Johnny Depp has played in many films since the beginning of his acting career. Here we present seven of them that are perfect for a Halloween evening. No matter if you prefer a lot of horror or not, there’s definitely a film for you on this list.
Nightmare – Murderous Dreams
Release Year: 1984 | Age Rating: from 16 years | Director: Wes Craven | Length: 91 minutes
This horror classic from 1984 is widely known under the English title A Nightmare on Elm Street
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Johnny Depp is part of a group of teenage friends who are suddenly plagued by murderous dreams at night. In their dreams, they are hunted by Freddy Krueger, a man with glove-like knives and a very insidious method of killing his victims. He visits the teenagers in their dreams to kill them there. From now on, it’s better for them not to fall asleep. Once in a dream, it’s hard to wake up again.
Surely the film does not hold up against today’s effects from other horror films, but it remains a good classic for every horror fan. However, if you can’t handle seeing blood, you should stay away from this film.
Sleepy Hollow
Release Year: 1999 | Age Rating: from 16 years | Director: Tim Burton | Length: 101 minutes
In Sleepy Hollow, Johnny Depp plays the young criminologist Ichabod Crane from New York. He doesn’t think much of the current handling of found corpses and believes they should be examined before a judgment is made through a forced confession.
At the same time, a small town named Sleepy Hollow is in a state of fear. Three headless corpses have been found. The residents believe that the headless horseman, who is supposed to be searching for his own head to find redemption, is the murderer. Ichabod does not believe in such ghost stories and wants to find the true murderer using science. But with his methods, he soon reaches his limits.
From Hell
Release Year: 2001 | Age Rating: from 16 years | Director: Albert & Allan Hughes | Length: 117 minutes
In From Hell, Johnny Depp plays Inspector Frederick Abberline and lives in London at the end of the 19th century.
After losing his wife and child, he falls into drug addiction. In a state of intoxication, he has visions about the cases he is working on. When he investigates the murders of prostitutes in the London district of Whitechapel, one of these visions leads him onto the trail of the notorious murderer Jack the Ripper. This killer follows an obvious pattern and kills his victims with extreme precision.
The murdered women are from the immediate environment of the prostitute Mary, whose secret could lead to disaster for many high-ranking individuals.
Corpse Bride – Wedding with a Corpse
Release Year: 2005 | Age Rating: from 6 years | Director: Tim Burton, Mike Johnson | Length: 76 minutes
In Corpse Bride, the main character Victor van Dort was not only designed based on Johnny Depp. The actor also lent his English voice to the thin man.
After the agreement of their two families, Victor is to marry the beautiful Victoria Everglot. Nervously, the two get to know each other, and for both, it seems to be love at first sight. But on the day of the wedding rehearsal, Victor simply cannot recite the vow flawlessly.
Desperately, he runs into the adjacent forest and wants to practice in peace. In doing so, he accidentally places the ring on the bony finger of the dead bride Emily, who was murdered by her lover. She insists on being Victor’s rightful wife and takes him to the underworld. Now Victor faces a decision, as Victoria’s life is suddenly in danger.
What makes Corpse Bride a truly beautiful film is not only a touching story but also the stop-motion technique that was used.
The Secret Window
Release Year: 2004 | Age Rating: from 16 years | Director: David Koepp | Length: 92 minutes
In this thriller, Johnny Depp takes on the role of author Mort Rainey.
He is accused of plagiarism by the mysterious John Shooter, who claims that the author plagiarized his novel The Secret Window. Mort Rainey is confident that he can quickly prove his innocence by obtaining a copy of the book. For this, Shooter gives him an ultimatum of three days.
However, no matter how hard he tries to obtain a copy of the book, he fails repeatedly in inexplicable ways. Thus, the accusation that he initially thought was a joke increasingly becomes a reality for the author and drives him to despair.
As a small warning for all those who have a heart for dogs, this film contains a scene that might be difficult for you to bear.
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Release Year: 2007 | Age Rating: from 16 years | Director: Tim Burton | Length: 116 minutes
In this adaptation of the namesake Broadway musical, Johnny Depp plays barber Benjamin Barker, who returns to London under the new name Sweeney Todd.
Many years ago, the young barber lived with his wife and baby in London until the jealous Judge Turpin set his sights on his beautiful wife. He had Benjamin Barker arrested and wrongfully imprisoned to get to her.
Back from exile, he learns that his wife was abused by Turpin and subsequently took arsenic to end her suffering. Todd decides to take revenge for this and receives support from the woman who has since opened a snack shop in his old barber shop. It quickly becomes clear that he can help her in return with his knives. After all, getting meat for her pastries is very difficult in those times.
A little fun fact about the film: Director Tim Burton was convinced from the very beginning to cast Johnny for the title role. He did not allow another candidate. When his team asked whether Johnny could even sing, he said he didn’t know. The team was very nervous but discussion was pointless. Whether Johnny ultimately managed to convince with his singing, you can decide after the film.
The Nine Gates
Release Year: 1999 | Age Rating: from 12 years | Director: Roman Polański | Length: 128 minutes
In this mystery thriller, Johnny Depp takes on the role of antiquarian Dean Corso, who is to investigate the authenticity of an occult book.
This book supposedly originates from Mephisto himself, according to the wealthy collector Boris Balkan. The book is titled The Nine Gates and Dean Corso travels for his work across the USA, to France, and to Spain to compare the last remaining copies.
But the journey poses more dangers than the rational scientist ever thought possible. Again and again he is misled by mysterious and inexplicable incidents. In addition, he encounters a mysterious young woman who seems to predict every one of his steps.
If you want to spend your Halloween evening with your family, we also have a few tips for you:
5 horror movies for 6+, that you can watch on Halloween with the whole family
