My 80's Horrofest

I will admit I didn't mean to start my Halloween Horror fest as being mostly movies from the 80's but somehow that is how it happened. Once I started to realize this I just decided to go with it and watch mostly horror/suspense/supernatural movies that were all released in the 80's. With October slowly coming to an end I wanted to update what movies I have seen and a quick take on them. Hope all my readers are enjoying October and hopefully seeing a few horror movies to put you in the mood of the month.

House (1986) - As a kid I remember either seeing this movie or at least seeing the poster. The poster itself is really cool and stands out as something I remember very well from my youth. The movie itself comes from people who have a rich horror tradition. The director, Steve Miner, directed Friday the 13th parts 2 and 3 and the writer was none other then Fred Dekker the man who wrote/directed Night of the Creeps and Monster Squad (I own both movies). House is a amusing 80's romp. Pretty light on the horror but it has some scary elements to it for sure. Norm from Cheers aka George Wendt steals the movie when he appears.  Overall not a bad movie.









Children of the Corn (1984) - I have always wanted to see Children of the Corn, now I wish I didn't. This is not a scary, frightening, or in any way well done movie. I found it hard to get through even though the opening of the movie was somewhat interesting. I am not sure how or why the series has spanned six sequels! I found myself laughing out loud many times at the acting (and not just the children's acting). I find it interesting Linda Hamilton was filming this movie as the same time as The Terminator (well possibly as both were released in 1984). Overall skip this one, or maybe if you are in a mood for so bad its good type movie.

House II: The Second Story (1987) - I thought since the first one was fun enough, why not try House II! Overall this has no relation to the first movie in any way. House II is more of a supernatural movie that involves a magical crystal skull (pre-dating Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull by 21 years!). This movie is very very 80's and I dig the nostalgia factor it has going for it. Once again this movie features a Cheers alum, this time Cliff aka John Ratzenberger, who like George Wendt steals every scene he is in. Overall not scary but has a certain 80's charm that appealed to me.

The Toxic Avenger (1984) - This is one pretty sick yet entertaining movie. I like the absurd ways that people get killed and the gore is at it's best in this very dark movie. I always knew of the Toxic Avenger but had never seen the first one. I feel like I now get why this movie is so talked about. The Toxic Avenger has also had a long career, i know of at least 3 sequels and even a children's cartoon that featured the hero. Overall this is a must see as a cult movie but it is not for everyone.

Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers (1988) - Angela is back! This time played by Pamela Springsteen (yes the sister of rock legend Bruce Springsteen!). Angela is back to her usual ways of killing off tons of campers and no one really noticing. I found the movie to be amusing with some interesting kills. I like a movie  that know what it is and Sleepaway Camp knows it is a cheaply made 80's horror. They even go as far as to have Jason's hockey mask and Feddy's glove and both are used while offing a camper. Overall this was a pretty fun cheaply made flick.

Sleepaway Camp III: Teenage Wasteland (1989) - Angela is back...again! Watching this movie I started to wonder why it was the exact same sets as Sleepaway Camp II, and same director, same actor...then I realized they shot both movies back to back (ala Back to the Future II and III). Pretty smart for saving costs. For some reason I didn't much like part 3 though. I think they got really cheap, maybe they spent all their budget on the part 2 because this one just doesn't show much kill wise. They even go into a lengthy flashback that just made me think I would rather watch part 2 instead. Overall if you need to complete the series see this, at least it is short.

The Fog (1980) - The Fog is done by John Carpenter (Halloween) and even had the stars of Halloween 1-3 in it (Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Atkins). I found it to be a pretty good flick. I am not as high on this one as a lot of other but overall it is a good movie and should be seen at least once. I just think the ending doesn't flow that well and not a lot happens throughout the movie. Still has good music and atmosphere.

TerrorVision (1986) - I found out about this from Cinemassacre and was pleased to see it was on netflix instant watch. This movie is very unique and is like a perfect 80's movie. A lot of the movie is deep in the culture of the 80's and yet it still holds up because of the interesting premise. This is probably the most obscure 80's movie on my list, but if you like movies like Critters you will enjoy this one. Overall it may not wow you but it is worth a watch, especially if you like those 80's horror flicks.