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There are some horror movies that, once we watch the previews, we swore we would never pay money to watch a film that is certain to be bad.
We don’t go to the movies to see those supposedly “bad” horror films, but they did intrigue us when those films come to streaming services. We put them on, and we were surprised to learn that the horror films we thought were bad turned out to be pretty good.
Black Christmas (2019)
Many critics destroyed this horror film before it even got a chance to shine in its own right. The Blumhouse version of Black Christmas will never outshine the original; however, its themes of feminism and toxic masculinity do resonate with the overall theme of the film.
Also, these ladies do a lot of butt-kicking, and who wouldn’t want to watch a pretty good horror film centered around butt-kicking college women? This version of Black Christmas is well-worth a watch.
Candyman (1992)
In all honesty, horror films in the 90s (before Scream) were predictable, dated, and simply didn’t scare anyone. One of the outliers to the pre-Scream mess that was horror was Candyman, an urban legend movie that brilliantly molded horror and seduction.
The 2021 re-boot leaned more into the urban societal issues that Candyman originated from; but it wouldn’t have had a chance to succeed if it wasn’t for the original Candyman, which wasn’t predicted to do much in theaters, but has since become a horror classic.
The Relic (1997)
Most horror films in the '90s are utterly forgettable for all the right reasons. The Relic is one that was forgotten for all the wrong ones. This horror movie, which centered around a monster stalking a guest at a gala opening at the Chicago Field Museum, had plenty of action and scares to go around.
Yes, it wasn’t original, and played into the same sci-fi horror tropes as those before it; but this was a good horror film that should have to be a cult classic.
Sleepaway Camp (1983)
If you watch the trailer for Sleepaway Camp and haven’t seen the film, you wouldn’t be faulted for not being intrigued with this film.
On the surface, it seems like a run-of-the-mill 80s slasher flick, and it was; but the film was more than that, and the shocking ending to Sleepaway Camp will give you chills and leave you in shock for days. Give Sleepaway Camp a chance. It’s worth it.
Halloween III: Season Of The Witch (1982)
Yes, this is Halloween without Michael Myers, and many fans turned off this installment of the Halloween franchise because of it. Years later, we’re asking for you to pay more attention to Halloween III: Season of the Witch.
The plot was bat-crazy but intriguing and original. Who would have thought of making a movie center around a company aiming to kill kids on Halloween with scary masks? While it had its slow moments, this installment of the Halloween franchise should have gotten a lot more love than it did.
The Invisible Man (2020)
Many horror movie fans have soured on remakes, and who could blame them? Hollywood has dropped the ball so many times on so many remakes, that we (a lot of times) beg for them to leave classic films alone.
The 2020 remake of The Invisible Man is an outlier to that, as it presented a suspenseful plot that left those who watched it a gasp. It was a good movie from end to end and was much better than the trailer led everyone to believe.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
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There are two camps when it comes to The Blair Witch Project. In one camp, you have those who thought the movie was a snoozefest. Then you have the other camp which thought this was a horror masterpiece to close out an underwhelming decade for the genre.
The truth may lie somewhere in the middle. Although the film was rather boring, the final 15 minutes make up for the long bouts of nothingness. Horror fans should watch The Blair Witch Project, even if it’s just to see what the fuss was all about.
Jennifer’s Body (2009)
A lot of folks went into this teen-horror film with the thought of seeing Megan Fox all sexed up. That’s how the film was marketed, and the deceptive marketing led to a disappointing box office return because of it.
Jennifer’s Body, though, is much more than what was advertised, as it used the symbolism of friendship to ramp up the horror elements of the film. Though it was not scary by any stretch of the imagination, Jennifer’s Body is a good horror film for those willing to give it a chance.
Resident Evil (2002)
Movies based on popular video game franchises are rarely good (looking at you, Super Mario Bros.), but this campy sub-genre can produce a competent movie from time to time. Enter Resident Evil, which, while not perfect by no means, was an action-packed horror film that tried its best to stay true to the original, which wound up backfiring a few times.
Despite those miscues, Resident Evil is a fun horror film that’s worthy of a watch; something that can’t be said about its subsequent film.
They Live (1988)
A lot of people have forgotten about this John Carpenter film, which is sad because it’s one of his best films.
They Live used the commercialism of the 80s as a basis for its horror, and one can easily point to this film as one of the earlier incarnations of the social horror sub-genre. Oh, and that epic fight scene between Roddy Piper and Keith David is truly worth a watch in its own right.