80s horror movies
The list doesn't include some of the most iconic titles, instead focusing more on the niche ones that eventually gained a cult following or were successful at the box office back in the day.
List activity
69 views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
167 titles
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsAdrienne BarbeauJamie Lee CurtisJanet LeighAn unearthly fog rolls into a small coastal town exactly 100 years after a ship mysteriously sank in its waters.Initially received mixed reviews but was financially successful and was later recognized as a minor horror classic.
- DirectorUlli LommelStarsSuzanna LoveJohn CarradineRon JamesThrough the reflection in the mirror, a girl witnesses her mother's boyfriend's murder.The movie received criticism for its similarities to other horror classics such as Halloween, The Exorcist, and The Amityville Horror but spanned a franchise later.
- DirectorRuggero DeodatoStarsRobert KermanFrancesca CiardiPerry PirkanenDuring a rescue mission into the Amazon rainforest, a professor stumbles across lost film shot by a missing documentary crew.Noted for its realism, the movie innovated the found footage genre that was later popularized in American cinema by The Blair Witch Project.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGeorge C. ScottTrish Van DevereMelvyn DouglasAfter experiencing tragic personal losses, a music professor rents a Seattle mansion, haunted by a slain boy.Considered one of the best horror films of all time and one of the most influential Canadian films of all time. Based on the events that Russell Hunter claimed he experienced.
- DirectorLewis JacksonStarsBrandon MaggartJeffrey DeMunnDianne HullA toy factory worker, mentally scarred as a child upon learning Santa Claus is not real, suffers a nervous breakdown after being belittled at work, and embarks on a Yuletide killing spree.Gained a cult following but was seized and confiscated in the UK during the video nasty panic.
- DirectorLewis TeagueStarsRobert ForsterRobin RikerMichael V. GazzoA pet baby alligator is flushed down a toilet and survives in the city sewers. Twelve years later, it grows to an enormous size thanks to a diet of discarded laboratory dogs injected with growth hormones. Now, humans have entered the menu.Praised for its intentional satire and was followed by a sequel and a video game.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsWilliam HurtBlair BrownBob BalabanA psycho-physiologist experiments with drugs and a sensory-deprivation tank and has visions he believes are genetic memories.Based on the sensory deprivation research conducted in isolation tanks under the influence of psychoactive drugs by John C. Lilly.
- DirectorMike NewellStarsCharlton HestonSusannah YorkJill TownsendAn archeologist discovers his daughter is possessed by the spirit of an Egyptian queen. To save mankind he must destroy her.Criticized for being predictable and unrelentingly dull but praised for the performance of Charlton Heston.
- DirectorAlvin RakoffStarsGeorge KennedyRichard CrennaNick MancusoA mysterious ghostly freighter rams and sinks a modern day cruise ship whose survivors climb aboard the freighter and discover that it is a World War II Nazi torture vessel.Upon release received mixed-to-negative reviews, but is considered a cult classic.
- DirectorVernon ZimmermanStarsDennis ChristopherTim ThomersonGwynne GilfordA shy, lonely film buff embarks on a killing spree against those who browbeat and betray him, all the while stalking his idol, a Marilyn Monroe lookalike.Commercially unsuccessful, but later garnered a cult following.
- DirectorArmand MastroianniStarsDon ScardinoCaitlin O'HeaneyElizabeth KempA young bride-to-be is being stalked upon by a serial killer in Staten Island. She gets help from a former lover, but will they manage to escape?Credited as one of the first horror films inspired by the success of Halloween. It features the first movie appearance of Tom Hanks.
- DirectorGeorge BowersStarsTrish Van DevereJoseph CottenDavid GautreauxA schoolteacher moves into her deceased aunt's home in a small town, only to find herself plagued by supernatural occurrences and unexplained hostility from the local townspeople connected to her aunt's past.A mix of different cliches from other horror classics.
- DirectorBarbara PeetersJimmy T. MurakamiStarsDoug McClureAnn TurkelVic MorrowHumanoid sea creatures start killing a fishing town's residents, and raping their women. It's up to the townsfolk and a visiting biologist to fight back and fend them off.
- DirectorWilliam LustigStarsJoe SpinellCaroline MunroAbigail ClaytonA psychopathic man goes on a killing and mutilation spree in New York City.
- DirectorKevin ConnorStarsRory CalhounPaul LinkeNancy ParsonsA seemingly friendly farmer and his sister kidnap unsuspecting travelers and bury them alive, using them to create the "special meat" they are famous for.
- DirectorCharles KaufmanStarsTiana PierceNancy HendricksonDeborah LuceTwo brothers kidnap and brutalize three women for the pleasure of their demented mother.
- DirectorPaul LynchStarsLeslie NielsenJamie Lee CurtisCasey StevensAt a high-school senior prom, a masked killer stalks four teenagers who were responsible for the accidental death of a classmate six years previously.
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsBen JohnsonJamie Lee CurtisHart BochnerThree years after a prank went terribly awry, the six college students responsible are targeted by a masked killer at a New Year's Eve party aboard a moving train.
- DirectorDanny SteinmannStarsBarbara BachSydney LassickLelia GoldoniThree female reporters find themselves staying overnight in a house occupied by a hostile being that lurks in the basement.
- DirectorJohn HoughVincent McEveetyStarsBette DavisLynn-Holly JohnsonKyle RichardsWhen a family moves to a country home, the young girls experience strange happenings that have a link to an occult event years past.
- DirectorTony MaylamStarsBrian MatthewsLeah AyresBrian BackerA 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.
- DirectorGary ShermanStarsJames FarentinoMelody AndersonJack AlbertsonSheriff Dan Gillis investigates eerie deaths in a sleepy coastal town.
- DirectorJimmy HustonStarsCecile BagdadiJoel S. RiceRalph BrownA psycho killer shows up on college campus to slash up pretty co-eds and dumb jocks.
- DirectorEric WestonStarsClint HowardR.G. ArmstrongJoe CorteseAn outcast military cadet taps into a way to summon demons and cast spells on his tormentors through his computer.
- DirectorKen WiederhornStarsLauren TewesJennifer Jason LeighJohn DiSantiA news anchorwoman begins to suspect a man living in the same apartment complex as her to be the serial killer that's been raping and killing women in the Miami area.