When done right, haunted house stories evoke not only terror, but genuine pathos as well. These aren’t just ghost stories meant to scare audiences. They are candid examinations of our past and our fears, of life and death, of family and love. But when done poorly, they feel stuffy and repetitive. Because as a genre, haunted houses tend to follow the same general rhythms. And those creepy tropes are the inspiration behind this fun parody video. It tackles the elements you’ll find in most movies, giving it spooky homes.
Alasdair Beckett-King’s “Every Haunted House Movie” short, which we first saw at laughing squid, combines the most common components of nightmarish houses into a super haunted house tale. This includes the bad father who moves his family to an isolated place. A grieving mother – who inexplicably has an English accent – who won’t let her husband run away from their tragic past. A strange omen of death, sketchy paranormal investigators, and an already unobtainable mortgage. This trailer has it all.
Of course, it also includes a warning not to google the real people the story is based on. Seriously, don’t do this. It’s usually impossible to suspend your disbelief when watching the films they inspire.
Alasdair Beckett-King
However, we cannot endorse every aspect of this video. Definitely don’t pass up a gorgeous house that’s “suspiciously cheap” because someone murdered their entire family there. Even though you know it’s haunted. Or that he’s on a portal to Hell. Modern home prices are too outrageous to skip a bargain. Of course, maybe an evil nun lived there. But it’s not like his evil spirit is going to eat your food or use your water. Of course, it could haunt you until you kill your own family. But this is only a chance to be seized.
Haunted houses are scary. Even if they often rely on the same old tired tropes. But at least ghosts help bring down the terrifying price of a home.
