More Great Horror Films You've Never Heard of
Everything here is either sublime excellence or unique camp, many are both; most all are only known in the deepest abysses of cult fandom or overlooked sequels.
This list follows matheusmarchetti's superb offerings on a list of the same title minus the 'more'. All the great forgotten galileos missing here can be found there. By all means, comment on more should you know another forgotten gem.
This list follows matheusmarchetti's superb offerings on a list of the same title minus the 'more'. All the great forgotten galileos missing here can be found there. By all means, comment on more should you know another forgotten gem.
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- DirectorJames WhaleStarsBoris KarloffMelvyn DouglasCharles LaughtonSeeking shelter from a storm, five travelers are in for a bizarre and terrifying night when they stumble upon the Femm family estate.The main inspiration for the play which inspired the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
- DirectorAlbert BandStarsRichard BooneTheodore BikelPeggy MaurerCemetery director Robert Kraft discovers that by arbitrarily changing the status of plots from empty to occupied on the planogram causes the death of the plots' owners.A bit padded, but like an excellent Twilight Zone episode. If the producers would have left the terrifying scripted ending, this film might hold the zombie crown, predating Night of the Living Dead by several years. As it stands, the ending is extremely nonsensical.
- DirectorLloyd Michael WilliamsStarsDorothea GriffinCalvin WatersYoung Ursula plays in a tree and ruins her fancy dress. Her elderly mother teaches her a cruel lesson about whether things can ever be mended; what Ursula learns about how to behave may not be what her mother intended.This psychedelic tale of a child ensnared in the care of a cruelly insane matriarch comes from the best writer of the Twilight Zone. This is available on the amazing collection Experiments in Terror, which is a feast of psychedelia.
- DirectorRoberto RodríguezStarsMaría GraciaCesáreo Quezadas 'Pulgarcito'José Elías MorenoFollow up to Caperucita y sus tres amigos. Caperucita, the Wolf and the Ogre are captured by the Witch Queen, accused of treason by the Vampire. Caperucita, followed by a host of old and new characters begin the adventure to rescue their friends.There's little to be said about this ultra campy twisting mad nightmare fantasy. It must be seen to be believed.
- DirectorHerk HarveyStarsCandace HilligossFrances FeistSidney BergerAfter a traumatic accident, a woman becomes drawn to a mysterious abandoned carnival.Steven King's primary inspiration for The Shining. This film is a haunted dream.
- DirectorLeslie StevensStarsWilliam ShatnerAllyson AmesEloise HardtOn a strange island inhabited by demons and spirits, a man battles the forces of evil.Starring William Shatner and the only movie ever in Esperanto. This feels like Ingmar Bergman makes an episode of The Outer Limits.
- DirectorMichael ReevesStarsBoris KarloffElizabeth ErcyIan OgilvyAn aging hypnotist creates a device that allows the user to control the mind of another person, but his wife abuses its power by manipulating a younger man to commit evil acts.Karloff is great, no surprise. Sorcerers squaring off tete-a-tete. What else could one ask for, really?
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsChristopher LeeCharles GrayNike ArrighiDevil worshipers plan to convert two new victims.The most literary Hammer film, arguably a contender for being the best. This satanic tale has Christopher Lee, unusually, playing the good guy.
- DirectorDaniel HallerStarsSandra DeeDean StockwellEd BegleyWilbur Whateley travels to the Arkham Miskatonic University to borrow the legendary Necronomicon. But, little does anyone know, Whateley isn't quite human...The Old Ones rendered in psychedelia and Sandra Dee's sort of nude scene. Nuff said.
- DirectorGordon HesslerStarsVincent PriceChristopher LeePeter CushingA serial killer who drains his victims' blood is on the loose in London. The police follow him to a house owned by an eccentric scientist.This flick is seemingly all over the place, but actually makes sense. The filmmaking here is quite impressive and requires attention and intelligence from its audience. This is one of the main inspirations for Dead & Buried. Side note: Price, Lee, and Cushing only have cameos for the most part.
- DirectorRobert FuestStarsVincent PriceJoseph CottenVirginia NorthDoctor, scientist, organist, and biblical scholar Anton Phibes seeks revenge on the nine doctors he considers responsible for the death of his wife.One of the best pieces of 70's camp, and one of Price's finest. If Poe were a mod on LSD, he would have written this.
- DirectorBernard McEveetyStarsStrother MartinL.Q. JonesCharles BatemanA family is trapped in a desert town by a cult of senior-citizens who recruit the town's children to worship Satan.Low budget, but takes itself seriously and does a fine job. Has some real scares and has one of the best Satanic cults ever. Fantastic ending to boot.
- DirectorPaul BartelStarsAyn RuymenLucille BensonJohn VentantonioYoung Cheryl moves into her estranged aunt Martha's rundown King Edward Hotel. One of its offbeat residents, disturbed photographer George, takes special interest in her. Cheryl begins suspecting that a resident was murdered.Weird and wonderful. A campy quasi-Psycho in the vein of Lemora or Valerie and Her Week of Wonders.
- DirectorPeter SasdyStarsMichael BryantJane AsherIain CuthbertsonA research team from an electronics company moves into an old Victorian house to start work on finding a new recording medium. When team member Jill Greeley witnesses a ghost, team director Peter Brock decides not only to analyse the apparition, which he believes is a psychic impression trapped in a stone wall (dubbed a "stone tape"), but also to exorcise it--with terrifying results.From the writer who brought you Quatermass and the Pit comes scientists vs ancient ghosts. If you dig this, The Woman in Black is from the same writer and of the same caliber.
- DirectorWillard HuyckGloria KatzStarsMichael GreerMarianna HillJoy BangA young woman goes searching for her missing artist father. Her journey takes her to a strange Californian seaside town governed by a mysterious undead cult.Hauntingly beautiful Lovecraftian tale, well crafted despite its obvious low budget. Some really effective scares in this one.
- DirectorNathan JuranStarsKerwin MathewsElaine DevryScott SealeyA young boy visits his father in a secluded cabin; the father is attacked by a werewolf and becomes one himself every full moon. However, the boy constantly tries to warn others, but no one will believe him.The hippy Christians make this movie. There's a sentence I'll never utter again.
- DirectorJohn HoughStarsRoddy McDowallGayle HunnicuttPamela FranklinA physicist, his wife and two mediums are hired to investigate the Belasco House, where 27 guests had inexplicably died in 1927, along with most of a team of paranormal investigators that was sent in the early 1950s.The mount everest of psychics and scientists vs a possessed house films. Bless Roddy McDowall never phoning it in. Pamela Franklin is the cutest cutie that ever cuted.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsJohn MarleyLynn CarlinRichard BackusA young soldier killed in the Vietnam War inexplicably shows up at his family home on the night of his death.From the director of a Christmas Story comes a terrifying tale of a beloved son transformed into a demented monster by the ravages of war. This does what horror is supposed to do, with disturbing metaphorical comment on both drug addiction and the Vietnam war.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsOlivia HusseyKeir DulleaMargot KidderDuring their Christmas break, a group of sorority girls are stalked by a stranger.Carpenter was "inspired" by this film to make Halloween. There is little in cinema as disturbing as Billy's demonic phone calls. This film is the source of the cliche: The call is coming from inside the house!
- DirectorJohn HayesStarsWilliam SmithMichael PatakiLyn PetersA young man, born of a rape committed by a legendary vampire against a living woman, vows to locate and vanquish his undead father.This movie feels like its being made my Ed Wood, only he has more interesting ideas and (some) more cinematic skill.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsPaul HamptonJoe SilverLynn LowryThe residents of a suburban high-rise apartment building are being infected by a strain of parasites that turn them into mindless, sex-crazed fiends out to infect others by the slightest sexual contact.Better than Rabid, this earlier work from Cronenberg is terrifying. Psychotic possessed zombies that gang-rape. This is a frenzied nightmare the likes of which will stay in your subconscious long after the final credits role.
- DirectorAlfred SoleStarsLinda MillerMildred ClintonPaula E. SheppardIn 1961, a divorced Catholic couple's life is turned upside-down when one of their two adolescent daughters is suspected of her younger sister's brutal murder during her First Holy Communion and a series of subsequent stabbings.Better known as Alice Sweet Alice, this is in essence an American galileo (Yes, that doesn't make sense. You're very smart. Shut up.)
- DirectorNicolas GessnerStarsJodie FosterMartin SheenAlexis SmithA thirteen-year-old girl, who lives with her absentee father, befriends a disabled teenage amateur magician and invites him, gradually, into her tenuous struggle against a predatory local neighbor.Ultimately a sweet love story, if a bit twisted. Martin Sheen makes a fantastic slimeball. Jodie Foster was tearfully unhappy that one of her sisters doubled for a nude scene (she was upset the scene was in the movie at all), which is unnecessarily creepy given how young she is.
- DirectorGeorge BarryStarsDemene HallWilliam RussJulie RitterA bed possessed by a demon spirit consumes its users alive.A demon falls in love with a girl, but she cannot survive the consummation of their love. In his grief, the demon's tears of blood fall upon the bed possessing it with an insatiable evil to fell all those that seek rest in the furrows of...yeah, this is real crazy but it's actually not bad. The word "unique" doesn't do this piece of literary camp service.
- DirectorJohn BoormanRospo PallenbergStarsRichard BurtonLinda BlairLouise FletcherA teenage girl once possessed by a demon finds that it still lurks within her. Meanwhile, a priest investigates the death of the girl's exorcist.This gets a bad rap. Not really a sequel to the first, this is its own demented beast. Director Boorman has made a thoroughly insane follow-up to the strait-forward first. Elements of African myth, science fiction and a stellar cast make this film interesting and compelling as long as you don't expect a rehashing on the first.
- DirectorMichael WinnerStarsCristina RainesAva GardnerChris SarandonA young woman moves into an apartment in a building which houses a sinister evil.Much more complex that The Exorcist and a better movie than Rosemary's Baby, The Sentinel has a lot of curve balls to throw. The climax is terrifying in its nightmare madness.
- DirectorWilliam GirdlerStarsTony CurtisSusan StrasbergMichael AnsaraA psychic's girlfriend finds out that a lump on her back is a growing reincarnation of a 400-year-old demonic Native American spirit.Wonderful camp. This movie isn't good, but it is a lot of fun. It's got one the most jarringly insane endings in cinematic history.
- DirectorRod HardyStarsChantal ContouriShirley CameronMax PhippsThe descendant of Elizabeth Bathory is abducted by a cult of blood-drinking, self-proclaimed supermen who want her to join them.Unique spin on the classic Elizabeth Bathory story using SciFi elements.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsElizabeth BerridgeShawn CarsonJeanne AustinFour teenagers visit a local carnival for a night of innocent amusement, but soon discover that nothing there is innocent or amusing.More solid than Texas Chainsaw, this slasher from Toby Hooper has sadly been almost completely forgotten.
- DirectorGary ShermanStarsJames FarentinoMelody AndersonJack AlbertsonSheriff Dan Gillis investigates eerie deaths in a sleepy coastal town.Amazing film. Mario Bava's influence on the writers of this (as well as on Alien, by the same authors) is clearly evident. Starts a little slow, but this New England nightmare builds steam and doesn't stop until the credits role.
- DirectorJohn IrvinStarsCraig WassonAlice KrigeFred AstaireTwo generations of men find themselves haunted by the presence of a spectral woman. When the son of one of the elderly men returns to his hometown after his brother's mysterious death, they attempt to unravel her story.The special effects are not good and frankly this movie is awkward. Its awkwardness, however, makes the film quite unsettling. The story is strong and this film has the most terrifying moment I have ever seen in a horror movie (why it's terrifying is completely inexplicable.)
- DirectorFrank LaLoggiaStarsStefan ArngrimElizabeth HoffmanKathleen Rowe McAllenHigh school student turns out to be personification of Lucifer. Two arch angels in human form (as women) take him on.This flick is loony with a capitol L. It's really hard to follow despite there being way too much exposition, but man-o-man this is really trying to be a powerful piece of film. It's not, but it's unforgettable in its attempt.
- DirectorTom McLoughlinMichael SchroederStarsMeg TillyMelissa NewmanRobin EvansAs part of an initiation into a club called the Sisters, a young girl must spend the night in a mausoleum.Charming and unique, this has some real terror in its final act. Adam West's cameo is a little unsatisfying and this takes a while to get to the action, but give it a chance and it won't disappoint.
- DirectorRichard FranklinStarsAnthony PerkinsVera MilesMeg TillyAfter twenty-two years of psychiatric care, Norman Bates attempts to return to a life of solitude, but the specters of his crimes - and his mother - continue to haunt him.Actually quite good if you can see past the low-budget production. Despite its clumsy campy gore near the end, the twisting multi-layered plot is impressive once you get a handle on it (I've watched it three times and I still have questions.) Incorporates an element of Bloch's book that was left out of Hitchcock's film to hit you with an effective surprise in the end.
- DirectorChih-Hung KueiStarsPhillip KoShao-Yen LinKar-Man WaiWhile in Thailand to avenge his brother who was crippled in a fight with a corrupt Thai boxer, a man gets caught up in a web of fate, Buddhism and black magic.The High Holy Mountain of Horror. This has got Buddhist surrealism, this has got a sorcerer whose magic is fueled by him eating swamp vomit, this has got a stop-animation bat demon...I could go on, but if you're not sold by now...well, then you're reading the wrong list.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsScott GlennIan McKellenAlberta WatsonNazis are forced to turn to a Jewish historian for help in battling the ancient demon they have inadvertently freed from its prison.A mess, but a literally fantastic mess if ever there was one. Director Michael Mann is embarrassed by this, and rightfully so. I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just mention this bon mot: tantric sex with the Wandering Jew set to Tangerine Dream soundtrack. (And check out that cast.)
- DirectorFranc RoddamStarsStingJennifer BealsAnthony HigginsAfter years of research, the doctor finally succeeds in creating the perfect woman, who gets the name "Eva".Almost solid Frankenstein retelling with one of the best and most sympathetic monsters ever. The film is split into two stories that don't quite gel, but both are compelling in their own rites. Sting makes an excellent Dr. Frankenstein.
- DirectorJohn CarrPhillip MarshakTom McGowanStarsBarbara WylerJamie ScogginStacey Lyons"Night Train to Terror" is a 1985 horror anthology movie where God and Satan are on a train discussing the fate of three individuals.Cobbled together from two completed films and one that was left unfinished, this train-wreck (pun intended) alternates between being unsettlingly misogynistic and charmingly stupid (and I do mean Stupid). This has got some real scares and some terrible stop-animation. The very definition of guilty pleasure.
- DirectorJeff BurrStarsVincent PriceClu GulagerTerry KiserIn a small Tennessee town, a historian relates four horror stories to a reporter.A late-in-the-game horror anthology. Vincent Price ruined the career of the director after seeing the completed film and being deeply upset at the sequence set in the civil war, which was not in his script as he's only in the wrap-around. I understand, that sequence is deeply disturbing. Overall this is pretty strong.
- DirectorPhilippe MoraStarsBarry OttoMax FairchildImogen AnnesleyA female werewolf runs away from her family, and falls in love with a man who works in the movie business, while a sociologist who studies these creatures is looking for proof of their existence.Epic in its scope, unique in its take, and crazy like only the Australians can be crazy this movie even outdoes its almost equally insane preprocessor The Howling II. In no way a reflection of the competent original, you will not see where this is going and let's not think about what's going on the subconscious of its writer/director.
- DirectorTommy Lee WallaceStarsWilliam RagsdaleRoddy McDowallTraci Lind"Fright Night Part 2" is a sequel to "link=tt0089175]". Charley Brewster and the horror host Peter Vincent must face more vampires, out for revenge.Does exactly what you'd want a sequel to do. Builds on the first and adds many of its own twists arguably making it a better movie. Too bad Evil Ed doesn't make a reappearance, though.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsAmanda DonohoeHugh GrantCatherine OxenbergWhen an archaeologist uncovers a strange skull in a foreign land, the residents of a nearby town begin to disappear, leading to further inexplicable occurrences.From Ken Russell, director of Tommy and Gothic, comes Bram Stoker's tale of terror told in over-the-top camp as only Russell can do.
- DirectorJay WoelfelStarsNick BaldasareRick KeslerSusan PinskyBen hasn't been able to dream since the deaths of his parents, but as he attempts to make human connections, his nightmares begin to spill over into all of their waking lives.The cover is misleading. This is a quiet and thoughtful nightmare within a nightmare. This low-budget gem gets right what Nightmare on Elm Street frittered away in favor of gore for gore's sake.
- DirectorGabrielle BeaumontStarsIone SkyeMeg TillyArmelia McQueenLonely young Marie and her father live on a plantation just before the Civil War. Their placid lives are invaded when they rescue a mysterious woman from a carriage wreck, and soon bodies start turning up with holes in their necks...One of the best film adaptations of the classic Carmilla story, Roddy McDowall and Meg Tilly make this made-for-tv coming-of-age story a delight.
- DirectorAdam SimonStarsBill PullmanBill PaxtonBud CortIn a showdown of man versus machine, Martin plunges into a chaotic nightmare trying to save his mind from the megalomaniacal corporation.For anyone that realized that Inception isn't good, here is one of the best dream within a dream films. A screenplay by Charles Beaumont, the greatest writer of the Twilight Zone, makes this a somewhat campy and thoroughly enjoyable mind-twist. Note: the picture on the cover is misleading, just as Corman intended.
- DirectorClive BarkerStarsCraig ShefferDavid CronenbergAnne BobbyA troubled young man is drawn to a mythical place called Midian where a variety of friendly monsters are hiding from humanity. Meanwhile, a sadistic serial killer is looking for a patsy.Clive Barker's BeetleJuice, sort of. This is probably the most fun of Barker's films. It's too bad it failed at the theatre as sequels were planned. David Cronenberg's cameo seems a little disappointing at first, but pays off in spades later in the movie.
- DirectorAnthony HickoxStarsTerry FarrellDoug BradleyKevin BernhardtAn investigative reporter must send the newly unbound Pinhead and his legions back to Hell.A masterpiece of camp. If you take this seriously, you don't get jokes. I can't get over how lovable this movie is, and the special effects are delightful.
- DirectorJean-Paul OuelletteStarsMark Kinsey StephensonCharles KlausmeyerMaria FordA creature of demonic nature, too hideous to have a name, once again terrorizes the college kids that summoned it.Charm is what you get here. This Lovecraft bastardization is cute and lovable.
- DirectorMichele SoaviStarsRupert EverettFrançois Hadji-LazaroAnna FalchiA cemetery man must kill the dead a second time when they become zombies.This movie is awesome. From the graphic novel of the same name, this film gets all the jokes. Effective tragedy, comedy, and horror rolled perfectly into one. Why haven't more people seen this shining gem?
- DirectorJeff BurrStarsRyan FrancisScott MacDonaldLinda ThorsonWhen two young American GIs desert their platoon in the final days of World War II, they will find themselves struggling against all odds to stay alive.Don't let the cover fool you, there's nothing expressly supernatural in this film. That being said, this is an amazing piece of cinema that is a metaphorical journey through hell by the dead. David Warner is outstanding in his limited role and the Eyes Without a Face inspired girl lends a haunting and tragically loving touch to this unheralded masterpiece.