Top 40 Horror Movies of the 1980s

Practical-effects gore, VHS-era slashers and arthouse dread all came out of one decade. Blockbusters share space here with midnight-movie favourites.

1. 1
   The Thing

   John Carpenter's 1982 Antarctic shocker about a shape-shifting alien, famed for Rob Bottin's practical effects.
   1000pts
2. 2
   The Shining

   Stanley Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of Stephen King's novel, with Jack Nicholson unravelling in the snowbound Overlook Hotel.
   771pts
3. 3
   Angel Heart

   Alan Parker's 1987 occult noir with Mickey Rourke as a detective hired by a mysterious Robert De Niro.
   654pts
4. 4
   Prince of Darkness

   John Carpenter's 1987 apocalyptic chiller about a canister of liquid evil found beneath a church.
   654pts
5. 5
   The Serpent and the Rainbow

   Wes Craven's 1988 Haiti-set voodoo thriller, loosely based on Wade Davis's book about zombification.
   619pts
6. 6
   Sleepaway Camp

   Robert Hiltzik's 1983 summer-camp slasher, notorious for one of horror's most shocking final reveals.
   619pts
7. 7
   Killer Klowns from Outer Space

   The Chiodo Brothers' 1988 cult creature feature about alien clowns cocooning a small town in cotton candy.
   619pts
8. 8
   The Entity

   Sidney J. Furie's 1982 supernatural shocker with Barbara Hershey as a woman tormented by an invisible attacker.
   579pts
9. 9
   Tenebrae

   Dario Argento's stylish 1982 giallo about an American crime novelist stalked by a copycat killer in Rome.
   579pts
10. 10
    Possession

    Andrzej Żuławski's 1981 Berlin-set nightmare of a marriage falling apart, led by Isabelle Adjani.
    535pts
11. 11
    Creepshow

    George A. Romero and Stephen King's 1982 comic-book anthology of five gruesome tales.
    535pts
12. 12
    The Return of the Living Dead

    Dan O'Bannon's 1985 punk zombie comedy that gave the undead their craving for brains.
    485pts
13. 13
    The Beyond

    Lucio Fulci's surreal 1981 Italian splatter film about a Louisiana hotel built on a gateway to hell.
    485pts
14. 14
    A Nightmare on Elm Street

    Wes Craven's 1984 slasher that introduced Freddy Krueger, a burned killer who strikes in his victims' dreams.
    428pts
15. 15
    Videodrome

    Cronenberg's 1983 techno-nightmare about a TV executive who stumbles onto a signal that warps reality.
    362pts
16. 16
    The Howling

    Joe Dante's 1981 werewolf film about a TV news anchor sent to a sinister coastal retreat.
    362pts
17. 17
    Night of the Creeps

    Fred Dekker's 1986 cult horror comedy about alien slugs turning college students into zombies.
    362pts
18. 18
    Fright Night

    Tom Holland's 1985 horror comedy about a teenager convinced his new neighbour is a vampire.
    362pts
19. 19
    Child's Play

    Tom Holland's 1988 slasher in which a dying serial killer's soul ends up inside the Chucky doll.
    362pts
20. 20
    Hellraiser

    Clive Barker's 1987 directorial debut that unleashed Pinhead and the sadomasochistic Cenobites.
    362pts
21. 21
    Pet Sematary

    Mary Lambert's 1989 Stephen King adaptation about a burial ground that brings the dead back wrong.
    362pts
22. 22
    Christine

    John Carpenter's 1983 Stephen King adaptation about a jealous, possessed 1958 Plymouth Fury.
    362pts
23. 23
    Day of the Dead

    George A. Romero's bleak 1985 zombie film set in an underground military bunker, with Bub the zombie.
    362pts
24. 24
    The Blob

    Chuck Russell's 1988 remake that turns the 1950s creature feature into a gooey, gory effects showcase.
    285pts
25. 25
    Poltergeist

    Tobe Hooper's 1982 Spielberg-produced haunted-house hit about a suburban family whose daughter is taken by spirits.
    285pts
26. 26
    Cujo

    Lewis Teague's 1983 Stephen King adaptation about a mother and son trapped in a car by a rabid St. Bernard.
    285pts
27. 27
    The Changeling

    Peter Medak's 1980 ghost story with George C. Scott as a widowed composer in a haunted Seattle mansion.
    285pts
28. 28
    Scanners

    David Cronenberg's 1981 thriller about telepaths at war, home to cinema's most famous exploding head.
    285pts
29. 29
    My Bloody Valentine

    George Mihalka's 1981 Canadian slasher about a miner killer stalking a small town's Valentine's dance.
    195pts
30. 30
    Beetlejuice

    Tim Burton's 1988 horror comedy with Michael Keaton as the anarchic 'bio-exorcist' haunting a new family.
    195pts
31. 31
    The Evil Dead

    Sam Raimi's 1981 low-budget cabin-in-the-woods debut that made Bruce Campbell a cult hero.
    195pts
32. 32
    The Fog

    John Carpenter's 1980 ghost story in which a glowing fog brings vengeful sailors back to a coastal town.
    195pts
33. 33
    The Lost Boys

    Joel Schumacher's 1987 teen vampire film set in a California boardwalk town, with Kiefer Sutherland.
    195pts
34. 34
    Re-Animator

    Stuart Gordon's gory 1985 H.P. Lovecraft adaptation, with Jeffrey Combs as the reckless Herbert West.
    195pts
35. 35
    Evil Dead II

    Raimi's 1987 part-remake, part-sequel that turns the demon siege into slapstick splatter.
    195pts
36. 36
    The Fly

    David Cronenberg's 1986 body-horror remake with Jeff Goldblum as a scientist slowly turning into an insect.
    195pts
37. 37
    Near Dark

    Kathryn Bigelow's 1987 vampire western about a nomadic clan of bloodsuckers roaming the Midwest.
    195pts
38. 38
    An American Werewolf in London

    John Landis's 1981 horror comedy, whose Rick Baker transformation scene won the first makeup Oscar.
    0pts
39. 39
    Gremlins

    Joe Dante's 1984 Christmas horror comedy about the mischievous creatures spawned from a cute mogwai.
    0pts
40. 40
    Friday the 13th

    Sean S. Cunningham's 1980 summer-camp slasher that launched the Crystal Lake franchise and its famous twist.
    0pts

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