10 More Amazing Trailers That Tricked You Into Seeing Terrible Horror Movies

10. The Gallows

The Gallows centres around a student called Charlie who was accidentally hanged to death during a school play. Although the show was intended to be reenacted to commemorate Charlie, several students break into the theatre to dismantle the set. After witnessing several paranormal occurrences, the group suspect Charlie's spirit is among them.

The Gallows' trailer does what every trailer should do. It summarises the plot concisely, offers some disturbing imagery, and throws in a few jump-scares for good measure.

Contrary to how it was advertised, The Gallows is a creatively bankrupt mess. The story is set up so the ensemble are being haunted by Charlie's ghost. In the end, it's revealed... that's exactly what's happening, making the big reveal unbearably anticlimactic. There are a few little twists, but it's tough to get invested, thanks to the derivative plot and the one-dimensional characters.

Also, it feels like the creators used the found-footage style to justify the amateur filmmaking. The excessive shaky-cam is likely to leave certain viewers feeling nauseous. Some scenes are shot so poorly, it's difficult to tell what's going on half the time.

The Gallows may only be 81 minutes long, but it's a slog to get through.