The 1980s were an incredible decade for horror, seeing the birth and/or continuation of many iconic franchises, from Halloween to Friday the 13th to A Nightmare on Elm Street. The list could go on and on and many people gravitate towards these classics once pumpkin-carving season hits—or, let’s be honest, watch them year-round, because horror isn’t just for fall.
But if you’re so familiar with these classics that you know all the jump scares by heart and you’re looking for something fresh this Halloween—something that still has that signature ‘80s feel—then check out the movies below! These films are not totally unknown but they are often overlooked, so let this list serve to remind you that plenty of gems exist beyond the big franchises, in the oddball realm of cult horror comedies, remakes, and sequels. Without further ado, here are five fun but sometimes forgotten horror movies from the 1980s you might enjoy…
Night of the Creeps (1986)
Fred Dekker’s horror comedy Night of the Creeps is a love letter to 1950s monster B-movies. It pays homage to slashers, zombie flicks, and alien invasion films, all whilst delivering the requisite carnage and gore expected of an ’80s horror movie. Dekker also pays tribute to his personal heroes by naming his characters after iconic horror directors—there’s Romero, Carpenter, and Cronenberg, to name just a few.
Night of the Creeps begins on a spaceship with some ridiculous-looking aliens fighting over a canister that is then blasted out into space. It’s 1959, so we switch to black and white to see what happens to the canister and its slug-like contents when it crash-lands on Earth (hint: it’s nothing good). We switch back to color as the film jumps forward to 1986, where we follow college-age best friends Chris (Jason Lively) and J. C. (Steve Marshall) as they accidentally unleash the slugs—which happen to zombify people—on campus. During pledge week, no less.
The tone is purposefully campy and the practical effects are pure fun. A gruff detective, played brilliantly by Tom Atkins, is caught up in all of the slug/zombie mayhem and he delivers many of the funniest lines. You’ll be using his deadpan catchphrase “thrill me” for weeks after seeing the movie. Then there’s Cynthia (Jill Whitlow), a bad-ass final girl who deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Jamie Lee Curtis’s Laurie Strode and Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott. Cynthia fights off the slugs and zombies with a flame-thrower—reminiscent of the All-Time Queen of the Final Girls, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver)—all while wearing a lovely pastel party dress.
The Blob (1988)
In the ‘80s there was trend for remaking ’50s creature features with gory practical effects, the standouts being John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982) and David Cronenberg’s The Fly (1986). One remake that doesn’t get the same level of recognition, but definitely deserves it, is Chuck Russell’s The Blob. Russell teamed up with screenwriter Frank Darabont, who went on to direct The Shawshank Redemption (1994) and bring The Walking Dead comics to the small screen.
In the remake, the carnivorous creature doesn’t hitch a ride to Earth on a meteorite; instead it is created by the government as a biological weapon (which is pretty much never a good idea). Once it’s unleashed, it uncontrollably and gruesomely dissolves and consumes every living creature in its path, growing larger with every meal.
The creative team behind The Blob definitely understood the assignment, giving viewers numerous gleefully repulsive death scenes, mostly via practical effects. If the body horror of The Thing and The Fly is to your taste and you haven’t seen The Blob, then you need to rectify that right now. Fans of Darabont should also note that this is the first time he worked with actor Jeffrey DeMunn, who went on to star in many of his future projects. The movie is only missing one thing: the super catchy theme song that plays over the opening credits of the 1958 original. But other than that, it’s a perfect amalgamation of cheese and gore.
The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
Although Dan O’Bannon’s The Return of the Living Dead was fairly successful when it first came out, it is now sadly often overlooked in the zombie genre. It’s sort of an unofficial sequel to George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968), despite being totally different. This happened because Romero and co-writer John Russo couldn’t agree on which direction to take the sequel, so it was decided that Romero would make official sequels, while Russo could use the Living Dead name to make unofficial sequels.
Within the world of The Return of the Living Dead, Romero’s film exists and was inspired by real events, but that’s as far as the connection goes. Things kick off when two employees at a medical supply warehouse mess around with the barrels used to store the zombies from the “real” outbreak. With the zombies reanimated and hungry for brains—this was the first film to specifically include that detail—everything descends into comical chaos. Things turn from bad to worse when they burn a zombie, which contaminates the air and rain, creating more zombies.
Add some punk teenagers (and a punk soundtrack to match) into the mix and you’ve got a truly disastrous situation that not even zombie-killing king Rick Grimes could salvage. Although the film is hilarious, the zombies still look pretty scary—particularly the Tarman zombie, which is a grotesque slimy mess. Plus, there’s a surprisingly dark revelation about how the zombies function, which I won’t spoil here for anyone who hasn’t seen it.
The Monster Squad (1987)
When it comes to family-friendly Halloween movies, people often turn to favorites like Hocus Pocus (1993), Casper (1995), and Halloweentown (1998). These ’90s classics have become staples of the spooky season for many, but I invite you to cast your mind back to the ‘80s. Just one year after Night of the Creeps, Fred Dekker brought out another movie that is perfect for Halloween: The Monster Squad.
The Monster Squad is basically the Goonies vs. Universal’s classic monsters. The titular squad is led by Sean (Andre Gower), who learns, via Van Helsing’s diary, that Dracula (Duncan Regehr) is trying to destroy a magical amulet which keeps the forces of evil at bay, and take over the world with the help of other monsters. Sean rallies his friends to foil Dracula’s plan, along with the help of Frankenstein’s monster (Tom Noonan), who is just a big softy, and a cute beagle called Pete, who is the movie’s real MVP, (i.e,. most valuable pup).
The Monster Squad was a box-office bomb but has since gained a cult following, and for good reason. The Universal Monsters being brought together like Marvel’s Avengers is a brilliant idea and the film has so much fun playing with these iconic horror characters. “Wolfman’s got nards” is the standout line from the film, but it’s far from the only joke that’s still funny. The music also still hits, from “Rock Until You Drop” playing over a montage of the Monster Squad preparing for the final showdown to the rap song that plays over the end credits. Both songs are worthy of being included on all Halloween playlists.
The ‘Burbs (1989)
Another not-as-terrifying option for Halloween is Joe Dante’s The ‘Burbs. Dante is best known for the horror comedy Gremlins (1984), and while The ‘Burbs has darker elements, it’s definitely going more for laughs than screams, even when compared to the earlier film. It stars Tom Hanks as Ray Peterson, a stressed-out office worker who takes a week off to relax at home, but becomes convinced that his new neighbors, the Klopeks, are part of a murderous cult. It’s a little spooky and a lot of fun.
The film received lackluster reviews, but Tom Hanks absolutely nails the goofy style of comedy, and Carrie Fisher, who plays his wife, adds a necessary grounding element. Ray ropes some of his neighbors into his plan to expose the Klopeks as Satanic murderers, and Bruce Dern, Rick Ducommun, and Corey Feldman’s performances of these offbeat characters are perfectly on-point as well. The ‘Burbs is delightfully cheesy, and half the fun lies in the fact that it’s not taking itself too seriously.
Underneath all of the slapstick comedy and lighthearted creepiness, though, is a satirical portrait of suburban life in America. On the one hand, the sinister sketchiness of the Klopek family reveals the falsehood of picture-perfect neighborhoods. On the other hand, Ray’s nosiness, which devolves into paranoid overreactions, while ultimately justified within the context of the film, is clearly intended to highlight the absurdity of judging people for not fitting the suburban cookie-cutter mold.
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Are there any other horror movies from the 1980s that you think are underrated or deserve more attention? Leave your recommendations in the comments below!
Lorna Wallace has a PhD in English Literature and is a lover of all things science fiction and horror. She lives in Scotland with her rescue greyhound, Misty.
