The Haunting (1963)

Many years ago little nutshell asked Mommy and Daddy for permission to stay up and watch this movie. He soon regretted it, as this bone-chilling ghost story nearly caused the young lad to soil his shorts, and it would be several more days until he could fall asleep with the lights out. Even today, I can't watch this movie in an empty house with the lights off. It's just too damn scary. Robert Wise had one of the most varied and distinguished directorial careers in Hollywood history, and he understood very well that psychologically speaking, what you can't see can hurt you. An imaginative viewer will almost always fill in a blank with something far more horrible than what the director could show on screen. This is a formula that has been largely abandoned, and is a highly contributing reason why most of today's horror movies absolutely suck. Give this one a go. Wait until nightfall. Wait until nobody else is home. Turn off the lights and watch. I dare you...