The Monkey's Paw(2013)
2013 · Brett Simmons · 88 min
After Jake Tilton is given a mystical "monkey's paw" talisman that grants its possessor three wishes, he finds his world turned upside down after his first two wishes result in his malevolent coworker, Tony Cobb, being resurrected from the dead. When Cobb pressures Jake into using the final wish to reunite Cobb with his son, his intimidation quickly escalates into relentless murder - forcing Jake to outwit his psychotic friend and save his remaining loved ones.
Horror · Thriller
4.8125 votes
TMDB score
3/5
Intensity
3/5
Gore
2/5
Stays with you
How The Monkey's Paw scares
It opens like a quiet cautionary tale about a cursed object and slowly tips into a much more violent, cat-and-mouse ordeal as the wishes go wrong. The back half plays more like a stalker-thriller than a ghost story, with a menacing figure closing in on the people around him rather than any lingering haunted-house dread. There's some blood and physical danger once things escalate, but the scares lean more on tension and threat than on jump scares or slow-building atmosphere. It's a decent watch for fans of cursed-object stories who want the supernatural setup to turn into a very physical, personal threat.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, The Monkey's Paw rates psychological 2/5, visceral 4/5, gore 3/5, lingering effect 2/5, and overall intensity 3/5.
- Psychological: 2 of 5
- Visceral: 4 of 5
- Gore: 3 of 5
- Lingering: 2 of 5
- Intensity: 3 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 45 of 100 — balanced
Supernatural vs Real-world: 55 of 100 — balanced
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 45 of 100 — balanced
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
Starts as a slow-building setup that steadily tightens into escalating danger, with a hard, punishing rush toward the end.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 4.
How scary is The Monkey's Paw?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, The Monkey's Paw rates 3/5 — solidly scary, balancing creeping dread with well-placed shocks. It attacks the body more than the mind — physical, in-your-face horror. Expect it to be moderately gory and scary but not punishing. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.
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