Plenty of people will agree that the 1980s was the best decade for horror. That era was hot on the heels of the 1970s, a period that paved the way for the genre we know today. Yet in the 1980s, horror was more prolific than ever, thanks to advances in distribution and special effects. The groundwork had been laid, and filmmakers were celebrating a renaissance.
From slashers to haunted houses, the ’80s were a thrilling time. Not to mention, some of the biggest franchises — A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th and Halloween — were born. However, a number of films were lost in the horror boom. With that in mind, let’s check out ten underrated horror movies from the 1980s.
Updated November 28th, 2019:With ’80s horror being the rage nowadays, we really can’t help but add another handful of underrated titles you certainly need to watch.
The Outing (1987)
When an ancient oil lamp is recovered at a crime scene, it’s shipped off to a museum for analysis. The curator’s daughter, however, accidentally awakens an evil genie within the object, and she becomes his unwilling servant. Under the entity’s thrall, the teenager convinces her friends to stay at the museum after hours. Now, the demonic guardian of the lamp has found itself a new batch of victims, and no amount of wishing will save them.
Originally known as The Lamp, this supernatural slasher predates kindred films about wish fulfillment gone terribly wrong. The movie is notable for its mean-spirited attitude and a towering genie prop that makes its delayed appearance worthwhile.
Corpse Mania (1981)
The employees at an upscale brothel are being picked off, one by one, by a perverse, masked assailant who defiles his victims’ bodies. The madam is not only upset by the killer’s effect on her business, she’s become weary of the detectives prying into her business.
Vintage Hong Kong horror has a reputation of being fantastical and involving the dark arts. To one’s surprise, though, Kuei Chih-Hung’s Corpse Mania is rooted more in reality, albeit perverse, than magic. The inspiration from giallo is undeniable, but the creative skimming makes for an unforgettably wicked thriller.
The House Where Evil Dwells (1982)
When an American family moves to Japan, they unknowingly rent a house with a disturbing history. The longer they stay there, the parents are influenced more and more by a set of restless spirits.
Two years before The Karate Kid introduced Japanese culture to an unsuspecting audience in the west, The House Where Evil Dwells tested the water. It also opened to middling reviews. Despite its lack of fanfare, this international haunter does open up discussion about sex politics.
Windows (1980)
A woman finds herself being stalked after someone breaks into her apartment. Though her friend and neighbor tries to comfort her, the victim soon realizes she’s not safe with her around.
Windows is a pioneer in queer horror. It takes the serpentine nature of 1970s thrillers like Klute and adds a fresh slant that speaks to peckish, built-in viewers today. While you learn the antagonist’s identity and motive early on, you will likely still feel engaged when spying on this psycho-suspenser.
Cemetery of Terror (1985)
When teenagers steal a corpse from a morgue as part of a Halloween prank, they are unaware of the fact the body belongs to a killer who vowed to return to life one day. And by chanting a magic spell, the teens revive both the killer and all the zombified corpses in a nearby cemetery.
Day of the Dead eclipsed this Mexican import in 1985, but it’s not as though Cemetery of Terror (or Cementerio del Terror) was readily available to English-speaking audiences back then. It had no preexisting reputation to bank on either. Which means this underseen zombie romp has to be judged on its own merits. And luckily for Cemetery of Terror and new watchers, this screamer is a fun one. Its schlocky practical effects overrules its inborn sense of unoriginality.
Screamtime (1983)
After stealing some video cassettes from a store, two men go over to a friend’s house to watch them. The movies are about a puppeteer, a family whose new home appears to be haunted, and robbers being outwitted by lawn gnomes and fairies.
Horror anthologies have always been popular. They are also a good avenue to go down if you have a variety of tales to tell in a small amount of time. Creepshow is obviously the most iconic one to come out of the 1980s, but the British omnibus Screamtime is a fair contender, too. It’s clearly low-budget and made with unknown actors. Yet it’s a charming compilation of macabre segments. The second story “Dreamhouse” was produced prior to the film, and it was remade as Psychosis in 2010.
Far From Home (1989)
Charlie runs out of gas in a podunk in Nevada while driving across the country with his teen daughter Joleen. When the only petrol station around is out of gas, they are forced to spend Joleen’s birthday in a run-down trailer park. Unbeknownst to everyone, someone in this small community is a serial killer — and he’s just found himself two new victims.
Drew Barrymore starred in this under-seen and widely panned thriller. Far From Home was mismarketed as a family drama when it’s really more like a slasher movie. It’s not the most unpredictable film, but the reviews would have you think Far From Home is worse than it really is.
The Visitors (1988)
A family of four moves into an idyllic countryside house. There, the father suspects something strange is going on in the attic as he fixes up the place. He invites a paranormal expert to suss out if there’s a problem with his house. What is the truth behind the locked room in the attic?
Besökarna is a Swedish film that was later dubbed into English and renamed The Visitors. The international version is slightly shorter than the original, too. Being a haunted house movie, the story makes good use of its setting. So much so that we don’t actually see the malevolent entity all too often. But once we do, it’s definitely a jump scare we won’t forget.
The Wind (1987)
A mystery novelist named Sian gets involved in a situation worthy of being in one of her books. After traveling to a Greek island from her home in Los Angeles so that she can pen a new novel, Sian’s warned about a terrible wind coming in from the sea. She is advised to stay indoors until it passes. During the windy night, she suspects that someone is now out to kill her.
Nico Mastorakis of Island of Death fame goes down a less overt route of terror in The Wind. Meg Foster (They Live) commands the screen in this overlooked game of cat and mouse.
Demons 3: The Ogre (1988)
An American horror novelist named Cheryl vacations at a rural Italian home with her husband and young son. As Cheryl works on her next book, she remembers the recurring childhood dream she had where an ogre stalks her. To her amazement, the adolescent nightmare is now manifesting.
Although this movie is called Demons 3 in some parts, its story has nothing to do with Lamberto Bava’s Demon films. The Ogre was, however, co-scripted and directed by Bava as part of a series of TV movies. Due to its standalone nature and dreamlike redundancy, viewers write this film off too quickly. In the movie’s defense, its surrealism and distinct atmosphere make it worth watching.
Night Life (1989)
Archie is a bullied teenager who accepts a job working for his uncle at a mortuary. After Archie’s bullies die in a car crash, they are brought to Archie’s new workplace. Inexplicably, the corpses are reanimated. Now, Archie’s tormentors have risen as zombies!
Also known as Grave Misdemeanors, this late eighties zombie comedy has been neglected for years. Especially when it comes to it being released on a format other than VHS and Laserdisc. For a zombie movie, Night Life lacks in the death department, but don’t discount it for that reason. There are some fun sequences here that make it worth seeking out.
The Caller (1987)
A woman staying at an isolated forest cabin is visited by a man who claims his car has broken down. They engage in an aggressive tête-à-tête where both sides appear to know more about the other than they let on. Soon, it becomes a fight for survival.
The Caller is foremost considered an erotic thriller, but that assessment is a disservice to this hidden gem. Yes, it has a carnal air to its story, but by today’s standards, that aspect is fairly tame. What makes The Caller so memorable is its shocking, left field ending.
Mr. Wrong (1984)
In a bid to be more independent, Meg finally moves out of her parents’ house. She also buys a used Jaguar. But the longer she owns the car, the more she thinks something is wrong with it. Not mechanically. No, Meg believes an otherworldly presence inhabits the vehicle.
New Zealand was not known for its horror movies in the 1980s. And compared to other regions, it’s been a slow climb since then. However, most of the country’s horror offerings are, at the very least, above mid-tier. In Mr. Wrong (also known as Dark of the Night in the U.S.), director Gaylene Preston crafts a spooky, engrossing tale about women’s safety as told through the advantageous lens of horror.
Killer Party (1986)
A sorority is hosting an April’s Fool Day party where everyone comes dressed up in costumes. But the night turns deadly when one of the guests decides to play executioner.
Killer Party was originally titled April Fool, but when Paramount announced it was releasing a Fred Walton picture called April Fool’s Day, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer changed the name. This 1986 movie is an oddity, as it feels more like a music video than a slasher at times. But once the inanity subsides, Killer Party lives up to its name and then some.
Eyes of a Stranger (1981)
Set in Miami, a television news anchor tries to raise more awareness about a local serial killer who only targets women. The threat then hits close to home when she suspects one of her neighbors is the killer, and in turn, he comes after her and her sister who is both visually and hearing-impaired.
Eyes of a Stranger came out at a time when similar films were being lambasted for their exploitative content. It was no exception to the criticism. On the other end of the argument, these movies might have been trying to address a serious problem that just wasn’t being talked about. This 1981 movie was unfortunately edited for a number of years, but you can now find the uncut version of this underrated thriller on DVD.
