13 Ways the Movies Contact the Dead

In 'Ouija,' a group of twentysomethings employ the titular spirit board to contact a late friend -- and reach a ghostly menace instead. In the mood for some other movies about spectral communications? These should do nicely.

Astral projection, a red-faced demon, some sort of limbo-like realm called the Further… You'll find it all in this eerie thriller, which impressed critics almost as much as it did audiences.

'Insidious' director James Wan and star Patrick Wilson reteamed for an even bigger hit, this time telling the story of the Warrens: Real-life paranormal investigators who attempt to exorcise a witchy spirit from a Rhode Island farmhouse.

If you like ectoplasm, then this is the movie for you. Some solid scares in this tale of a house haunted – or possibly protected – by the medium who once conducted séances there.

Of all the supernatural hits released in the last decade, none has been more profitable than this ultra-low-budget ghost story, released in 2009, which does in fact feature a Ouija board in a key scene.

Recent spookhouse flicks all owe something to 'Poltergeist.' The unlikely collaboration between writer/producer Steven Spielberg and 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' director Tobe Hooper made for a truly suburban horror movie.

Another '80s horror fave, 'Witchboard' is possibly the closest thing to a spiritual ancestor to 'Ouija,' though it doesn't quite have the clout of, say, 'Poltergeist.' Still, with music video model Tawny Kitaen in the lead, it's good cheesy fun.

Before focusing his attention on Hobbits, Peter Jackson's first major Hollywood film was this underrated comic thriller starring Michael J. Fox as a fraudulent ghostbuster, who just happens to see dead people. Surprisingly dark.

Speaking of seeing dead people, how could we forget pint-sized Philadelphia medium Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) and one of the greatest twist endings in film history?

On the other side of the 1990s is this crowd-pleaser, in which Whoopi Goldberg channels Patrick Swayze from beyond the grave. We wish you could do that in real life, Whoopi.

Only a handful of audiences have seen this chiller about a Spanish orphanage haunted by its former inhabitants. What seems at first to be a standard scarefest becomes something far more lyrical and tragic. Definitely not one to be missed.

This intelligent creeper stars George C. Scott as a composer living in a haunted mansion. He is soon provoked by the spirit of a little boy to look into the boy's murder. Decades after its release, the film is now gaining a cult following.

Is it or is it not a ghost story? We'll never tell, but we can confirm that a) 'What Lies Beneath' does feature Michelle Pfeiffer using a Ouija board, and b) the movie will make you jump out of your seat at least two dozen times.

Need a little levity after all those intense movies, but still have a hankering for some ghoulish fun? Then gather around the table, put on some Harry Belafonte, and say "Beetlejuice" three times. It's showtime!