Comedy Horror Movies of the 1940s
Comedy horror mixes scares and laughs, from splatter slapstick to dark satire. Horror turned to suggestion and shadow, from Val Lewton's low-budget chillers to the Wolf Man. Standouts from the 1940s include Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein, The Ghost Breakers and The Invisible Woman.
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Rated 7.1 on TMDB
The Wolf Man tries to warn a dimwitted porter that Dracula wants his brain for Frankenstein monster's body.
See where it’s streamingThe Ghost Breakers (1940)
Rated 6.5 on TMDB
After intrepid working girl Mary Carter becomes the new owner of a reputedly haunted mansion located off the Cuban coast, a stranger phones warning her to stay away from the castle.
See where it’s streamingThe Invisible Woman (1940)
Rated 5.7 on TMDB
Kitty Carroll, an attractive store model, volunteers to become a test subject for a machine that will make her invisible so that she can use her invisibility to exact revenge on her ex-boss.
See where it’s streamingBud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949)
Rated 6.6 on TMDB
Lost Caverns Resort Hotel bellhop Freddie Phillips gives an empty threat to one attorney Amos Strickland, and is shortly fired.
See where it’s streamingThe Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1949)
Rated 7.4 on TMDB
Washington Irving's tale of Ichabod Crane and the headless horseman is brought to life, narrated by Bing Crosby.
See where it’s streamingKing of the Zombies (1941)
Rated 5.2 on TMDB
During World War II, a small plane somewhere over the Caribbean runs low on fuel and is blown off course by a storm. Guided by a faint radio signal, they crash-land on an island.
See where it’s streamingHold That Ghost (1941)
Rated 6.8 on TMDB
Two bumbling service station attendants are left as the sole beneficiaries in a gangster's will.
See where it’s streamingThe Time of Their Lives (1946)
Rated 7.2 on TMDB
Two ghosts, who were mistakenly branded as traitors during the Revolutionary War, return to 20th century New England to retrieve a letter from George Washington which would prove their innocence.
See where it’s streamingYou'll Find Out (1940)
Rated 5.6 on TMDB
The manager of Kay Kyser’s band books them for a birthday party bash for an heiress at a spooky mansion, where sinister forces try to kill her.
See where it’s streamingSpooks Run Wild (1941)
Rated 5.1 on TMDB
A group of delinquents on their way to summer camp get stuck in a haunted house.
See where it’s streamingGhosts on the Loose (1943)
Rated 4.2 on TMDB
The East Side Kids try to fix up a house for newlyweds, but find the place next door "haunted" by mysterious men.
See where it’s streamingOne Body Too Many (1944)
Rated 5.3 on TMDB
An insurance salesman, Albert Tuttle, is hired as a body guard for a millionaire.
See where it’s streamingBlack Magic (1944)
Rated 7.0 on TMDB
Chinese detective Charlie Chan solves a murder linked to the occult.
See where it’s streamingThe Mad Doctor of Market Street (1942)
Rated 5.5 on TMDB
A fugitive doctor tries to raise the dead for South Sea Islanders.
See where it’s streamingThe Black Cat (1941)
Rated 6.4 on TMDB
Greedy heirs wait in a mansion for a rich cat lover to die, only to learn her cats come first.
See where it’s streamingHorror Island (1941)
Rated 5.8 on TMDB
A down-on-his luck businessman organizes an excursion to Sir Henry Morgan's Island for a treasure hunt only to encounter a mysterious phantom and murder.
See where it’s streamingThe Ghost and the Guest (1943)
Rated 5.4 on TMDB
Newlyweds Webster and Jackie Frye spend their honeymoon in a sinister old country house. Before long, they are besieged by a gang of crooks, searching for a fortune in diamonds.
See where it’s streamingScared to Death (1947)
Rated 4.3 on TMDB
A woman is married to the son of a doctor, the proprietor of a private sanatorium, where she is under unwilling treatment. Both the son and the doctor indicate they want the marriage dissolved.
See where it’s streamingThe Boogie Man Will Get You (1942)
Rated 6.1 on TMDB
A young divorcee tries to convert a historic house into a hotel despite its oddball inhabitants and dead bodies in the cellar.
See where it’s streamingThe Hidden Hand (1942)
Rated 6.5 on TMDB
Eccentric wealthy old woman Lorinda Channing uses her insane brother, John Channing, to help her frighten their greedy relatives after her money.
See where it’s streaming
