this post was submitted on 07 Nov 2025
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I watched a couple this past month for spooky season, and I think the 80s is probably my favorite decade for horror.

A couple weeks ago I watchedThe Fly, which was just an incredible film. The practical effects still largely hold up, but the acting is what really carried the story. The only thing that kind of bugged (πŸͺ°) me about it was that

spoilerher creepo boss became a hero at the end.

I also just saw Hellraiser, which I'd always been curious about since I saw the VHS cover as a kid: the guy with the nails in his face looked terrifying! This is another one where the practical effects hold up, but is really held together by the characters and their relationships. I liked when

spoilerKirsty was banishing the cenobites at the end, and her boyfriend tried to take the box from her to finish it, but she slapped his hand away to do it herself. It was a really small moment, but told you a lot about her as a character.

My favorite 80s horror though is The Thing. I swear I'm not that into body horror, it's just that all the best 80s horror movies were pushing the boundaries, and that's where the line was for a lot of people. Again, this one has amazing practical effects, but the actors and writing carried the movie.

So, what's your favorite 80s horror?

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[–] Tigeroovy@lemmy.ca 4 points 16 hours ago

Also The Thing. It’s just really fuckin good! Though The Fly is also awesome.

I also watched The Blob 80s remake for the first time recently and that was also pretty sick.

aside from the major classics, My Bloody Valentine is a personal favorite. it's a cheesy B-list low-budget slasher, but it's just SO charming and i still love the practical effects in it!!!

[–] skoell13@feddit.org 2 points 17 hours ago
  • A nightmare on elm street
  • Friday the 13th
  • Creepshow
  • Fright Night
  • Pet Sematary
[–] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 6 points 1 day ago

I used the the thing every winter. The best part wasn't the monster itself but the psychological pain of not knowing if you can trust your team. Monsters are less of threat with human unity but when isolated humans vulnerable. I wish more movies explored aspect more.

[–] raoulraoul@lemmy.world 15 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Yeah, Carpenter's The Thing. Great movie.

How about Raimi's The Evil Dead? We were screaming like little girls during that one!

Or Basket Case?

[–] niktemadur@lemmy.world 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Evil Dead Pt 2 is the best remake ever.
The same director, making the same film twice, but with a (moderately) higher budget, a lot of creative problem-solving, a defiant "We can do this" attitude, and Bruce Campbell reaching Buster Keaton-levels of physical comedy genius.
Incredible, all the way, through and through.

[–] leave_it_blank@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

And don't forget the camera work, it's weird, creative and simply fantastic! So many strange angles and motion..

This movie is a great example of what people, used to a minimum budget, can do if you throw money at them.

[–] niktemadur@lemmy.world 3 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 20 hours ago) (1 children)

don't forget the camera work

One element that fits under "creative problem-solving".

That long subjective camera rush towards Ash (Campbell), the one that continued the cliffhanger end of Evil Dead 1, then lifting Ash and spinning him at high speed... I can deconstruct more or less how they did it - at regular or slow speed, Campbell strapped to a board and on an axes, etc. - but I still can't wrap my head around the insanely good final result. It's like... one of the best examples in cinema of something being more than the sum of its' parts.

That's like A Bout De SoufflΓ© caliber gourmet shit, Jimmy!

[–] leave_it_blank@lemmy.world 3 points 16 hours ago

Oh my, I just watched it again! What a ride!!

[–] Zombiepirate@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Don't tell anybody, but I never saw Evil Dead, only Army of Darkness. I should really fix that! I love Raimi's style. He's definitely a b-movie director who knew how to get the most out of his budget.

I've never heard of Basket Case, but, like I mentioned, I love b-movies. I'll check it out!

[–] TheOneAndOnly@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

The Gate! I can't believe no one's mentioned it. Super cheesy at times, but some really great, creepy moments. Just watched it the other night for the first time in years, and, while definitely not a cinematic masterwork, still a great watch.

[–] yardratianSoma@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I haven't seen too much 80's horror, but so far, my top 3 80's horror films would be

  1. The Thing (1982)
  2. Angst (1983)
  3. The Vanishing (1988)

My favourite decade for horror is actually the 70s, for being far more absurdist and sinister. (I could be really off base, since I still haven't seen many classics)

[–] Hackworth@piefed.ca 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] CaptainBlinky@lemmy.myserv.one 8 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Aliens was really a scifi action movie, not a horror movie. Probably one of the best movies of the time, though..

[–] 1984@lemmy.today 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It was a mix of action and horror i think. With a very strong female lead that was intelligent and had actual wisdom. Not like todays shitty movies.

[–] CaptainBlinky@lemmy.myserv.one 3 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

I hate that idea that "movies used to be good and now they suck" mentality. Because it always ends up with conversation like, "well yeah that one was good and so was that, but othewise...." Like right off the bat I just thought of Everything Everywhere All At Once which was amazing and also pretty new. There have been fantastic movies in every decade, and to say otherwise just feels curmudginy. and no, I have no idea how to spell that.

[–] 1984@lemmy.today 2 points 22 hours ago

You are free to hate it, but its how some people actually feel. I havent found a single good movie this entire year. I used to be a huge movie fan actually. But now, I feel its all super boring.

Also really didnt like the Everything Everywhere All At Once. Nice special effects though but such a sleeping pill.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Yes and no. It was pretty fucking scary in it's time. We'd all seen Alien and the destruction one caused, now we're presented with shitloads of them.

[–] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 4 points 1 day ago

From how i remember it, it stop being scary when Ripley internally said "you don't take this one!" Then became the equivalent to a sister of battle with a flamer and auto cannon. What a great character.

Scary, yes. Horror? Not so much. Alien was absolutely a horror film and my mom told me I wasn't allowed to see it when I was a kid. She also told me I wasn't allowed to watch Friday the 13th, which was a lost cause, as I was literally born on Friday the 13th. I'm scarred but those scars definitely did NOT come from watching awesome 80's horror flicks.

[–] kandykarter@lemmy.ca 10 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

Anything Cronenberg did in that era.. Scanners, Videodrome, The Fly, (though my personal faves are his 90s/00s output). Anything Argento did in the 80s (Inferno, Phenomena, Opera), etc. Speaking of Italians, my boy Lucio Fulci made some great ones in that decade too, notably The Beyond, The House By The Cemetery, and The Black Cat. Carpenter's 80s stuff should go without saying (The Fog, Prince of Darkness, They Live, The Thing). Craven's Nightmare on Elm Street is pretty perfect too.

Maybe I'd vote for Andrej Zulawski's Possession, which is fucking nuts. Or a personal deep-cut fave like Night of the Comet. Does Blue Velvet count as horror? Does Ken Russell's Gothic?

[–] reddig33@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Scanners would make a great TV show.

[–] Zombiepirate@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The Fly was the first Cronenberg movie I've seen, and it blew me away. I'm definitely going to look at the rest of his movies. I'll probably watch The Reanimator next, because Jeffrey Combs is a national treasure.

I'm really intrigued by those Fulci movies, too. International films often have a way different perspective, and that's always interesting to me.

[–] kandykarter@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 day ago

Reanimator is a lot of fun (though I personally prefer From Beyond if we're gonna talk Stuart Gordon stuff).

Italian horror is my personal favorite, but don't go in expecting things to make sense. They tend to operate on dream logic.

Poltergeist.

Any of the Don Bluth movies for kids.

People have already mentioned some great ones but no mention of "An American Werewolf In London"?? Such a great film with some fantastic special effects, great acting, a splash of humor and a touching story.

[–] RizzRustbolt@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

The People Under the Stairs

A Wes Craven off-cut that is delightfully bonkers.

[–] Yaky@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 day ago

From this year's spooky season movies, Happy Birthday to Me (1981) was a hidden gem. While it seems like a typical slasher, the ending was quite unexpected.

Rotten Tomatoes ratings are really low though, so probably not everyone's cup of tea.