I moved that Underrated 80’s Slasher
list to this blog and it has subsequently inspired me to make another list of
ten MORE Underrated 80’s Slashers! Because nobody asked for it. Because nobody
cares. And yet… I cannot help myself.
The truth is that the deeper one
gets into the slasher genre, especially of the 1980’s, the more bizarre these
films get. For those such as myself, the weirder the better. Michael Myers,
Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger… even Leatherface or Chucky can’t boast of the
strangeness that some of these truly unique flicks throw on the screen. Whether
it be a curious proclivity for good versus evil twins, cheesy pop rock theme
songs, or stand-up comedy monologues to pad the run time, these… uh… deep
cut slasher offerings are often a veritable buffet of sheer lunacy.
If
you’re as twisted as I am, then you are just itching to get started! So,
without further ado…
10
MORE Underrated 80’s Slashers!
10)
Final Exam (1981) dir. Jimmy Huston
Briefly mentioned in our first list,
Final Exam is a curious example of the campus slasher subgenre. This
wonky blend of Animal House-esque fraternity comedy and stalk-n-slash
horror is often lambasted, both for how long it takes for the violence to get
going, and for how relatively bloodless said violence is once it makes an
appearance. Truth be told, there is a decent amount of the red stuff here. It
may not be as in-your-face as some of the more infamous titles on this list,
but it is certainly more explicit than Halloween (1978), and that flick is
the best of the best. The film also takes its time developing characters,
something not terribly common for the genre.
9)
Blood Rage (1987) dir. John Grissmer
It’s not cranberry sauce! The first –
arguably the only – Thanksgiving slasher is an odd duck if ever there was one. It
pairs well with The Initiation (1984) further down this list in that
both films make the very weird choice to deal with the relationships between
twins… One is evil, one is not. It’s very obvious, but the characters are very
stupid. Louise Lasser shows up as their mother in a bonkers performance that
must be seen to be believed. Redemptively, there is a gigantic amount of
practical gore effects! The film was finished in 1983, but not released until
1987 when it was unceremoniously shoved straight on to VHS, where it made a
name for itself as a staple in video stores.
8)
The Prey (1983) dir. Edwin Brown
Continuing the trend of these films being
released years after they were finished, The Prey was completed in 1980,
but didn’t hit screens or shelves for three to four years. It’s tale of hikers
at national campground being hunted by a backwoods mutant takes on a new freshness
when put into context as a contemporary of Friday the 13th (1980),
rather than yet another imitation of it. The film is surprisingly well done for
its budget, strikingly unique in its execution, and well-acted to boot. The
gore effects hold up well, even if they aren’t particularly professional in
construction. It also boasts a strange comedy bit where a park ranger tells a much
too long joke to a stock footage deer, so… something for everyone?
7)
The Slayer (1982) dir. J.S. Cardone
The current trend in slasher films
has been to populate the cast with as many needless characters as possible, in
order to facilitate the maximum number of kills. A recent example is David
Gordon Green’s Halloween (2018) in which Michael Myers slaughters no
fewer than fifteen people on screen. Remarkably, many of the one-off slashers
from the 80’s featured small casts, opting to build tension rather than throw ridiculous
body counts at the audience. The Slayer is fantastic entry that takes
this approach, spinning a creepy tale of two couples taking a vacation in an
old seaside mansion. Keeping the central cast limited to four allows for more
breathing room in the narrative and more time spent with the potential victims.
Gruesome kills, lots of atmosphere, and a dream villain two years before A
Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) make this unassuming picture a hidden horror
gem.
6)
The Mutilator (1984) dir. Buddy Cooper
Initially titled Fall Break, this
film is widely considered one of the goriest slashers of the early 80’s boom!
It also has an absolute banger of a theme song! A group of college students
take their fall break to help close up a friend’s summer cabin and party while
doing it. Naturally, they get murdered one by one in increasingly gory ways. It
is yet another example of a slasher that was released largely straight-to-video
with limited screenings but found popularity on the small screen.
5)
Maniac Cop (1988) dir. William Lustig
Bill Lustig, who famously helmed Maniac
(1980), creates a more typical slasher villain with Matthew Cordell – a cop
framed for corruption and murdered in prison by the criminals he put away,
comes back to life for revenge! Throw in Tom Atkins and Bruce Campbell, and you
have a nearly perfect recipe for a classic horror movie. What more do you need
to know? You have the right to remain silent… FOREVER!!!
4)
Intruder (1989) dir. Scott Spiegel
The late 80’s were a showcase for
the weirder and more unusual installments in the slasher genre. The popularity
of straight-to-video releases allowed low budget films to get away with extreme
amounts of gore, quirkiness, and humor. One the quintessential examples of this
is Scott Spiegel’s Intruder. Spiegel was a friend and colleague of Sam
Raimi (of The Evil Dead [1981] fame), and he brought his experience in
over-the-top practical effects to bear in this bizarre tale of a spree killer
picking off employees after hours in a supermarket. Intruder is one of
the most splatter-ific hack-n-slash flicks of its kind.
3)
Pieces (1982) dir. Juan Piquer Simón
Its original Spanish language title is
Mil gritos tiene la noche, roughly translated “The Night Has a Thousand
Screams”! Simply put, a sex-crazed murderer is chainsawing college coeds to bits
for some reason, and the police decide the only way to stop him is to rely on
the help of a nerdy student and a tennis coach. The gratuitous gore is nearly matched
by the lunacy here, but you won’t believe it until you’ve seen it. It’s exactly
what you think it is.
2)
Madman (1981) dir. Joe Giannone
I have long maintained that the best
slice-n-dice pictures are based in urban legends and myths. Madman is
one of the best. A group of campers and counselors anger the spirit of campfire
tale villain Madman Marz, and he emerges from the woods to pick them off! Like The
Mutilator (1984), it features a very catchy rock theme song and a parade of
gory kills that include decapitation by car hood. Lastly, zombie fans will
recognize Dawn of the Dead (1978) star Gaylen Ross in the lead role.
1)
The Initiation (1984) dir. Larry Stewart
In the number one spot we have a stylish and supremely underrated tale of twin sibling insanity and revenge. The majority of the film takes place in an upscale, high tech shopping mall; where a killer targets partying college kids spending the night for a pledge challenge. The setting positively makes the movie, giving a unique look and feel missing from the average summer camp or suburban exercise. Also on hand as our final girl heroine is future Melrose Place star Daphne Zuniga, who turns in an earnest and believable performance that elevates the picture from your run-of-the-mill slasher to an essential entry in the body count canon.
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