The Haunted Palace(1963)
1963 · Roger Corman · 87 min
A man and his wife claim the mansion of his warlock ancestor burned alive in 1765.
Horror
6.7199 votes
TMDB score
2/5
Intensity
1/5
Gore
2/5
Stays with you
How The Haunted Palace scares
The story unfolds slowly, with long stretches of talk and shadowy wandering through a cursed mansion before anything really threatening happens. Most of the fear comes from mood: fog, candlelight, whispered warnings, and the sense that something evil is waiting behind locked doors rather than jumping out at you. There's a strange, twisted creature hinted at more than shown, and the horror leans on dread and unease over blood or shocks. It's a good pick if you like old-fashioned gothic chills and slow dread rather than modern scares.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, The Haunted Palace rates psychological 3/5, visceral 2/5, gore 1/5, lingering effect 2/5, and overall intensity 2/5.
- Psychological: 3 of 5
- Visceral: 2 of 5
- Gore: 1 of 5
- Lingering: 2 of 5
- Intensity: 2 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 15 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 10 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 30 of 100 — leans Fun-scary
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, atmospheric build of creeping unease that steadily thickens into a tense, unsettling final stretch.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5.
How scary is The Haunted Palace?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, The Haunted Palace rates 2/5 — moderately scary, building its fear through slow-burn dread rather than shocks. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be restrained with gore and fun-first. Some of it will follow you to bed, but it lets go within a day or so.
Watched it? Sign in to confirm whether this profile fits.
