When I say the word “ghost” most people will immediately think about the ones in horror movies. The ones that like to scare people by moving objects in their house and randomly appearing behind them when they look in the mirror. But ghosts aren’t just cheap jumpscares to startle you when you don’t expect it, although using them as a scary monster in films can work really well if done in an original way. People are scared of the unknown, of what they can’t understand or see, and ghosts are exactly that. You don’t know what they look like, how they move, whether or not they can actually walk through walls and, most importantly, you don’t know what they want. Maybe they’re just curious or want to mess around a little bit, or maybe they’re one of your relatives or friends, who simply want to make sure you’re doing alright after you lost them. Then again, it is possible they want to scare the living hell out of you, and then kill you, or possess your body.
The most well-known type of ghost is what I like calling the “sheet ghost”. As the name indicates, this is the ghost that looks like a human with a bed sheet draped over ‘em, usually with two holes cut out where the eyes are supposed to be, so basically, it’s your typical Halloween ghost.
An evil spirit resembling this description is the one in the incredibly underrated “Under the Shadow”, a Persian horror film released in 2016. For most of the runtime, a mother and her daughter are haunted by something they can only manage to catch glimpses of, and if that wasn’t enough, their country is also being bombed. The spirit is particularly interested in the little girl, constantly hiding her toys and blocking her way to keep her from leaving. The reason why is unclear, but I’m guessing it wanted to either possess or eat her. Either way, its true form is finally revealed at the end of the third act, and it is not what you would usually expect: it looks like a bed sheet, but a massive one, and not one hiding a person underneath it. It can expand and move in a weirdly fluid way, and it turns into something resembling black tar. The little girl sinks in it as if it were sand, but she manages to get away, thanks to her mother. I like to think this creature is a collection of all the people previously lost due to the bombings, trying to claim the lives the bombs couldn’t, that won’t stop until it is defeated, or until it consumes every single person living in the country.
Previously, I used the word “haunting”. It is one of my favourite words, because of how many meanings it can take, and the weight that comes with saying it. It isn’t always something to be scared of, in fact most of the time, it just saddens me. Ghosts are, in my opinion, the saddest thing you could use in a film, whether it be a horror or something else. I view them in a more sympathetic way than most, because I see them as people, not scary monsters. Ghosts are people that have died, and aren’t ready to move on, or aren’t capable of passing to the other side for whatever reason. Oftentimes they have unfinished business to attend to, or weren’t, in any way shape or form, ready to die.
Writer and director Mike Flanagan aka the “horror king”, is the best at writing ghost stories. His most famous work, “the Haunting of Hill House” is one of the most incredible series I have ever watched. It is about five siblings, who’s mother is dead, and father absent from their lives. And then the unthinkable happens: little Nellie kills herself. The others are left wondering why she did that, and all blame themselves for not helping when she asked. They’re all haunted by the memories they have of her, as well as their own ghosts. For Luke, Nellie’s twin, it’s the tall man with the walking stick and hat; for Theo, the middle sister it’s the smiling man; for Shirley, the older sister, it’s the man she had an affair with; and for Steve, the eldest son, it’s mostly Nellie. Nellie, haunted by the bent-neck lady. Nellie, who haunted everyone.
The thing is, they’ve all been haunted since they were kids, since they moved into Hill House. Everything was fine before then. But the house ruined it all. It made their mother lose herself, little by little, until she almost killed her husband while sleepwalking. It scarred the children, a scar that will never fully heal. All because of some damn ghosts. They became adults, and lived somewhat happy lives, until their sister’s untimely death. After that, their ghosts came back to haunt them. Until they all came back to the house. Throughout the show, we are left wondering who these ghosts are, and why they choose to follow the kids. Most of them end up being people that used to live in Hill House, but one of them was an entirely different thing. The bent-neck lady, the one that haunted Nellie was… Nellie. She didn’t kill herself. Her own mother did. She died and she wanted her family back, so she strung a rope around her daughter’s nape, and watched her fall, breaking her neck. Nellie had been haunting herself the whole time. It’s like she knew it was going to happen, like she was trying to warn herself not to go back to the house. But she did, and nothing can change that.
In the end her father joins her and her mother, in order to let the others live. Acceptance. That is what Nellie represents. The final stage of the grief process. Because what are ghosts, if not our grief manifesting. Like Steve said: “ghosts are guilt, ghosts are secrets, ghosts are regret and failings. But most times, most times a ghost is a wish”. Ghosts can be anything, even memories. That is what makes the whole concept of ghosts such a sad one. Ghosts are the manifestation of one’s own grief and despair and fears. It can be someone you once loved, or a total stranger. Ghosts are anything and everything and nothing, all at once.
Another Flanagan masterpiece is “The Haunting of Bly Manor”. In this one, the main character, Dani, is haunted by her fiance’s ghost. He died seconds after she told him she wanted to call off their engagement. So she moves to England, to work as an Au Pair at Bly Manor, taking care of the two little kids. But her fiance isn’t the only ghost, because anyone that dies on the manor’s ground is cursed to stay there. No one who dies at Bly Manor ever truly leaves. The lady in the lake won’t let them go. The ghosts in this story are different from the ones in Hill House, because they can possess people. Two of them possess the kids, one because he wants the family's fortune, and one because she loves him. She changes her mind at the end, but somebody needs to take the lady in the lake’s place; and that will be Dani. Dani, whom Jamie, the florist, loved more than anything. Dani who restored her faith in people. Dani, who came to see her love every night, to rest her hand on hers, so they would always be together. Even if you can’t see them, they’re always there. Your ghosts, and only yours. They will never leave. That is why it is called a “haunting”. Everybody is haunted by something or someone. Whether they realise it or not is up to them.
But the ghost that really moved me was Hanna. Hanna was the caretaker of the Manor, and she died. She got pushed to the bottom of the well. But she didn’t know. She didn’t know she had died. She was so in denial, even the others could see and talk to her. When she realised what happened she wailed. She didn’t want to die. But that was something she had to accept in the end. It’s not like she could come back. At least she got to talk to the cook, Owen, one last time. Owen who knew she was dead, and helped her through it.
Being a ghost would be torture, because you can’t do anything. All you can do is watch. Watch your kids grow up without you. Watch your partner find someone else. Watch your family move on. You’ll miss out on so many experiences, so many of your dreams will never see the light. You’re helpless, useless, and completely, utterly alone. You’ll die of loneliness over and over and over again. And no one will know. No one will know your suffering and your pain. You will never be able to rest, unless you move on from your own demise. But how could you possibly do that? A24’s “A Ghost Story” is a perfect example of that.
Ghosts can be an apparition. They can guide you from another world and give you hope. In the very popular anime “Attack on Titan”, what happens is exactly that. I won’t get into its complicated and convoluted story, because the ghosts only appear right at the end. They appear in front of their living friends, after they had won the war, to show them that they knew. They knew that their death wasn’t in vain, and they wanted the people they cared about to know that they knew. That it was worth it. Levi, who lost literally all of his friends, finally found closure by seeing them one last time. By paying his final respects and giving his regards. All without having to say a single word. It is easily my favourite scene in the show. Sometimes, words are just not needed. I feel like ghosts are the perfect vehicle for that.
A similar thing happens in “Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure”, but this time, the ghosts actually speak. They encourage their friends and family to keep going without them. They give them hope and that is exactly what a ghost is. Hope. Because you know that there’s a ghost looking out for you. There always is. Whether it’s someone you know, or a complete stranger, you can always count on the fact that you’re not alone. If you want to make that creepy instead of sentimental, go ahead. I’m sure your ghost is going to have fun with it.
Ghosts can be a friend. In the 1985 film “Night on a Galactic Railroad”, Campanella guides his friend Giovanni, on the best and worst train ride of his lifetime. While riding the train, the two see amazing and whimsical things. They explore interesting towns and have fun together. But Giovanni doesn’t know that this is the last time he’ll see his best friend. He died. Everyone in town is looking for his body. He’s on the train to the afterlife, or whatever lies after death. Campanella knows this. And he knows that he’s the one that has to get off at the last stop, leaving his best friend behind. So he makes sure they have fun on their last adventure together, before he inevitably has to say goodbye.
Finally, ghosts can be a helper, like the three kids in “Coraline” who aided her escape. That way she wouldn’t meet the same demise they did. They helped her, even though she was a complete stranger. But that didn't matter to them. They were selfless ‘til the very end.
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