The Golden Age of Horror Movies: Late-70s to Early-80's

Don't forget .... from 1977

 

That list was more about the popular well known classics. If I went for the unpopular "should be" classics per year (starting from 1969) it would be:

The House That Screamed
Hatchet for the Honeymoon/Blood on Satan's Claw
Short Night of the Glass Dolls/Fifth Cord
Silent Night Bloody Night/The Severed Arm/Death Line
Messiah of Evil/The Pyx/Lemora
Deathdream
Trilogy of Terror/Footprints on the Moon
Alice Sweet Alice/Witch Who Came From the Sea
Shock Waves (great, but oddly bloodless)
The Redeemer
Scream's of Winter Night
Funeral Home
The Pit
The Slayer
The Deadly Spawn/Zeder/Curtains
The Initiation/Razorback
The Stuff
Night of the Creeps
Anguish/Stage Fright
Pin/Paperhouse
Clownhouse/The Church
The First Power
Popcorn/The Resurrected
Gate 2 and Pet Semetary 2 (underrated)

Yet again, I hit 1993 and can't find anything.

 

Didn’t mind Return of the Living Dead 3 from 1993. Also there was an Australia film Bodymelt from 1993 which was pretty disgusting. Far from top shelf, but I enjoyed both.

My favourites horror films are primarily European from the 70’s. Argento and Fulci are the best known, but there are some less well known directors who made some interesting films, such as Martino, Ercoli, Lenzi and Bava.

 

I do love some "bottom of the draw" horror flicks:



This is a brilliant film, made on a budget of less than $5 (or so it seems). Artist burgles a woman's apartment, and in the ensuing kerfuffle she scoops his eye out with a spoon. Taking this as a new life's mission, mad artist decides to make some sculptures from... well eyes, which of course, he has to source himself. Grimy, grim, and played with dead seriousness, it's a gem.



A killer octo.... man. He has all the tentacles, but two of them almost appear to be arms. In a badly made suit. A monster suit. Just nuts. Not good in any way, except.... well it makes me laugh real hard. If the movie were half as good as the poster......



What happens if you happen to be sitting on a hill, and a meteorite fragment hits you on the forehead? Why, you turn into a Moon Beast! Obvious! Some hilarious gore in this one, especially funny if a certain biker scene..... Just love this.


You may be thinking - these are great movies, they don't belong on this list! And you may be right. On the other hand, I find these very entertaining, and a lot of fun. I consider them classics, albeit it only in that niche world of Cult Movie lovers.

 

I'm a serious admirer of Return of the Living Dead 3. The first film was a great horror comedy; the first sequel was a terrible comedy with no horror. The third film is truly it's own movie (no real ties to the first two except for the Trioxin concept), with not much comedy (there's some humor), but serious horror. It's a dark love story that enters into interesting territory that, surprisingly, not many horror films enter (particularly body modification). It's thematically similar to Cronenberg's The Fly (loving someone who is physically decaying, minute by minute, and trying to save them, if it's even possible). It's truly Brian Yuzna's unique vision (he directed).

I like Bodymelt a bunch, too.

 

The best of the gore movies I recall from that era:

Nightmare
Maniac
Dr. Butcher, MD
Cannibal Holocaust
Make Them Die Slowly

 

Bwahaha. Look at reviews of deep read and Vincent Canby of the NYTs said this:

"I don't think that Dario Argento, the director, meant to distance us from the action in this way. He's simply a director of incomparable incompetence."

lol

 

One I left off my previous list that I should definitely have included is 'Phantasm.' Between the terrifying sphere and the creepy as he!! Tall Man, this one is a classic. I recently bought the Blu Ray and I have been enjoying it all over again.

 

What about drop dead Fred? not scary but he is dead and comes back. ha ha

 

I would like to watch this movie now I bet it's not has scary as we thought it was then although those little devils in the robes they were shrinking were scary and the orbs.

 

C.H.U.D. scared me when I saw it in 1985. I watched it recently on Youtube. It is not as good as I remember but still fun to watch and a cult movie to me.

 

I begged my parents to take me to see that in 1985. They refused.

 

1981

 

The Evil Dead

Original theatrical release poster.





1981

 

A general shout out to Larry Cohen. Beyond great films in the genre like The Stuff, God Told Me To, Q and Return to Salem's Lot, he is also responsible for 3 quality horror trilogies: It's Alive and Maniac Cop. The 2nd one of the latter being the best, complete with a Bride of Frankenstein homage.

 

Came here to mention 'Salem's Lot, I see it's been mentioned a couple times. A bit long and drawn out, also a bit soap-opera like, but Hooper really got some great scenes of atmospheric horror in there:

Just rewatched this again recently, classic horror movie!

 

I think I saw almost everything on these lists, being in middle and high school at the time. Also, we had a dollar theater up the street that showed two or sometimes even three horror movies, mostly from the late '60s to mid '70s. I went every Friday night til I switched to concerts.

One film I don't see listed here is The 13th Floor, which took place in an asylum. Not sure when it was made...it had to have been before 1980, though.

 

The Changeling (1980)
The Medusa Touch (1978)

 

Do you mean The Fifth Floor from 1978?

 

By the late 70s I wasn't spooked by horror as I was earlier in life.

One of my all time favorites was from 1968



The Devil Rides Out (film) - Wikipedia

 

Yes! Wrong floor.

 

some disturbing David Cronenberg flicks

The Brood (1979)
Shivers (1975)
Rabid (1977)

 

The Keep is an awful movie.