Extremely Fun 2000s Horror Remake Now Dominates the Free to Stream Movie Charts
The turn of the millennium is a fascinating time for horror cinema. The sort of postmodern, meta boom after Scream revived theatrical teen horror in a big way, but that was far from the only game in town. We also got the era of big, brash horror remakes.
That brings us to Dark Castle Entertainment. While Platinum Dunes was doing gritty, raw reboots with titles like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Dark Castle was having fun with midcentury B-movies, specifically those helmed by their namesake, director and producer William Castle.
It’s worth noting that Dread Central was the first to break news of a potential 13 Ghosts TV series in active development. You can learn all about that fantasy project here and via our podcast, Development Hell.
That batch of reimaginings kicked off in 1999 with House on Haunted Hill, then got even more interesting in 2001 with Thirteen Ghosts. It’s arguably the most fun of the Dark Castle films, and it remains what our own Tyler Doupe´ calls “a film worthy of a second look.” And because it’s been trending in the top 10 on Tubi recently, the film is connecting with fans, new and old, all over again. See what I mean below!
Adapted from Castle’s 13 Ghosts, the remake follows a similar narrative, telling the story of a man who moves into a dead relative’s house only to find it’s packed with ghosts. Thirteen of them, naturally. Like Castle’s film, director Steve Beck’s 2000s reboot is about a family coming to grips with the idea that ghosts are not only real, but dangerous. It’s also, in keeping with the Dark Castle philosophy in those early days, an exercise in visual maximalism.
If the House on Haunted Hill remake was an exercise in exaggerating the Gothic, then Thirteen Ghosts is an exercise in applying millennial reinvention to an old concept. All the hallmarks of Castle’s original film are here, from the mysterious inheritance to the goggles that let wearers see the ghosts. The difference lies in the visual interpretation and the ghosts’ more visceral reaction. The haunted house is made of glass walls branded with protection spells, and the ghosts themselves are twisted wonders, each with its own personality. It’s a film that builds its own wild lore around what was already there, then pushes it all into a R-rated zone that feels like a thrill ride at a haunted carnival.
Everyone has their own favorites from Dark Castle’s golden age of William Castle remakes around the turn of the millennium, but for a lot of fans, it never got better than Thirteen Ghosts. Is it terrifying? Probably not, especially if you’re a seasoned horror fan. But is it fun, I mean, really fun? Absolutely. If you don’t believe me, head over to Tubi and give it a spin yourself.
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