are no big special effects and there’s no overly involved back story or plot. It’s just an extremely “real-world’ portrayal of a demonic haunting in a home that slowly begins to tear a couple apart, with disastrous and violent consequences.
Get Out (2017) 7.7/10
Get Out is not just a brilliantly-paced, slow-burn horror directed by the visionary Jordan Peele, it’s also an Academy Award winner for Best Screenplay and a nominee for Best Picture. The story starts out with African American Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams), who drive to her childhood home to meet her parents.
And what begins out as an awkward meeting that’s charged with racial tension evolves into something else entirely. Strange, uncomfortable neighborhood encounters plague Chris. And something very dark and unexpected is in store. You’ll never guess what it is.
