Opened: August 9, 2019

Directed by: André Øvredal

Starring: Zoe Colletti, Michael Garza, Gabriel Rush, Austin Zajur, Natalie Ganzhorn, Austin Abrams, Dean Norris, Gil Bellows & Lorraine Toussaint

Based on the popular children’s book series of the same name, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark gets the horror right, even if some of the other factors are off.

On Halloween 1968, Stella (Zoe Colletti), Auggie (Gabriel Rush) and Chuck (Austin Zajur) meet Ramón (Michael Garza) while running away from town bully Tommy (Austin Abrams). When they hide in the haunted Bellows Family house, they discover a book that keeps writing of their deaths.

Honestly, the plot and many of the characters aren’t memorable. They’re typical scary movie characters with little backstory. However, the imagery in the film is haunting.

One of the best sequences is with the Pale Lady that follows Chuck. She is immediately horrifying to look at and her slow pace that keeps trapping Chuck will make you tense up.

Final say: Scary enough. ★★★★☆