The Top 20 MERICAN 80s Horror Movies

[Dukefrukem]

HM: Sleepaway Camp (1983)
Director : Robert Hiltzik
Threat(s) Mystery Killer



Threat Premise : Angela Baker, a traumatized and very shy young girl, is sent to summer camp with her cousin, a bunch of pedophiles, and campers aged 10-30. Shortly after her arrival, people start to die if you try to rape her, or if you call her bad names.

Why I’m mentioning it: Honestly, this didn’t come close to making the top 20 if I were ranking all the 80s Horror movies. But it so needs to be mentioned because it’s one of the films that had the biggest impact on me from a pure shock factor. For those that don’t know about the ending, I won’t spoil it here, but you should watch it for yourself. Overall this is a poorly acted, bloodless slasher but makes some waves in the kind of way you would expect from a film trying to diversify itself from Friday the 13th. There sure are a lot of horror movies made in the 80s around camping.

Best Death: Ending- Presented without comment or Gif.

[Skitch]

I also would say its a "good" movie but I love that freaking weird ass flick.

[Dukefrukem]

HM: Silent Night Deadly Night (1984)
Director : Charles E. Sellier Jr.
Threat(s) “Santa Clause”
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Threat Premise : After his parents are murdered in front of him, a tormented teenager goes on a murderous rampage dressed as Santa, due to his stay at an orphanage where he was abused by the Mother Superior.

Why I’m mentioning it: This stands out as a way more unique over the top slasher more than most slashers in this decade, even though it’s a technical mess from an editing and filming perspective. A super long intro/backstory, that takes a while to get to present day, where the killer (Billy) has been traumatized his whole life, finally breaks down and starts his rampage. He becomes some kind of killing monster- brute strength, muttering the words “punish!” before he kills his victims. I’m also mentioning it because it has the 2nd best pair of breasts I have ever seen in a horror movie. (#1 is Halloween 2). This blonde is smokin’ hot for 1984.

Best Death: Deer Antler Impalement
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[Dukefrukem]

I'll start this on Halloween if Irish and Skitch want to get guesses in.

[Skitch]

I can accomplish anything as long as I have a due date.

[Dukefrukem]

I can accomplish anything as long as I have a due date.

I'm changing the due date to this Friday- so I can start on the weekend.

[Skitch]

Sorry duke, I got slammed at work and wont have time to put a list together. I will just have to enjoy the reviews.

[Dukefrukem]

#20: Terror Train (1980)
Director : Roger Spottiswoode
Threat(s) Mystery Killer

Threat Premise : The scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis is back. This one also starts with a prank gone wrong [

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Why It Made the List : A 'who done it?' slasher with a mystery killer and a reveal at the end. In a lot of ways, Terror Train establishes a lot of horror tropes before most other films. 1) Mystery Killer 2) Mystery Killer who is mistaken to be someone else because they are wearing a mask 3) Promiscuous teengers (or young adults) with seemingly no sixth sense for danger 4) Unique environment making it impossible to call for authorities

Best Scare: Dead body falls out of hiding

[Dukefrukem]

#19: Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
Director : Tommy Lee Wallace
Threat(s) Robots

Threat Premise : Kids all over America want Silver Shamrock masks for Halloween. Doctor Daniel Challis seeks to uncover a plot by Silver Shamrock.

Why It Made the List : I really do appreciate the misdirection and left turn this franchise made with this movie. In the middle of dozens of Fright the 13th and Nightmare on Elm street sequels, Halloween decides to something completely different. It aligns really well with the camp that the 80s fully endorses. In the 80s, were robots realistically anything more than assembly line arms? What really was the end game here? (rhetorical) Turn kids into bugs and replace them with these weird soulless robots? Ancient magic will be revealed to do what?? So many questions that make this hilariously fun to watch.

Best Death: Family Death Scene
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[Morris Schæffer]

Heh in that prank gone wrong Gif, you can see Ellis (Actor Hart Bochner) from Die Hard on the far left.

[Dukefrukem]

#18: Fright Night (1985)
Director : Tom Holland
Threat(s) Vampires (and Werewolves)

Threat Premise : A horror-obsessed teenager discovers that his next door neighbour is a murderous vampire.

Why It Made the List : I love paranoia movies. Burbs, Disturbia, Summer of 84, Rear Window, and this- they will try to uncover a secret that no one else seems to believe and of course, end up being right after paying the price.

Best Death: Vampire Death Scene
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[Dukefrukem]

#17: Friday the 13th the Final Chapter (1984)
Director : Joseph Zito
Threat(s) Jason Voorhees

Threat Premise : After being mortally wounded and taken to the morgue, murderer Jason Voorhees spontaneously revives and embarks on a killing spree as he makes his way back to his home at Camp Crystal Lake.

Why It Made the List : Most people (that I’ve spoken to) about this franchise hate the supernatural aspect of Jason Voorhees. The opposite end of this argument would be Mike Myers “is just a guy” going around killing people. And Jason Voorhees was “just a guy” until this film; where his brute strength and resurrection first comes into play.

So much sexual exploitation in part 4- Two skinny dip scenes, two sex scenes, teens watching a porno and to top it off, Corey Feldmen. Part 4 is where Jason really becomes Jason. He's less man, and more killing machine. The brute strength of Jason shines through on a few occasions which only emphasizes the mystery surrounding his "resurrection". Or did he not die in the first place?

Part 4 is also where horror films get a bad reputation for on screen characters acting stupidly. Why run home because a young Corey Feldmen is home alone, but leave him seconds later to investigate the house next door? No matter, Crispin Glover has a fantastic death scene (as well as the most dated dance scene in movie history) and there's some great stunt work for 1984. Tom Savini also returns as the makeup/special effects artist which also shines through brilliantly in the end. Savini was absent from F13 Parts 2 and 3.

Best Death: Neck Twist and Naked Swim
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[Dukefrukem]

#16: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
Director : Chuck Russell
Threat(s) Freddy Krueger

Threat Premise :
A psychiatrist familiar with knife-wielding dream demon Freddy Krueger helps teens at a mental hospital battle the killer who is invading their dreams.

Why It Made the List : Finally, the kids have the ability to fight back. I hated the sequel to the first movie because it didn’t make sense. If Freddy could take over kids who dream about him, why did he need to do anything in their dreams to begin with? This one, starts using the Matrix to fight Freddy where kids think of their wildest dreams to become, warriors, like the title says.

Nancy is back! So I guess she didn't go crazy like the last movie had established. Instead, she's gone to college and studied how the human body dreams and has been hired as an intern at a local hospital. There, she meets the Dream Warriors, a group of kids suffering from the same nightmares as she did, except one of them has the power to have them share the same dream (Inception style). By using this power, the Dream Warriors fight back against Freddy as their perception of themselves are wizards, strong man, bad-ass chick with knives, cartwheel girl, and loud talker kid.

The ensemble cast makes this a fun Freddy movie. A young Laurence Fishburne makes an appearance. There's some really great death scenes such as the puppet Freddy scene and death by TV. They also establish that Freddy can take control of his dead body (which are bones by now) and walk around in the real world after they get a hint from the ghost of Freddy's mother that if you bury Freddy on hallowed ground, it will put an end to the nightmare.

Best Death:Tie: Puppet Death and TV Death
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[Dukefrukem]

#15: From Beyond (1986)
Director : Stuart Gordon
Threat(s) The Resonator + Beyond Stuff



Threat Premise : A group of scientists have developed the Resonator, a machine which allows whoever is within range to see beyond normal perceptible reality.

Why It Made the List : I absolutely love, the kind of practical effects that give off a rubber gooey monster look. To me, this absolutely defines the 80s. A mad scientist found a way to tap into the human brain that normal humans cannot see, and EVERYONE loses their mind. Bizarrely out of place sexy, brains being sucked out through eye sockets and kinky horror sex all become staples of this movie. Barbara Crampton is masterful as she slowly loses her mind throughout the movie.

Best Death: Finale
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[Dukefrukem]

#14: April Fool’s Day (1986)
Director : Fred Walton
Threat(s) Pranks and a Shocking Mystery



Threat Premise : A group of eight college friends gather together at an island mansion belonging to heiress Muffy St. John to celebrate their final year of school. Thats when the terror begins.

Why It Made the List : The house everyone is staying at is filled with gags which makes the setup of the premise fun and mysterious. Door knobs come off doors, lights turn on when you turn another off, a googlely eyed cat clock hidden behind a painting with shifting eyes... you never know if the next scream is because of a practical joke, or real terror.

Thomas F. Wilson! Aka Biff Tannen is doing his best non-Biff role. I enjoy ensemble casts like this- different array of characters, constantly at odds, trying to figure out what's really going on. Excellent finale.

Best Scare [

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NO ONE DIES!

]: Painting Shifty Eyes
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[Dukefrukem]

So photobucket was down for most of the day yesterday, so not sure if these gifs will show up or not. They might be just cached for me.

[Dukefrukem]

#13: The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
Director : Dan O'Bannon
Threat(s) Zombies


Threat Premise : Two medical supply warehouse employees release toxic gas from a drum left there by the government from a past failed experiment. The gas turns cadavers into zombies. They chop up the bodies in a crematorium and the smoke reaches the clouds, and it begins to rain down on a cemetary… causing zombies to rise from the grave.

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Why It Made the List : I originally liked this movie, then I hated it, then I loved it again. I went through a weird phase where I didn’t want any camp in my zombie movies, and I couldn’t get past the scene where the zombies use the radio to call for “more brains” Or the zombie dressed up like a police offer.
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But this movie is so great. It has everything. Camp. Gross practical effects, strange nudity. It has several groups of people coming together to try to figure out how to get out of the mess they are in. Linnea Quigley is smokin’ hot (btw, she’s the same naked girl in Silent Night Deadly Night), and R.I.P. James Karen. They definitely don’t make em like this anymore.

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Best Death: Homeless man died in the hands of the hot naked zombie
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[Dukefrukem]

#12: Gremlins (1984)
Director : Joe Dante
Threat(s) Gremlins


Threat Premise : They fed them after midnight
Why It Made the List : Superb score, excellent 80s premise. It has all the 80s tropes. Mean woman who threatens to kill dogs in front of a crowd of people? Where is PETA? But it's okay, because you know the woman will get a taste of her own medicine later in the film. In this case, she gets thrown out of a window when the gremlins re-wire her stair chair. (I burst into laughter during this scene)

You know it's the 80s when there's a weird character trait; the main character brings his dog to work at a bank? Why? It appears as though his mother is stays home all day. Steven Spielberg produced this so there's plenty of Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. homage. There's plenty of humor, like gremlin's trying to speak or randomly doing human stuff like playing the trumpet or hanging out the bar, and there's plenty of dark humor, like the kitchen rampage and Stripe's death.

Even though the gremlins origin is never explained (if it were remade today, there would be a backstory) I probably would be suspicious if I was the kid and my father told me not to feed it water. What kind of organism doesn't need water to live?

Best Death: Presented without comment- other than this is hilarious
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[Dukefrukem]

#11: The Burning (1981)
Director : Tony Maylam
Threat(s) “Mystery” Killer



Threat Premise : A former summer camp caretaker, horribly burned from a prank gone wrong, lurks around an upstate New York summer camp bent on killing the teenagers responsible for his disfigurement.

Why It Made the List : Well crafted for 1981; but boy does the beginning of this film define the phrase "that escalated quickly". I'm not sure how two small candles can turn into THAT kind of inferno.

For a horror movie and 1981 the sexual exploitation is running at high octane with girls running around with shirts with no bras and bikinis, scenes of girls showering, the classic skinny dipping scene... We are introduced to Jason Alexander as Dave, playing a miniature version of George Costanza.

If anything, this movie is trying ride the coattails of Friday the 13th; albeit a tab better constructed and paced; A slasher movie taking place at an active camp, with plenty of difference characters and much better death scenes.

Best Death: Surprise Canoe Slaughter
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[Dukefrukem]

#10: The Shining(1980)
Director : Stanley Kubrick
Threat(s) Ghosts?


Threat Premise : Jack Torrance accepts a caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel, where he, along with his wife Wendy and their son Danny, must live isolated from the rest of the world for the winter. Madness that lurks within tears their winter apart.

Why It Made the List : There isn’t much else to be said that hasn’t already been said about the Shining. Kubrick has all the right touches. The DP did a perfect job making the environment haunting. Combined with Jack Nicholson's performance, it’s just a perfect storm of terror. I recommend these two youtube videos on how Kubrick made the set pieces intentionally confusing for the audience. The set designs were made to be impossible if the Overlook Hotel existed in real life. And the video does a great job showing the floorplans combined with video evidence.



Best Scare: The fact that the ghosts let him out of the pantry
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[Gizmo]

Good stuff so far. I think a few of my guesses are actually on the list.

[Dukefrukem]

#9: Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)
Director : John Carl Buechler
Threat(s) Supernatural Jason Voorhees


Threat Premise : The Jason movie that went off the rails? Part VII strays away from the previous six slashers and adds a new factor in the mix. Jason is accidently resurrected from the bottom of Crystal Lake by Tina, who has telekinetic powers. (why is it no one could find Jason's body after part VI? He was not that far away from the surface?)

Why It Made the List : This might be a controversial pick, but it’s my favorite Jason movie. Jason's urge to kill has never been higher and he has never been more powerful. He also takes form as the Jason we all know and love... a towering decayed corpse, who's spine is revealed from the surface of his skin.

Jason relentlessly kills more teens who are renting a house on the lake, and also uses some random power tools in the process. Jason never runs in this movie like he has in the past. he walks at a slow pace that victims cannot seem to escape. Jason also appears to teleport around its victims, showing up at just the right times. Tina uses her powers to fight off Jason and its the first time in the series someone actually stands up to him. In one of the cooler parts of the movie, Tina uses her powers to squeeze the Hockey Mask off Jason and strangle him with a power cord. Fantastic classic horror scene.

Best Death: Skinny Dipping Death (minus the skinny dipping)
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[Skitch]

I would've been very wrong.

[Dukefrukem]

#8: Re-Animator (1985)
Director : Stuart Gordon
Threat(s) Zombies


Threat Premise : Dark weird drama revolving around a mad scientist, Jeffery Combs, who is dating Barbara Crampton, the dean of Miskatonic University’s daughter, located in the imaginary town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Combs’ mission is re-animate dead flesh much to the dismay of his counterparts working at the University.

Why It Made the List : I'm a huge fan of Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness and this movie needs credit for coming out BEFORE both of them. There is plenty of comedy gold with over the top ridiculousness and slapstick humor. But it’s also a very gory movie that is so self-aware, that even Barbara Crampton looks like a genius.

Give Crampton a gold medal for dealing with full frontal nudity, being licked by a severed head and just not giving in to what, at the time, was an X-Rated movie when first released (or Unrated). She was completely devoted to Stuart Gordon here and in the Beyond.

My favorite scenes are headless Dr Hill, The mindless zombie dean, naked zombie party and quotable lines such as “I suggest you get yourself a pen!” and “Cat dead, details later” The score is also wonderful as it is a “homage” to Alfred Hitchcock’s psycho. The zombie cat puppet is also very Sam Raimi.

Best Death: Naked Zombie Party/Dr. Carl Hill Dies a 2nd time
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[Dukefrukem]

I would've been very wrong.

It should start to get more obvious as we approach the top 5.