10 more 80s horror films you should see
I didn't get this blog done in time for Halloween, but since I watch horror movies year round I'm posting it now. As I went thru the films I covered in the last few blogs I noticed some glaring omissions so I thought I would do ten more 80s horror movies you should see.
1) Re-Animator (1985)
Stuart (From Beyond) Gordon directed this horror comedy film based on a short story by HP Lovecraft. A young medical student invents a serum that can bring the dead back to life. At first experimenting on dead cats the dean thinks he is mad and expels him from school. He sneaks back into the school and reanimates a dead professor with horrifying, and humorous results. This movie got an X rating when released because of the sex scene which gives new meaning to the term "getting head'. It remains a popular horror film even today.
2) Burial Ground: The Nights of Terror (1981)
What can I say about the madness that is Burial Ground? A group of jet setters rent a house out in the country, and they get there just as an ancient curse was read out loud bringing a whole graveyard of zombies to life.
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Filmed in Italy during the early 80's zombie film craze Burial Ground is (in)famous for using a creepy dwarf in his 20s to play a child, apparently he was used just so they could film an incestuous zombie love scene and not involve minors. You have to see this movie to believe it. Its works strangely well, and includes multiple WTFs? There is decent zombie makeup, a great pacing, and a generally entertaining movie.
3) Evilspeak (1981)
Clint Howard, Ron Howard's lesser known bother, stars as Stanley Coopersmith a cadet in a military school who is horribly bullied. Sent to the school's basement to clean it as punishment he discovers a book of ancient spells which he uses with his computer to conjure the devil and get revenge.
This type of bullying victim killing everyone who wronged him probably couldn't get made today, with all the school shootings and such, but in the 80's it was only hated on by British censors, who added it to their "video nasty" list. I like Evilspeak, it's low budget and the effects may seem simple by today's standards but it's trashy fun.
4) Motel Hell (1980)
An insane hillbilly farmer kidnaps people and buries them alive in his garden to create a secret sauce. Obvious nods to Psycho and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Motel Hell stars Rory Calhoun who dons a pigs head to go on a rampage. I like this one. It was released during a year of many high profile horror films and didn't get as much fame as it should have.
5) House (1985)
House is the story of a Vietnam vet with PTSD who inherits an old haunted house he plans to write a book in. Starring William (the Greatest American Hero) Katt and co starring George (Norm on Cheers) Wendt, and Richard (Bull on Night Court) Moll it was directed by Steve Miner AKA the guy who made Friday the 13th Part Two.
It's a pretty decent film, the house may be a doorway to another dimension, or these could all be delusions from a shell shocked vet with a missing kid. House is light on gore, you could show it to your children. It followed by many sequels, most of which were terrible and not in any way related to the original.
6) Mothers Day (1980)
Mother's Day is slasher film in the hixploitation genre. Three women camping are kidnapped by a couple of inbred lunatics and their equally insane mother of the title. It ends up being something of a rape/revenge flick. It's was directed by Charles Kaufman, brother of Troma's Lloyd Kaufman. Banned in the UK, it gets a lot of hate for it's somewhat troubling take on rape. I don't take the film seriously, it was a parody of the "I Spit on your Grave" type of film that was popular at the time.
7) Fear No Evil (1981)
A young man in high school is the living embodiment of Lucifer while a local priest may just be the archangel Raphael. Part Carrie rip-off, part Omen ripoff, and part zombie movie, Fear No Evil is a weird one. The director was only in his 20s when he made this film in Rochester NY, and he raised the entire budget himself. It may not have been clear to reviewers at the time but the director himself was gay, so making Lucifer gay was not a homophobic thing, as some people thought.
The soundtrack was created in a time when rights rules weren't so tight assed and contains tracks from Sex PIstols, Boomtown Rats, Talking Heads etc. Fear no Evil strays at some points but it has some decent atmosphere and the final battle is great.
8) Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984) -
As you may have guessed after seeing the numerous sequels in the Friday the 13th franchise, this was far from the last one, hell its not even halfway. Still though it was the last great F13 film, in my opinion, anyway. The plot is the standard Jason killing a bunch of over sexed teens. I love Final Chapter, it's well made, good kills, and it introduces Tommy Jarvis, played by Corey Feldman. Also in the cast is unknown at the time Crispen Glover, this was a year before Back to the Future
Look at those moves!
Tom Savini returned for the FX on this one and the film grossed over 30 million, so the studio decided yeah final whatever and released Friday the 13th a New Beginning a year later. This film kills off Jason (yeah right) and part 5 tried to make another film with no Jason at all, which fans rejected. Don't worry Part 6 brings the hockey masked killer back.
9) Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
I just saw a screening of this movie on the weekend. One of the few slasher films directed by a woman I think I heard she is LGBT, there is a lot of skin in this one anyway. The film was intended as a parody of slasher films, but ended up being a mostly straight forward slasher with comedic elements.
The killer in this is an escaped mental patient whose motives are not really clear, maybe he's just crazy. Anyway he escapes and goes on an LA murder spree, right as a group of high school girls are having a slumber party. This film spawned at least 2 sequels, which I have not seen.
10) Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)
A race of clown like beings arrives on Earth and begins kidnapping humans and putting them in a weird cotton candy like cocoon thing on their ship. The ship itself is marvel of film set design and most of the budget went to towards visual effects. Shot in part on the Santa Cruz boardwalk, the film is notable for annoying and somewhat unlikable characters such as the town police chief who refuses to believe citizens calling and advising him of Killer Klowns running amok.
KKFOS is now considered a cult classic, its a fun movie that is inspired by the old 50's sci fi alien invasion films as much as horror. Best watched after a few beers...
Thanks for reading, more film related blogs coming soon