The 30 Weirdest Horror Movies of the 1970s
October 22, 2016 10:54 AM Subscribe
"The 1970s produced acclaimed horror films like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Exorcist, Jaws, Carrie, and Halloween. But the decade also unleashed cinematic oddities galore, most of which were low-budget entries that gleefully pushed the boundaries of good taste. You say “cult movie”—we say “essential.”" (io9)
I have to say I totally appreciate a "top X whatevers" list that is just simply in alphabetical order.
posted by aubilenon at 11:04 AM on October 22, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 11:04 AM on October 22, 2016 [6 favorites]
(Except The Werewolf should be before Werewolves. So never mind, now I hate it)
posted by aubilenon at 11:05 AM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 11:05 AM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
Oh man, Gargoyles scared the crap out of me.
posted by valkane at 11:06 AM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by valkane at 11:06 AM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I swear on my own grave that this is the truth: I watched The Baby with either one or both of my brothers, and I not only predicted the twist ending in some detail, but I also predicted what the final scene would be. If you've seen it, you know, and if you haven't, go watch it and marvel at my skills.
I had never seen the movie before, I had not read any spoilers, and I have no way of proving it, but it's true and my brothers know I don't lie, so they're pretty scared of me.
posted by ernielundquist at 11:07 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I had never seen the movie before, I had not read any spoilers, and I have no way of proving it, but it's true and my brothers know I don't lie, so they're pretty scared of me.
posted by ernielundquist at 11:07 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
"Misfits song, Misfits song, alluded to in a Misfits song..."
posted by Pope Guilty at 11:08 AM on October 22, 2016 [10 favorites]
posted by Pope Guilty at 11:08 AM on October 22, 2016 [10 favorites]
The Devil’s Rain! That movie made so little sense but the face melting was cool. Or at least was when I was 11.
posted by octothorpe at 11:12 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by octothorpe at 11:12 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Oh, and check these scenes out from God Told Me To. Weird they didn't mention that. OH, WAIT. Spoiler, maybe.
Also, and I will try to stop talking soon, but I've probably seen The Thing With Two Heads a couple dozen times at least. There is TWENTY MINUTE LONG scene where cop cars chase Rosey Grier/Ray Milland, who are on a dirt bike. Soooooo...how long is the two-headed guy on a dirt bike chase scene in YOUR favorite movie?
Yeah, that's what I thought.
posted by ernielundquist at 11:15 AM on October 22, 2016 [10 favorites]
Also, and I will try to stop talking soon, but I've probably seen The Thing With Two Heads a couple dozen times at least. There is TWENTY MINUTE LONG scene where cop cars chase Rosey Grier/Ray Milland, who are on a dirt bike. Soooooo...how long is the two-headed guy on a dirt bike chase scene in YOUR favorite movie?
Yeah, that's what I thought.
posted by ernielundquist at 11:15 AM on October 22, 2016 [10 favorites]
Surprised none of these were on MST3k. I thought Food of the Gods was, but I was confusing it with Village of the Giants, which is based on the same source material.
Maybe in Season 11?
posted by SansPoint at 11:24 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Maybe in Season 11?
posted by SansPoint at 11:24 AM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Ooooh, Gargoyles starred Jennifer Salt who is now a producer/writer for American Horror Story! Pretty cool!
posted by valkane at 11:48 AM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by valkane at 11:48 AM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I don't know what they mean by "weird", since a lot of those just seem like campy, gorey horror movies (aka normal). But I want to submit Suspiria, not because it's weird just because...i don't know. Please just go look at that movie.
posted by FirstMateKate at 11:50 AM on October 22, 2016
posted by FirstMateKate at 11:50 AM on October 22, 2016
No Let's Scare Jessica To Death?
posted by humboldt32 at 11:53 AM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by humboldt32 at 11:53 AM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
No Phantasm (1979)?
And is Eraserhead (1977) to artsy to qualify?
posted by Doktor Zed at 11:56 AM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
And is Eraserhead (1977) to artsy to qualify?
posted by Doktor Zed at 11:56 AM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
Needs more Ssssssssss.
posted by maxsparber at 11:58 AM on October 22, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by maxsparber at 11:58 AM on October 22, 2016 [11 favorites]
They might also have added Ruby. I'm not gonna recommend it as a stand-alone film, but it sure as hell was nothing I had ever seen before. If you like psychobiddy movies, it is ... certainly one of them.
posted by Countess Elena at 12:02 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by Countess Elena at 12:02 PM on October 22, 2016
If you like Driller Killer, you may also enjoy Slumber Party Massacre, which came out in 1982 (I assume that's the only reason it's not on the list) and is also about murdering people with a power drill, except the SPM drill is much larger, so it's clearly a better movie.
The other important thing about Slumber Party Massacre is that it was written by Rita Mae Brown. The Rita Mae Brown who wrote the lesbian coming of age novel Rubyfruit Jungle, plus a bunch of cat-themed mystery novels, because she's a renaissance woman. It was written as a slasher movie parody, but the director filmed it as a straight slasher movie, so it's got this little bit of oddness about it.
I lied when I said I was going to stop posting. I tried, but it's important that people know this.
posted by ernielundquist at 12:02 PM on October 22, 2016 [20 favorites]
The other important thing about Slumber Party Massacre is that it was written by Rita Mae Brown. The Rita Mae Brown who wrote the lesbian coming of age novel Rubyfruit Jungle, plus a bunch of cat-themed mystery novels, because she's a renaissance woman. It was written as a slasher movie parody, but the director filmed it as a straight slasher movie, so it's got this little bit of oddness about it.
I lied when I said I was going to stop posting. I tried, but it's important that people know this.
posted by ernielundquist at 12:02 PM on October 22, 2016 [20 favorites]
Martin (1977, directed by George Romero). In a pre-internet world, in a more innocent age, one film, watched on their neighborhood friend's VCR, was psycho-sexually disturbing to one particular pre-teen, who will remain unnamed.
posted by Auden at 12:16 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Auden at 12:16 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
I saw Night of the Lepus in the theater. There were giant rabbit tracks painted on the sidewalk outside the theater. That is the only thing I remember about it.
posted by doctor_negative at 12:19 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by doctor_negative at 12:19 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
"Misfits song, Misfits song, alluded to in a Misfits song..."
And Killdozer!
posted by Dip Flash at 12:35 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
And Killdozer!
posted by Dip Flash at 12:35 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
no splatter movie before or since has ever captured the act of pawing through bloody intestines with such unbridled joy.I haven't seen this movie but I refuse to believe that Peter Jackson's 'Dead Alive' fails to meet this challenge.
posted by ennui.bz at 12:41 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
So in 1981-82, our town got "The Movie Channel" on cable,which in contrast to HBO had no problem airing R-rated movies during the daytime.
My friend Seth and I (around 11-12 years old) figured this out pretty quick and so we would scour the movie guide and then plan our weekend sleepovers so that we could wake up at 5 or 6 am, sneak down to the living room and watch some highly inappropriate movie until the rest of the house started waking up.
We got totally hooked on horror and continued this pattern even during the weekday before school, I'd show up early at his house and we'd catch a random segment of "It's Alive", for example, one of the movies on this list and for the record is a real doozy.
We got in trouble once for being late to school because we had to watch the finale of "Prophecy" (1979 movie that could totally fit on this list) a bizarre tale about a bear that has mutated due to toxic runoff from a paper mill, and goes on murderous rampages as a result.
Yep, that's the plot and here's the spoiler ending that was totally worth getting in trouble for (cartoonish cheesy violence so be forewarned I guess).
posted by jeremias at 12:44 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
My friend Seth and I (around 11-12 years old) figured this out pretty quick and so we would scour the movie guide and then plan our weekend sleepovers so that we could wake up at 5 or 6 am, sneak down to the living room and watch some highly inappropriate movie until the rest of the house started waking up.
We got totally hooked on horror and continued this pattern even during the weekday before school, I'd show up early at his house and we'd catch a random segment of "It's Alive", for example, one of the movies on this list and for the record is a real doozy.
We got in trouble once for being late to school because we had to watch the finale of "Prophecy" (1979 movie that could totally fit on this list) a bizarre tale about a bear that has mutated due to toxic runoff from a paper mill, and goes on murderous rampages as a result.
Yep, that's the plot and here's the spoiler ending that was totally worth getting in trouble for (cartoonish cheesy violence so be forewarned I guess).
posted by jeremias at 12:44 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
The whole of Prophesy is worth it for the scene when the bear picks up a kid in his sleeping bag and throws him against a tree, causing the whole thing to explode in a shower of down.
Also, the novelization is surprisingly good.
posted by maxsparber at 12:49 PM on October 22, 2016 [7 favorites]
Also, the novelization is surprisingly good.
posted by maxsparber at 12:49 PM on October 22, 2016 [7 favorites]
The whole of Prophesy is worth it for the scene when the bear picks up a kid in his sleeping bag and throws him against a tree, causing the whole thing to explode in a shower of down.
Also, the novelization is surprisingly good.
Seth? Is that you? ;)
posted by jeremias at 12:51 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
Also, the novelization is surprisingly good.
Seth? Is that you? ;)
posted by jeremias at 12:51 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
I have a soft spot for a pair of early 70's TV horror movies: The Night Stalker & Satan's School For Girls.
posted by fairmettle at 1:03 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by fairmettle at 1:03 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I saw Prophecy twice in the theater. It was significant as the first horror movie that 11-year-old me (and my cousin) ever laughed at. I gave him the DVD for Christmas a few years ago.
Plenty of stuff to explore here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_natural_horror_films ...for some reason Prophecy is not listed on the much shorter eco-horror page.
And only because Hausu is included in an otherwise US-production list, missing also is anything from the Cannibal Exploitation world.
posted by rhizome at 1:09 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Plenty of stuff to explore here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_natural_horror_films ...for some reason Prophecy is not listed on the much shorter eco-horror page.
And only because Hausu is included in an otherwise US-production list, missing also is anything from the Cannibal Exploitation world.
posted by rhizome at 1:09 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
My favorite, over-the-top disturbing 70's film is The Mafu Cage, but it might be a bit much, even for this list.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 2:01 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 2:01 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
Hausu is such a delight.
I can't remember if I've seen Dr. Phibes, but there's another 1970's Vincent Price serial killer movie called Theater of Blood that's pretty great. The gimmick is that Price is a Shakespearean actor taking revenge on the critics who panned him. So all the murders are themed after famous death scenes in Shakespeare plays. It's so good.
posted by tobascodagama at 2:43 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
I can't remember if I've seen Dr. Phibes, but there's another 1970's Vincent Price serial killer movie called Theater of Blood that's pretty great. The gimmick is that Price is a Shakespearean actor taking revenge on the critics who panned him. So all the murders are themed after famous death scenes in Shakespeare plays. It's so good.
posted by tobascodagama at 2:43 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
I loved The Baby when I saw it as a kid back in then 70s. It starts out like a made-for-tv 70s mom movie, and then goes to WTF and beyond pretty quickly. I just love the performances and characters, a very earnest social worker, a saucy, domineering mother head of household, her two oversexed teen daughters, and of course, "Baby". No supernatural nonsense. Just ugh, and eww and ick.
I'd like to add Ken Russell's The Devils. Which is more of a historical flick, about as much as Ken Russell is wont to do, with typical Russell touches of sex, humor, violence and weirdness added. Starring Oliver Reed as worldly Fr. Urbain Grandier, Vanessa Redgrave as tortured Sr. Jeanne, Murray Melvin as repressed Fr. Mignon and Michael Gothard as a Warren Zevon-looking fanatical exorcist. Set among political tempestuous 1600s France, pits Grandier's defiance against Cardinal Richelieu determination to consolidate power, while a mass devil possession spectacle takes place. Sadly, I think this movie is hard to find in its best uncut version. I have a bootleg which was broadcast several years ago in the UK.
posted by 2N2222 at 2:57 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I'd like to add Ken Russell's The Devils. Which is more of a historical flick, about as much as Ken Russell is wont to do, with typical Russell touches of sex, humor, violence and weirdness added. Starring Oliver Reed as worldly Fr. Urbain Grandier, Vanessa Redgrave as tortured Sr. Jeanne, Murray Melvin as repressed Fr. Mignon and Michael Gothard as a Warren Zevon-looking fanatical exorcist. Set among political tempestuous 1600s France, pits Grandier's defiance against Cardinal Richelieu determination to consolidate power, while a mass devil possession spectacle takes place. Sadly, I think this movie is hard to find in its best uncut version. I have a bootleg which was broadcast several years ago in the UK.
posted by 2N2222 at 2:57 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Decent list; needs more Suspiria.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 3:06 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by The Underpants Monster at 3:06 PM on October 22, 2016
Was looking for Suspiria, left list disappointed.
posted by vuron at 3:27 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by vuron at 3:27 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
And Killdozer!
KILLDOZER! ITS A BULLDOZER THAT KILLS!
posted by lkc at 3:45 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
KILLDOZER! ITS A BULLDOZER THAT KILLS!
posted by lkc at 3:45 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Also, not a movie, but roughly the same era: The Return of the Sorcerer, starring Vincent Price, Bill Bixby and a goat. (hulu)
I had it in my head this was unreleased from the first season of Night Gallery, but the internet is telling me its from S3.
posted by lkc at 3:51 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I had it in my head this was unreleased from the first season of Night Gallery, but the internet is telling me its from S3.
posted by lkc at 3:51 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I posted some Halloween stuff last year, and I've been looking for stuff this year. And it's pretty thin on the ground, so to speak. I think the fact that we have a real monster on the national stage has occluded most of the usual suspect sites from doing the 'Ween thing. Or maybe the editors were bored with that stuff.
Anyway, thanks everyone for chiming in with your own suggestions. That's the beauty of these listicle posts; we all get to argue and point out what we think was overlooked. Which adds to my own list of what to watch. I think maybe Suspiria and Prophecy win. With points for Phantasm, cuz that's the stuff right there.
posted by valkane at 3:52 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Anyway, thanks everyone for chiming in with your own suggestions. That's the beauty of these listicle posts; we all get to argue and point out what we think was overlooked. Which adds to my own list of what to watch. I think maybe Suspiria and Prophecy win. With points for Phantasm, cuz that's the stuff right there.
posted by valkane at 3:52 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I am a great fan of Shriek of the Mutilated (#21, trailer here), a film whose only flaw in my eyes is the lack of a Great Dane in the cast. Too late for this list, but similarly well worth the watch, is 1980's Night of the Demon (trailer), a mess of mayhem more "squatchy" than all eight seasons of Finding Bigfoot combined!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 4:07 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 4:07 PM on October 22, 2016
And I get that The Thing With two Heads is a timeless classic and all, but The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant just doesn't get enough love, in my book. Hell, it even has Casey Kasem in it!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 4:17 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 4:17 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I know the OP is about 70s movies, but, screw it, I'm going to use it as an opportunity to try to get more people to watch Amok Train (AKA Beyond the Door III, AKA Death Train), which was released in 1989. It's on YouTube, free and uncut. It's an Italian production that was made in then-Yugoslavia, and it has a possessed train, Serbian hillbillies, an angel that saves a woman by having sex with her, and so much more WTFery. You can watch it drunk or sober, and it'll make about the same amount of sense.
Another late 80s horror flick that made me laugh was Death Spa, which is available as a cheap rental on YouTube. I was feeling kind of crabby when I started watching it, but the 80s workout fashions alone were enough to cheer me up.
posted by LindsayIrene at 4:28 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
Another late 80s horror flick that made me laugh was Death Spa, which is available as a cheap rental on YouTube. I was feeling kind of crabby when I started watching it, but the 80s workout fashions alone were enough to cheer me up.
posted by LindsayIrene at 4:28 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
CTRL-F "Jean Rollin"
No matches.
what
The Shiver of the Vampires alone tops most of this list.
Just watch the trailer. Trailer is NSFW for lesbian vampires popping out of grandfather clocks, virgins eating dead birds, hipster vampires of a philosophical bent, death by spiked nipples, gratuitous diaphanous robes, ritual sacrifices, killer bookshelves, vampire-on-vampire sexual assault, writhing topless on the beach, and lots of full frontal nudity because of course it fucking has all that.
posted by delfin at 4:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [9 favorites]
No matches.
what
The Shiver of the Vampires alone tops most of this list.
Just watch the trailer. Trailer is NSFW for lesbian vampires popping out of grandfather clocks, virgins eating dead birds, hipster vampires of a philosophical bent, death by spiked nipples, gratuitous diaphanous robes, ritual sacrifices, killer bookshelves, vampire-on-vampire sexual assault, writhing topless on the beach, and lots of full frontal nudity because of course it fucking has all that.
posted by delfin at 4:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [9 favorites]
lesbian vampires popping out of grandfather clocks, virgins eating dead birds, hipster vampires of a philosophical bent, death by spiked nipples, gratuitous diaphanous robes, ritual sacrifices, killer bookshelves, vampire-on-vampire sexual assault, writhing topless on the beach, and lots of full frontal nudity because of course it fucking has all that.
Stephan voice: New York's hottest new club has everything!
posted by maxsparber at 4:44 PM on October 22, 2016 [7 favorites]
Stephan voice: New York's hottest new club has everything!
posted by maxsparber at 4:44 PM on October 22, 2016 [7 favorites]
No mention of the only movie directed by Saul Bass, Phase IV, in which the ants are played by actual ants?
posted by rmd1023 at 4:50 PM on October 22, 2016 [8 favorites]
posted by rmd1023 at 4:50 PM on October 22, 2016 [8 favorites]
The Shiver of the Vampires alone tops most of this list.
Oh God yes I need to watch this thank you delfin!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 5:10 PM on October 22, 2016
Oh God yes I need to watch this thank you delfin!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 5:10 PM on October 22, 2016
Yes, "God Told Me To" is brilliant. Andy Kauffman has a cameo and it has a demonic/ufo theme. It has a Jesus figure that has some kind of Cronenbergish vagina in his side. Bad Ronald is also a fave, as is Psychomania. But I'm sad that "Blue Sunshine" is not on the list. Decades-later acid flashbacks make baby boomers go psychotic in a disco. True sign of the times.
posted by GospelofWesleyWillis at 5:29 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by GospelofWesleyWillis at 5:29 PM on October 22, 2016
Remember it's not the best horror of the 1970s, it's the weirdest horror. (although, tbh, the two are often the same.)
So DEFINITIVE SUPPLEMENT: 1. not on link list, 2. recognized by multiple, independent weird experts and authorities, and 3. tagged horror on imdb.
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970)
Malpertuis (1971)
The Shiver of the Vampires (1971) (or any given Jean Rollin)
The Third Part of the Night (1971)
Private Parts (1972)
Don't Look Now (1973)
Hex (1973)
Shanks (1974)
The Beast (1975)
Death Bed: The Bed That Eats (1977)
Eraserhead (1977)
Suspiria (1977)
The Visitor (1979)
Phantasm (1979)
posted by dgaicun at 5:32 PM on October 22, 2016 [6 favorites]
So DEFINITIVE SUPPLEMENT: 1. not on link list, 2. recognized by multiple, independent weird experts and authorities, and 3. tagged horror on imdb.
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970)
Malpertuis (1971)
The Shiver of the Vampires (1971) (or any given Jean Rollin)
The Third Part of the Night (1971)
Private Parts (1972)
Don't Look Now (1973)
Hex (1973)
Shanks (1974)
The Beast (1975)
Death Bed: The Bed That Eats (1977)
Eraserhead (1977)
Suspiria (1977)
The Visitor (1979)
Phantasm (1979)
posted by dgaicun at 5:32 PM on October 22, 2016 [6 favorites]
I'd like to add Ken Russell's The Devils.
ken russell *was* the 70s. such a freak
posted by GospelofWesleyWillis at 5:41 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
ken russell *was* the 70s. such a freak
posted by GospelofWesleyWillis at 5:41 PM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]
Let's tack on:
Island of Death (1976). Goat buggery, death by paint, mute sheepherder fun for the whole family.
I Drink Your Blood (1970). Satanic hippie cult eats rabies-tainted meat pies and goes nutzoid.
Vampire Circus (1972). Vampiric shapeshifter circus clan seeks revenge on quaint village. Arty British fun with Lalla Ward.
The Last House on Dead End Street (1977). Funky exploitation flick that was filmed by a cast, crew and director working under pseudonyms. Features strangulation of a blind man by a guy wearing a Zardoz mask.
posted by delfin at 5:57 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
Island of Death (1976). Goat buggery, death by paint, mute sheepherder fun for the whole family.
I Drink Your Blood (1970). Satanic hippie cult eats rabies-tainted meat pies and goes nutzoid.
Vampire Circus (1972). Vampiric shapeshifter circus clan seeks revenge on quaint village. Arty British fun with Lalla Ward.
The Last House on Dead End Street (1977). Funky exploitation flick that was filmed by a cast, crew and director working under pseudonyms. Features strangulation of a blind man by a guy wearing a Zardoz mask.
posted by delfin at 5:57 PM on October 22, 2016 [2 favorites]
I would knock Valerie off that list (too much sheep-fondling) and add Ganja & Hess.
posted by pxe2000 at 5:59 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by pxe2000 at 5:59 PM on October 22, 2016
Reading the plot description for Last House on Dead End Street probably got me added to a watch list. I need to take a shower now.
posted by pxe2000 at 6:00 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by pxe2000 at 6:00 PM on October 22, 2016
Blood Freak is also amazing.
Trailer.
Wikipedia.
French dub!!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 6:12 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Trailer.
Wikipedia.
French dub!!
posted by Trinity-Gehenna at 6:12 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Heh. I love Night of the Lepus. So goofy. Real bunnies stampeding through an obviously miniature model town or mine or something. And post Star Trek Deforest Kelly!
posted by elendil71 at 6:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by elendil71 at 6:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [4 favorites]
Oh, what about Squirm?
posted by humboldt32 at 6:51 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by humboldt32 at 6:51 PM on October 22, 2016
SansPoint — no MST3Ks, but Rifftrax have done a couple — Tourist Trap and Man With Two Heads (at least... maybe another one or two?).
Also: The Baby being awesome is seconded. Thirded. Eighthd. Fortyseventhed. Such a great, creepy film. Just about perfect.
posted by Rev. Syung Myung Me at 7:04 PM on October 22, 2016
Also: The Baby being awesome is seconded. Thirded. Eighthd. Fortyseventhed. Such a great, creepy film. Just about perfect.
posted by Rev. Syung Myung Me at 7:04 PM on October 22, 2016
It's Alive! I remember being delightfully disturbed as a child by the TV teaser-trailer for that movie. YouTube has one here, although I must admit that's not precisely how I had remembered it. I sharply remember the turning baby carriage, with the suspense of eventually seeing the little hand over the edge. But I didn't recall all the talking.
I think I remembered instead a plinkity-lullaby playing, and the carriage turning, until AGH IT'S A LITTLE CLAW HAND. But who knows if there was another teaser, or if my mind mashed this teaser up with other things over the years.
posted by theatro at 7:31 PM on October 22, 2016
I think I remembered instead a plinkity-lullaby playing, and the carriage turning, until AGH IT'S A LITTLE CLAW HAND. But who knows if there was another teaser, or if my mind mashed this teaser up with other things over the years.
posted by theatro at 7:31 PM on October 22, 2016
The Dr. Phibes movies - and the 2nd one is even better than the first - are ART. High art. Very high.
posted by mygothlaundry at 7:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by mygothlaundry at 7:37 PM on October 22, 2016 [5 favorites]
I love Night of the Lepus. The "giant rabbit" sound, whatever that sound is, is both totally absurd and absolutely perfect. The ending (no spoiler) is tragic, and also absurd and perfect. I've never seen a lower-stakes horror movie.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 7:48 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Mister Moofoo at 7:48 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Ctrl-F Cronenberg
0 of 0
I am disappointed.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 8:36 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
0 of 0
I am disappointed.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 8:36 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Cronenberg – even in his Shivers days – is too upscale for this list.
I agree with those upthread about Gargoyles. I saw it on a Saturday afternoon at about age nine and it has exerted a weird fascination upon me for decades since.
I haven't seen that many of the movies on the list. I am especially not sure about #3.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 8:46 PM on October 22, 2016
I agree with those upthread about Gargoyles. I saw it on a Saturday afternoon at about age nine and it has exerted a weird fascination upon me for decades since.
I haven't seen that many of the movies on the list. I am especially not sure about #3.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 8:46 PM on October 22, 2016
Although it is a 1990 parody of a 1968 film, I feel that it is my civic duty to inform you of the 8-minute masterpiece that is Night of the Living Bread.
posted by quiet coyote at 10:35 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by quiet coyote at 10:35 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
I really think ALICE, SWEET ALICE; HAUSU; WILLARD; and especially THE WICKER MAN are head and shoulders above everything else on that list. Also, I'd add De Palma's SISTERS, and show it in a double feature with ALICE, SWEET ALICE.
posted by old_growler at 10:40 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by old_growler at 10:40 PM on October 22, 2016 [1 favorite]
Thanks for Night of the Living Bread!
posted by persona au gratin at 11:39 PM on October 22, 2016
posted by persona au gratin at 11:39 PM on October 22, 2016
I forgot to add Trilogy Of Terror to my 70's TV horror movies list - I have friends who till this day, still pull out their Zuni Fetish Doll impersonation when the situation demands it.
posted by fairmettle at 1:19 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by fairmettle at 1:19 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
The Dr. Phibes movies - and the 2nd one is even better than the first - are ART. High art. Very high.
Absolutely! The plots may be negligible, but the visuals are absolutely glorious. The soundtrack, too. The first movie is on my short list what to put in when there's nothing on TV.
(Bonus: my high school used "War March of the Priests" instead of "Pomp and Circumstance/Land of Hope and Glory" as our graduation processional. Marching up the aisle to it in long white satin robes was quite the mental experience after having seen TADP!)
posted by The Underpants Monster at 2:57 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Absolutely! The plots may be negligible, but the visuals are absolutely glorious. The soundtrack, too. The first movie is on my short list what to put in when there's nothing on TV.
(Bonus: my high school used "War March of the Priests" instead of "Pomp and Circumstance/Land of Hope and Glory" as our graduation processional. Marching up the aisle to it in long white satin robes was quite the mental experience after having seen TADP!)
posted by The Underpants Monster at 2:57 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Count Yorga was one of the first movies I watched on Friday Night Fever (late late movies on tv in Australia - before 1980 or thereabouts everything stopped before midnight) and it scared the shit out of me.
I remember seeing 'Patrick' a few times really late at night when I was 14 or so and it and 'Harlequin' (it was released in 1980 but filmed in 1979 - is he the new messiah or a demon from another world?!) haunted me for years. 'Thirst' is another good (!) one from around that time.
posted by h00py at 9:00 AM on October 23, 2016
I remember seeing 'Patrick' a few times really late at night when I was 14 or so and it and 'Harlequin' (it was released in 1980 but filmed in 1979 - is he the new messiah or a demon from another world?!) haunted me for years. 'Thirst' is another good (!) one from around that time.
posted by h00py at 9:00 AM on October 23, 2016
our local CBS station obviously owned a copy of Night of the Lepus because they would play it 4 or 5 times a year in their late-night slot. Anybody who grew up in Central Nebraska who watched that station seems to have a soft spot for that silly movie.
posted by jkosmicki at 10:30 AM on October 23, 2016
posted by jkosmicki at 10:30 AM on October 23, 2016
please remember that the list is not about favorite or best horror movies - it's weirdest. Horror movies by their nature tend to have weird components, but this list was clearly going for WTF weird, not just low budget solutions odd/horror.
posted by jkosmicki at 10:37 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by jkosmicki at 10:37 AM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Killdozer! is a Sturgeon short-fiction piece from the Golden Era. It's really a pretty great little piece, set in the WWII era and includes a bit of supernatural evil. I found it in this anthology that includes other classics like Sheckley's 'The Cruel Equations' and Philip K. Dick's drone-robot-combat prescience 'Second Variety', which was turned into the film 'Screamers'.
posted by j_curiouser at 11:52 AM on October 23, 2016
posted by j_curiouser at 11:52 AM on October 23, 2016
It might be possible to draw a line between Dick's 'varieties' and BSG's types-of-cylons, but i haven't been able to yet.
posted by j_curiouser at 11:58 AM on October 23, 2016
posted by j_curiouser at 11:58 AM on October 23, 2016
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970)
I don't think I'd classify either one as horror, really, except like maybe the existential horrors of adolescence or something, but this should be a double feature with Black Moon (1975).
That might be a good choice for anyone who isn't up for straight up horror.
posted by ernielundquist at 12:00 PM on October 23, 2016
I don't think I'd classify either one as horror, really, except like maybe the existential horrors of adolescence or something, but this should be a double feature with Black Moon (1975).
That might be a good choice for anyone who isn't up for straight up horror.
posted by ernielundquist at 12:00 PM on October 23, 2016
I saw The Wicker Man for the first time last night.
I'm still trying to figure out why that movie is considered a horror movie. Maybe a LITTLE BIT suspenseful, but certainly not horror.
It was more like "Tommy" than a horror movie, but maybe because Edward Woodward and Oliver Reed had a similar look back then.
posted by Thistledown at 3:02 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
I'm still trying to figure out why that movie is considered a horror movie. Maybe a LITTLE BIT suspenseful, but certainly not horror.
It was more like "Tommy" than a horror movie, but maybe because Edward Woodward and Oliver Reed had a similar look back then.
posted by Thistledown at 3:02 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
It took 74 posts for someone to mention Spider Baby?
You're welcome.
posted by scratch at 5:57 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
You're welcome.
posted by scratch at 5:57 PM on October 23, 2016 [1 favorite]
Seconding Squirm!
The 70s had a whole lot of horror flicks involving animals and insects. Ants had several mentioned in the thread and article. Rabbits. Rats. Bees. And there was Bug (1975), where an earthquake unleashes subterranean cockroaches that turn out to be firebugs, and are mated with regular cockroaches by way of an obsessed scientist and turn out to be intelligent super roaches. This is one of those movies that'll have you feeling all itchy.
Recently I saw The Sentinel (1977), a Michael Winner film with an unusual distinction in that the main characters are mostly not well remembered, but the supporting cast is full of highly recognizable stars and up and comers, such as John Carradine, Martin Balsam, Jerry Orbach, Ava Gardner, Eli Wallach, Jeff Goldblum, Christopher Walken, Tom Berenger, Burgess Meredith, Jose Ferrer, a young, masturbating Beverly D'Angelo, and her lover played by the always cringeworthy Sylvia Miles.
There's also Horror Hospital, apparently also known as Computer Killers (1973). A comic/horror flick starring Michael Gough and Robin Askwith, who went on to make a series of goofy T n 'A British sex comedies. Askwith, a young Brian Jones-looking rocker, goes on holiday and ends up crossing mad doctor Gough, doing brain experiments and chasing escapees with a decaptating car.
posted by 2N2222 at 7:54 PM on October 23, 2016
The 70s had a whole lot of horror flicks involving animals and insects. Ants had several mentioned in the thread and article. Rabbits. Rats. Bees. And there was Bug (1975), where an earthquake unleashes subterranean cockroaches that turn out to be firebugs, and are mated with regular cockroaches by way of an obsessed scientist and turn out to be intelligent super roaches. This is one of those movies that'll have you feeling all itchy.
Recently I saw The Sentinel (1977), a Michael Winner film with an unusual distinction in that the main characters are mostly not well remembered, but the supporting cast is full of highly recognizable stars and up and comers, such as John Carradine, Martin Balsam, Jerry Orbach, Ava Gardner, Eli Wallach, Jeff Goldblum, Christopher Walken, Tom Berenger, Burgess Meredith, Jose Ferrer, a young, masturbating Beverly D'Angelo, and her lover played by the always cringeworthy Sylvia Miles.
There's also Horror Hospital, apparently also known as Computer Killers (1973). A comic/horror flick starring Michael Gough and Robin Askwith, who went on to make a series of goofy T n 'A British sex comedies. Askwith, a young Brian Jones-looking rocker, goes on holiday and ends up crossing mad doctor Gough, doing brain experiments and chasing escapees with a decaptating car.
posted by 2N2222 at 7:54 PM on October 23, 2016
I'm still trying to figure out why that movie is considered a horror movie.
Because oh CHRIST NO this is MURDER your crops will WITHER ONWARD CHRISTIAN
posted by maxsparber at 11:12 AM on October 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
Because oh CHRIST NO this is MURDER your crops will WITHER ONWARD CHRISTIAN
posted by maxsparber at 11:12 AM on October 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
Some good suggestions so far and the most glaring omission in the OP, to my mind, being Spider Baby.
The list seems a little heavily skewed to American and handful of British films so here's some non-English language films that come to mind:
Lizard in a Woman’s Skin [Warning: some versions feature dead dogs], All the Colors of the Dark, Le orme / Footprints on the Moon, A Bay of Blood (1971), The Perfume of the Lady in Black (1974), Spasmo, Jonathan (1970), House with Laughing Windows, Nude for Satan, Night of Howling Beast, Would You Kill a Child? (1976), Sinful Dwarf [Avoid the porn insert version], more an art movie then a horror (and not a favourite by any means) but if you want to dive deep into weird horror there's Vase de Noces (AKA Pig Fucking Movie) which is not for the faint of heart.
After thinking about it a bit more here's some more English language ones that come to mind: Arnold (1973), Wake in Fright (1971), Messiah of Evil, Love Me Deadly, the Fiend (1980), Have a Nice Weekend, Jekyll and Hyde Portfolio, the topically themed The Clown Murders with an early non-comedic performance by John Candy, the Canadian set Giallo Shadows in an Empty Room, Snakes (1974), Meatcleaver Massacre, The House That Cried Murder / No Way Out (1973), The Psychopath (1974), The Love Butcher, Satan War, The Reincarnate, not as good as Manitou but Shadow of the Hawk is fun. Man, I've watched a lot of crappy movies in my life...
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:09 PM on October 24, 2016
The list seems a little heavily skewed to American and handful of British films so here's some non-English language films that come to mind:
Lizard in a Woman’s Skin [Warning: some versions feature dead dogs], All the Colors of the Dark, Le orme / Footprints on the Moon, A Bay of Blood (1971), The Perfume of the Lady in Black (1974), Spasmo, Jonathan (1970), House with Laughing Windows, Nude for Satan, Night of Howling Beast, Would You Kill a Child? (1976), Sinful Dwarf [Avoid the porn insert version], more an art movie then a horror (and not a favourite by any means) but if you want to dive deep into weird horror there's Vase de Noces (AKA Pig Fucking Movie) which is not for the faint of heart.
After thinking about it a bit more here's some more English language ones that come to mind: Arnold (1973), Wake in Fright (1971), Messiah of Evil, Love Me Deadly, the Fiend (1980), Have a Nice Weekend, Jekyll and Hyde Portfolio, the topically themed The Clown Murders with an early non-comedic performance by John Candy, the Canadian set Giallo Shadows in an Empty Room, Snakes (1974), Meatcleaver Massacre, The House That Cried Murder / No Way Out (1973), The Psychopath (1974), The Love Butcher, Satan War, The Reincarnate, not as good as Manitou but Shadow of the Hawk is fun. Man, I've watched a lot of crappy movies in my life...
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:09 PM on October 24, 2016
It took 74 posts for someone to mention Spider Baby?
Everybody should see Spider Baby (EVERYBODY), but it's from 1968.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 12:19 PM on October 24, 2016 [3 favorites]
Everybody should see Spider Baby (EVERYBODY), but it's from 1968.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 12:19 PM on October 24, 2016 [3 favorites]
Thought of another... Headless Eyes from Jason & Justine Batemen's dad, Kent Bateman.
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:35 PM on October 24, 2016
posted by Ashwagandha at 12:35 PM on October 24, 2016
Bloodsucking Freaks (1976) but this is really dancing on the "Weird vs Bad" line.
posted by rhizome at 1:02 PM on October 24, 2016
posted by rhizome at 1:02 PM on October 24, 2016
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posted by grobertson at 11:03 AM on October 22, 2016 [3 favorites]