10 La Llorona Themed Horror Movies – Ranked
Welcome to Ranking Horror. We looked at 10 Incredibly Depressing Movies yesterday but, today, we want to lighten the mood a little. Well, if you can call the subject of today’s list lighting the mood. We are ranking 10 La Llorona Themed Horror Movies.
Table of Contents
If you don’t know who La Llorona is, then allow me to elaborate. La Llorona, otherwise known as The Crying, The Wailing, or The Weeping, Woman, is a Mexican folklore legend who appears near bodies of water in the form of a mourning woman. The woman is said to be grieving after drowning her children in a jealous rage to spite her cheating husband. If you are unlucky enough to hear her crying, your life will become infinitely more difficult, you will fail in your field of work, and you may even die.
Pretty interesting stuff but if you have never heard of La Llorona before you may be even more surprised to know that there are a bunch of horror movies based on the legend. Spoiler alert, many of them are pretty awful but, nevertheless, we are going to rank them for you today in this list of 10 La Llorona Themed Horror Movies. This list represents the first in a long line of upcoming lists dedicated to specific folklore legends. Let’s go!
| Rank | Movie Title (Year) | The Folklore Factor |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Llorona (2019) | Political Horror Masterpiece |
| 2 | The Curse of the Crying Woman (1963) | Gothic Witchcraft |
| 3 | La Llorona (1933) | The Original Classic |
| 4 | The Curse of La Llorona (2019) | The Conjuring Spin-off |
| 5 | Las Lloronas (2004) | Multi-Generational Curse |
10. The Haunting of La Llorona (2019) – A Cheap Knock-off
- Director: Dennis Devine
- Cast: Melina Bartzokis, Ron Clemmons
- Runtime: 71 minutes
- IMDb: 2.6/10
Why it Ranked: Okay, not a great start and it isn’t going to get much better. Dennis Devine’s The Haunting of La Llorona released in 2019 in an attempt to capitalise on the Conjuring universe’s entry into the Weeping Woman meta – The Curse of La Llorona. It is simple stuff; La Llorona is looking for a new host, along comes a baby, yadayadayada. This movie is painfully boring and I would be lying if I said I made it all the way through. It was just too boring to pay attention to. People hate it and for good reason. Just skip it.
Synopsis: The weeping woman attempts to take over the body of a young woman to continue her reign of terror.
Where to Watch: Amazon (Rent/Buy)
The Legend: Who is La Llorona?
While variations of the tale exist across Latin America, the core tragedy of La Llorona (The Weeping Woman) remains hauntingly consistent. It is a cautionary tale of vanity, rage, and eternal regret.
- 💔 The Betrayal: The story usually centres on a beautiful woman named Maria who marries a wealthy nobleman. After bearing him two sons, his attention wanders, often to a younger woman or back to his high-society life, leaving Maria consumed by jealousy.
- 🌊 The Crime: In a fit of blind rage, specifically to hurt her husband, Maria takes her children to the river and drowns them. Only after seeing their bodies floating away does she realise the horror of what she has done.
- 👻 The Curse: Consumed by grief, she drowns herself. However, she is denied entry to the afterlife until she can find the souls of her lost children. She is cursed to wander the riverbanks forever, weeping “¡Ay, mis hijos!” (Oh, my children!) and kidnapping living children in a vain attempt to replace her own.
Parents have used the legend for generations to warn children against playing near dangerous waters or staying out too late, proving that folklore is often just practical parenting wrapped in a nightmare.
9. The Legend of La Llorona (2022) – Trejo’s Trouble
- Director: Patricia Harris Seeley
- Cast: Autumn Reeser, Danny Trejo
- Runtime: 98 minutes
- IMDb: 3.2/10
Why it Ranked: The Legend of La Llorona came a few years after the above release in 2022. Danny Trejo stars in this movie. That has to stand for something, right? Unfortunately, he can’t overcome how wooden everyone else is in this and how damn boring the movie is. A real disappointment for anyone hoping for some Weeping Woman scares.
Synopsis: Directed by Patricia Harris Seeley, it follows a family vacationing in Mexico, only for their son to go missing in a case that could be, in some way, linked to a mysterious local legend.
Where to Watch: Amazon (Rent/Buy), Tubi (US)
8. The River: Legend of La Llorona (2006) – Green Screen Scream
- Director: Terrence Williams
- Cast: Will Morales, Mary Sanchez
- Runtime: 78 minutes
- IMDb: 3.4/10
Why it Ranked: This movie was shot in six days, mostly in front of a green screen, so that probably gives you a good hint of the quality. Terrence Williams directs this microbudget horror that really has very little to offer. The poor acting and script aren’t the worst of The River’s problems. Hell, it isn’t even how hideously ugly it can be. It’s the fact that it is boring, plain and simple. Aren’t B-movies supposed to be fun?
Synopsis: The story follows the residents of an inn that just so happens to be haunted by the Weeping woman herself.
Where to Watch: Not Currently Streaming
7. The Wailer (2006) – Retro Reject
- Director: Andrés Navia
- Cast: Vanessa Ricote, Brenda Mejia
- Runtime: 83 minutes
- IMDb: 3.4/10
Why it Ranked: Maybe another La Llorona movie from the mid 2000s will help things a little? Well, as far as 2006’s The Wailer goes, not really. In fact, this movie looks like it was made in the 70s. Talk about cheap! I am sure you know what to expect here. This is standard teen horror fare. Unlikable characters, bad acting, cheap looking gore and not a lot of reasons to not simply switch the movie off. The Wailer is a waste of time as it is not even really bad in a way that is amusing. A sequel, The Wailer 2, followed a year later and it is, honestly, quite a lot better so check that one out instead.
Synopsis: The story follows a group of students on a trip to Mexico finding themselves trapped in a small cabin by the mysterious cries of a weeping woman.
Where to Watch: Tubi (US)
6. El Regreso de La Llorona (2021) – Honduran Horror
- Director: Liana Hassim
- Cast: Lucila Beneth, Alejandro Cartagena
- Runtime: 74 minutes
- IMDb: 3.4/10
Why it Ranked: Liana Hassim directs this movie that actually comes by way of Honduras. Can’t say I have seen too many horror movies come out of there before. What a shame that El Regreso De La Llorona (The Return of La Llorona) is so damn bad. It actually might be worse than the movies on this list that preceded it but I wanted to give props to Honduras just for the sheer fact that they garnered an international release for a horror movie. Pretty cool! It’s bad, though. Don’t expect much.
Synopsis: A group of young people accidentally kill a girl with their car. They quickly come to regret it as the spirt of the weeping woman of legend comes to exact revenge on them for their fatal act.
Where to Watch: Not Currently Streaming
5. Las Lloronas (2004) – Family Curse
- Director: Lorena Villarreal
- Cast: Francisco Gattorno, Rosa María Bianchi
- Runtime: 98 minutes
- IMDb: 4.9/10
Why it Ranked: Okay, the score is climbing a little bit starting with Las Lloronas from 2004. It would seem that the early 2000s were a bit of a hot bed for Weeping Woman horror movies. This one isn’t exactly great but it’s a lot better than the other movies we have talked about so far. Good luck finding a version of it that doesn’t look like it was filmed on a potato, though. Las Lloronas plays out as more of a slow, drama heavy, folk horror focused on three generations of a family who are all cursed by La Llorona. There is a lot of promise here and with a more experienced set of directors Las Lloronas could have been great.
Synopsis: Three generations of women must learn to cope with a curse placed upon their family by the legendary weeping woman.
Where to Watch: Tubi (US), Roku
4. The Curse of La Llorona (2019) – The Mainstream Spin
- Director: Michael Chaves
- Cast: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz
- Runtime: 93 minutes
- IMDb: 5.4/10
Why it Ranked: Most definitely the best known of the titles on this list, Michael Chaves’ The Curse of La Llorona adds a Conjuring universe twist to the Mexican folk legend. This movie very loosely connects to the world of the Conjuring, making the whole thing feel like more of a cash grab than anything else. Trying to key in on some of the stuff that The Nun managed to accomplish but failing pretty badly. It’s not even that scary, to be honest. With that being said, it is the most Hollywood of the horror movies on this list so that is bound to appeal to some.
Synopsis: The story follows a social worker who falls head first into the mystery of the Weeping Woman after disregarding the concerns of a mother who claims to be a victim of the spirit. Putting herself and her own children at risk of being taken.
Where to Watch: Max, Amazon (Rent/Buy)
3. La Llorona (1933) – The Original
- Director: Ramón Peón
- Cast: Ramón Pereda, Virginia Zurí
- Runtime: 73 minutes
- IMDb: 5.6/10
Why it Ranked: One of the very first horror movies based on the folk legend of the weeping woman and, even more significant, perhaps the first horror movie in Mexico’s filmmaking history. La Llorona, from 1933, kicked off a period in Mexican cinema where horror movies became somewhat en vogue. Obviously, La Llorona isn’t going to hold up incredibly well all these years later. It is far more of a melodramatic folk horror than an outright scare fest and focuses on the impact the curse has on the weeping women in question. Still, it is a fascinating look at how the legend got started in cinema and still quite watchable. While not being anywhere close to the Universal horror movies of the era, fans of 30’s cinema will love this one.
Synopsis: A family is haunted by the curse of La Llorona, with the past echoing into the present as they try to avoid a tragic fate.
Where to Watch: Youtube
2. The Curse of the Crying Woman (1963) – Gothic Masterpiece
- Director: Rafael Baledón
- Cast: Rosita Arenas, Abel Salazar
- Runtime: 74 minutes
- IMDb: 6.5/10
Why it Ranked: Mexico was a prolific producer of low budget horror throughout the 60s. Some of them, like 1963’s The Curse of the Crying Woman (La maldición de la Llorona), still remain significant to this day. This film is one of the better versions of the wailing woman story. The only problem is that the whole La Llorona thing takes something of a back seat. The majority of the film uses the concept of La Llorona as a prop and little more. Still, this is a stunningly well filmed, dark and scary form of gothic folk horror that is well worth checking out.
Synopsis: The story follows a young woman returning to the home of her Aunt Selma. Little realising that her aunt is actually a witch who has been concocting a devious plan to use her niece to bring back the spirit of the legendary crying woman.
Where to Watch: Tubi (US), Amazon (Rent/Buy)
1. La Llorona (2019) – The Political Parable
- Director: Jayro Bustamante
- Cast: María Mercedes Coroy, Sabrina De La Hoz
- Runtime: 97 minutes
- IMDb: 6.5/10
Why it Ranked: The best movie on this list, by far, and another La Llorona horror movie that takes a certain amount of liberties with the source material. This is, believe it or not, a historical political movie wrapped up in a shiny horror wrapper that uses the legend of La Llorona as an allegory for the horrific acts committed by a war criminal based on the real life Guatemalan dictator Efraín Ríos Montt. It is a little baffling that director Jayro Bustamante even decided to wrap his very slow political drama up in a horror movie format but it works really well. It is pretty fantastic looking, too.
Synopsis: An aging dictator, facing trial for genocide, is haunted by the ghosts of his past as a mysterious new maid arrives at his home, bringing with her a supernatural presence.
Where to Watch: Shudder, AMC+
Weeping Woman Woes
There we have it, 10 La Llorona themed horror movies that range from the utterly skippable to the genuinely masterful. It is a legend that seems ripe for a truly terrifying adaptation, yet so many filmmakers seem to miss the mark. Thankfully, we have gems like Jayro Bustamante’s La Llorona to show us just how powerful this folklore can be when placed in the right hands.
I’ll be back soon with more lists. In the meantime, why not check out some of our other folklore-related rankings? Stay spooky.
😭 Quick Picks: La Llorona Essentials
- 🏆 The Masterpiece: La Llorona (2019)
- 🏰 The Gothic Classic: The Curse of the Crying Woman (1963)
- 📽️ The Historical Curio: La Llorona (1933)
- 🍿 The Popcorn Horror: The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
- 🏚️ The Folk Drama: Las Lloronas (2004)
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