Freaky Flashback: Best 80’s Creature Features

By Brandon Engel

The 80s were all about excess. From the era of big hair and bold fashion also came some of the most unforgettable horror movies of all time. Fans of blood, gore and extra “cheese” will love these five creature features that embodied the over-the-top spirit of this unforgettable decade.

5. Pumpkinhead (1988)
The blood, guts and gore of this film are undercut by raw emotion centered around the unthinkable. A man’s young son is killed in a motorbike accident by reckless teenagers. His father, portrayed by Lance Henriksen, decides to avenge his beloved son’s death by summoning a demon known as Pumpkinhead who sleeps underneath a pumpkin patch. Directed by the late special effects  guru Stan Winston, the film is a deeply flawed, but effective 80’s monster movie. It offers the right blend of cheesy, gory and heartbreaking at the same time — a must-watch.

4. The Toxic Avenger (1985)
This super-cheesy story of a nerdy janitor turned mutant killer is a true 80’s comedy/horror classic. This is also potentially the most popular film from the production company Troma (for whatever that’s worth).  In The Toxic Avenger, Melvin, an incredibly awkward fitness center janitor, transforms into Toxie after falling into toxic waste and declares war on evil. Melvin as Toxie is brutal, ramming mop sticks into heads and ripping off arms. This film is packed with gratuitous blood and gore, in addition to the film’s atypical 80’s love story and endless corny jokes. Mutant Toxie falls in love with a blind girl who sees the man inside loves him. The film also features Marisa Tomei in one of her first feature film roles.

3. The Deadly Spawn (1983)
Centered around a stereotypical group of nerdy teenagers and a horror-enthusiast tween, The Deadly Spawn is about monstrous razor-toothed slugs from space who travel (via a meteorite) to New Jersey. The slugs set up camp in the basement of a suburban home. Trapped in a house with a monster that multiplies, the family must figure out how to kill it before they become slug food. It’s a memorable, slimy eighties video nasty. Expect a few moments of 80’s teen romance, with plenty of gooey special effects. Derided by critics, the film did well on the video rental market, and it’s still shown from time to time at horror marathons.

2. C.H.U.D. (1984)
This tale of flesh-eating NYC sewer-dwellers is a cult classic thanks to its low-budget yet gloriously gory special effects and host of now-notable actors. Watch for John Heard, Daniel Stern, Christopher Curry and John Goodman, with “Everybody Loves Raymond”’s Patricia Richardson also making an appearance. In this film, a photographer documenting the homeless discovers a conspiracy about killer mutant cannibals, then teams up with a reporter, police officer and a priest to wage war against not only the monsters, but also a crooked city official. The VHS of the film was a hot seller, and the film still shows regularly on niche TV networks (details here about where you can catch it locally). The many stomach-turning moments, of C.H.U.D. are offset with moments too cheesy to be scary.

1. The Thing (1982)
From horror movie mastermind John Carpenter comes The Thing, a legendary horror film starring a young Kurt Russell. Set in Antarctica, the movie begins with a helicopter shooting at a dog. The dog is rescued by a group of scientists — who soon discover their new pet is a mass murdering monster. Able to assume the appearance of its victims, the “thing” also causes its victims bodies to explode in a gory profusion of blood, guts and goo. Russell’s helicopter pilot character teams up with the group’s doctor to destroy “The Thing” before it destroys them. Even though the film had its detractors and failed to captivate mainstream audiences upon its release, it’s now regarded as one of the best sci-fi/horror films of all time.