The 1980s horror was so iconic to the genre that it has become its own distinct subgenre. Bombastic and unsubtle, the decade is known for its heavy gore and big effects. Boobs and sex galore, too, along with the birth of the most important of horror’s iconic villains — apart from the respectfully older Leatherface and Michael Myers, the 1980s introduced Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Pinhead, Chucky, and the Predator. But that’s not to say that every major horror movie of the decade has gotten what it deserves.
At a time when so many monsters, vampires, werewolves, and killers were getting their stars on Hollywood Boulevard, an oversaturation of the horror market would inevitably mean that other villains would slip under the radar, be undervalued, or worse, be missed entirely. Below we rank just a few of the hidden gems of the ’80s that absolutely need to be sought out and rediscovered by all horror heads.
8/8 The Company of Wolves (1984)
Leaning hard into the werewolf fantasy, you know The company of wolves will be pretty good if one’s entire role is only called “Animatronic Wolf” in the credits. After a series of vignettes centered around werewolf lore, the film’s progression can often get bogged down and feel random, but hangs on for both the second and third best werewolf transformation scenes ever put on film (after An American werewolf in London, of course), along with the imaginative direction of Neil Jordan.
This one Labyrinth-esque fantasy horror features some truly terrifying visuals and some very impressive acting from the animals involved. Also, The company of wolves is definitely the only movie on this list where the great Angela Lansbury’s head gets chopped off and then smashed into a million pieces for some reason. Actor David Warner, who plays the father in this movie, also stars in another underrated movie
80s horror movie below.
7/8 Bad Dreams (1988)
Escaping a cult where all its members died by mass suicide ordered by their leader, a man named Franklin Harris, Cynthia awakens from a coma and must try to recover from the horrors forced upon her. But when Cynthia gets used to life again, is Harris really dead…?
While Bad dreams‘ themes are dated, the film is a little-known ’80s romp that horror hounds should seek out immediately. Richard Lynch as Harris is fantastic, as charismatic as he is terrifying as the cult leader, and the shots of the burnt down communion house are extremely well done.
6/8 White Dog (1882)
The king of the pulp, Sam Fuller, proved his glory days were not behind him with the awkward ’80s masterpiece White dog. Unbeknownst to Julie, the dog she just hit with her car was previously trained to attack black people. The dog brings the shepherd home as her house is broken into and defends Julie from her attacker. From there, however, this movie essentially moves like a slasher as the dog attacks before Julie finally, with the help of a black trainer (the legendary Paul Winfield, of The terminator and anger of Khan fame), try to fix the creature with exposure therapy.
Asking whether an evil like racism can be unlearned,White dog presents hard questions under the guise of ripping Hollywood resources. A movie that doesn’t necessarily feel dated given that its theme was already so controversial, these days this is a movie that’s almost begging for a Jordan Peele remake.
5/8 Bad Taste AKA Dead Alive (1987)
Long before he directed hobbits and dwarves Lord of the Rings or great apes in it king kong, filmmaker Peter Jackson was known as a gory New Zealand mischief-maker. In real life gonzo, low budget feature film debut, Bad tastea small town is invaded by very rubbery-looking aliens with a penchant for heavy artillery, and Jackson finds his footing with a wildly silly directing voice.
Not enough people have seen this picture, and it’s so far removed from Jackson’s later work that it may not flow as smoothly as his newer movies, but sit back and let the ridiculousness of it all wash over you. Looking for a double invoice? Combine this with Jackson’s other schlocky ‘splatter’ horror movie, 1992’s brain death, for a wild, nasty night.
4/8 Day of the Dead (1985)
Arguably the most famous film on this list, it still ranks as the black sheep of George A. Romero’s great zombie movies, never gaining the acclaim as Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the dead. It’s a shame, like Day of the Dead wraps up one of the best trilogies in the movie canon and ends with this complete downer of a play set in an army bunker during the zombie apocalypse.
Day of the Dead is a surprisingly bleak film through and through; the soldiers still trapped at the military base rule under the threat of violence and rape, while conflict and danger on both sides of the fence refuse to give up. Shows its old position, Day of the Dead also features a healthy dose of mad scientists, arguably the best on-screen zombie ever in “Bub,” and one of the most magnificent (and oft-repeated) deaths in a villain that you can’t wait to see what’s in store for him . Check out the incredible wall of hands effect below.
3/8 Society (1989)
A high school student doesn’t believe his upper class family is what they claim to be Society, a satirical body horror film. The film follows an upper-class boy who stumbles upon a massive conspiracy that may involve his family.
As the viewer becomes more involved, we see in stark detail the extent to which special effects had evolved in the ’80s, as human beings are shown interlocked and twisted in an uncanny valley of disgusting shapes and positions. In a list where every movie has some incredible hands-on special effects, Society might beat them all. Director Brian Yuzna would also star in 1986From furtherwho could quite easily have made this list as well.
2/8 Wax Museum (1988)
In the horror anthology movie Laundry, a bunch of high school students enter a wax museum where they enter the eerie world of the exhibits. Thankfully, each new vignette hits so hard, with forays into the worlds of werewolves, vampires, and mummies all up for us to see. Even 35 years later, viewers can still marvel at the werewolf segment (with John Rhys-Davies of Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings fame) and ask – how did they do it?
Not to be confused with Paris Hilton’s ‘movie’ house of wax or one of the first color films, 1933’s Mystery of the Wax Museum, Laundry is an inventive and entertaining watch that should have so much more love to its name, and stars too GremlinsZach Galligan.
1/8 Night of the Twits (1986)
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Night of the Creeps was the film that finally gave Tom Atkins his comeuppance. The white-haired Atkins with the dark mustache never quite succeeded in the same way as his leading peers in the ’80s, such as Russell, Gibson or Baldwin. That’s a shame, because Atkins put in solid and responsible (if a little dry) performance as a memorable player Halloween 3: Season of the Witch and Deadly weapon.
But Night of the Creepswas his moment in the sun, and he completely crushes it like the savior with a shotgun. Admittedly, this is a B-movie, but one that is well executed. Night of the Creeps tells of an alien who crash lands on Earth and infects one of the inhabitants, resulting in a zombie outbreak that hits the small town. The movie is in bad taste and silly, but somehow transcends this to become a true ’80s cult classic and true ’80s fare.