Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
More On:
Stream and Scream
-
Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Exorcism’ on VOD, an Almost-Meta Horror Flick That Puts the Frock and Collar on Russell Crowe Again
-
Shelley Duvall's 'Shining' Eyes Were The Audience's Portal Into The Overlook Hotel
-
Is 'Longlegs' Really the Scariest Movie of the Year?
-
'The Acolyte' Proves To Be Yet Another Divisive 'Star Wars' Offering, But Everyone Agrees This Scary Ass Mask Is Pure Nightmare Fuel
The world these days is as terrifying as anything horror masters George A. Romero or Stephen King could think up. In fact, the world these days seems like something George A. Romero or Stephen King would think up. A lethal pandemic with no end in sight, a game show host turned fascist cult leader, conspiracy theories turning neighbors into gun-toting vigilantes; this is the stuff of our modern American nightmare. But there’s one night every year when horror brings happiness, when little kids eat too much candy, when mischief reigns supreme and the souls of the dead walk the Earth. Yes, it’s Halloween folks, though this year’s festivities are a little different than in the past. With Halloween parades and trick or treating cancelled around the country, your best bet is to hunker down with a bowl of candy corn and binge scary movies all night. Fortunately, the streaming service Shudder offers a plethora of horror classics to give you nightmares and distract you from the troubles at hand. Here are 10 horror classics from the 1970s and 1980s that you can start watching right now!
'Re-Animator' (1985)
The first of Stuart Gordon’s cinematic Lovecraft adaptations , this also tells the tale of scientists wreaking havoc in their quest for medical breakthroughs and personal glory. An ambitious medical student brings the dead back to life. What could possibly go wrong? Answer: everything.
'Slaughterhouse' (1987)
While not quite as iconic as The Hills Have Eyes or Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Rick Roessler’s Slaughterhouse is nonetheless a darkly comedic slasher classic. The looming Joe B. Barton stars as Buddy Bacon, a large, simple-minded farmer’s who goes on a murderous rampage. He’s basically the murderous, axe-wielding version of Lennie from Of Mice and Men. This one definitely isn’t for the faint of heart, nor is it particularly kind to fat people—but it sure is bloody!
'Blue Sunshine' (1978)
If you’re looking for the kind of bizarre, totally off-the-rails horror that only drugged-up filmmakers in the ’70s could deliver, then cue up Jeff Lieberman’s beloved cult classic, Blue Sunshine. No one is claiming this movie is good, per se, but it is absolutely freaky. The plot follows a man named Jerry (Zalman King) who investigates a series of murders in Los Angeles after he’s falsely accused of a crime, only to discover it’s all related to a particularly strong strain of LSD from the ’60s. Nancy Reagan must have been taking notes when she watched this one.
'Prom Night' (1980)
After Jamie Lee Curtis was Laurie Strode, she cemented her position as the scream queen of the ’70s and ’80s with Prom Night, a slasher classic from director Paul Lynch. Curtis stars as a high school senior who, along with her friends, is stalked by a masked killer on the night of her prom. Sure, it’s sort of a rip-off of both Halloween and Carrie, but it’s Jamie Lee Curtis! She’s the GOAT final girl for a reason.
'The House on Sorority Row' (1983)
Before there was Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sarah Michelle Gellar in I Know What You Did Last Summer, there was Eileen Davidson and Kathryn McNeil in The House on Sorority Row. This slasher classic from director Mark Rosman follows seven sorority sisters who cover-up the accidental murder of their house mother in a prank gone wrong. But they can’t outrun the guilt… or the mysterious killer who starts to pick off the girls one by one.
'Final Exam' (1981)
If you’re looking for an underrated ’80s slasher á la Sleepaway Camp, check out this blood-and-gore fest from Jimmy Houston. It’s pretty much your standard slasher set-up: A serial killer with a knife starts picking off a group of college friends. Critics hated it, but true horror fans know this one is, if not a staple, at least a classic.
'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' (1974)
Before Jason, before Michael Myers, there was Leatherface, the chainsaw-wielding, dead skin-mask wearing, nightmare inducing horror icon of Tobe Hooper’s first major feature film. One of the most infamous horror movies of all time, it tells the time honored tale of a bunch of good looking kids who get lost out in the backwoods and end up the prey of a murderous family of goons who chop ’em to bits. So good the Ramones wrote a song about it.
'Hellraiser' (1987)
By the late ‘80s, horror was starting to get stale with slasher films the norm and tales of the supernatural seeming corny and dated. Unhappy with past adaptations of his work, writer Clive Barker made his directorial debut with this trailblazing horror film which created a whole new universe which borrowed from sexual fetishism and goth and in “Pinhead” brought another horror icon to the fore.
'Night of the Living Dead' (1968)
The Big Bang of modern horror films, George A. Romero’s low budget directorial debut was made for $114,000 and would launch the zombie horror genre which continues to this day. Though tame by modern standards, it’s pioneering use of gore and its bleak fatalism would shock audiences and inspire a younger generation who would take both to new extremes. The film drew a line in the sand, separating the schlocky monster movies of the past with the world of horror to come. So cool the Misfits wrote a song about it.
'Halloween' (1978)
If Night of the Living Dead created the modern horror template, Halloween raised it to an artform. Like other important horror movies, it spawned its own subgenre, the slasher film, and was centered around an unforgettable character, masked serial killer Michael Myers. Brilliantly directed by John Carpenter, it builds suspense slowly with first person camera work and rapid cuts before its inevitable horrifying climax. So successful it spawned a series of sequels which would make the Celtic-American folk holiday synonymous with scary movies and other things that go bump in the night.
Benjamin H. Smith is a New York based writer, producer and musician. Follow him on Twitter:@BHSmithNYC.
