There’s an established canon of horror films that we all recognize as “classics.” Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, the Friday the 13th franchise — although your mileage may vary across all the movies — and, maybe even The Conjuring. In the same vein, there is a group of directors that everyone, even those not super into horror films, recognize as the greatest of all time. Names like John Carpenter, Wes Craven, David Cronenberg, or Tobe Hooper may have just crossed your mind, and for good reason. Between those four names, those directors have made some of the most influential and enduring horror films of all time. Movies like Halloween, Scream, The Fly, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre are undeniable horror classics.
What if, however, these directors (and others) made movies that were just as good, but no one talks about them? That’s the purpose of this list: to name off some underrated films made by absolute legends of the horror genre. You may have heard of some of these films, but you might not realize who they were made by. So, without further ado, here are 10 underrated horror movies from classic directors.
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10 Shocker
Universal Pictures
Commonly overlooked in the filmography of Wes Craven, Shocker is one of the goofiest films he ever made. Featuring a sinister villain performance from Mitch Pileggi and a wild concept that eventually goes off the rails, it’s one of those movies you never quite forget after you’ve seen it. The film follows Jonathon Parker (Peter Berg, future director of films like Friday Night Lights), a young man whose father has just put a serial killer to death in the electric chair. There’s a catch, however: the serial killer has made a deal with the devil and didn’t actually die, instead becoming some type of electric-based ghost that possesses people on his rampage to kill the person who tried to kill him. Shocker is Craven at his most outwardly comedic (sans New Nightmare) and it shows, as the end of the film devolves into a literal channel surfing excursion as Jonathon and the killer are transported inside a television. It really has to be seen to be believed, as most good horror comedies do.
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9 Prince of Darkness
Universal Pictures / Columbia Pictures
Viewed as the middle entry in his so-called “Apocalypse Trilogy” (following The Thing and preceding In The Mouth of Madness), Prince of Darkness is one of those John Carpenter films that every superfan loves, but the everyday person has probably not heard of. Prince of Darkness follows a group of physics students who are asked to help a Catholic priest, who is investigating a container of mysterious liquid — which is found out to be the literal embodiment of Satan. Carpenter combined his fascination with quantum physics with his insatiable hunger to answer the question of “where does evil come from?” and created Prince of Darkness. Donald Pleasance in the lead role is, undoubtedly, among his best performances, even considering his other appearances in Carpenter films. It’s a surrealist, gonzo masterwork that deserves a lot more love than it currently gets.
8 Spontaneous Combustion
Taurus Entertainment
Tobe Hooper is another one of those filmmakers whose contributions to the horror genre are so massive that his other films sort of get overlooked. Outside of Poltergeist and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hooper has a lot of interesting films under his belt, the most interesting of which is 1990’s Spontaneous Combustion. When Sam (Brad Dourif) learns that his parents were a part of a nuclear bomb experiment, he begins to notice changes happening to his body. These changes come in the form of pyrokinesis, or controlling fire with one’s mind, and these powers begin to take a toll on Sam and his body. It’s a highly creative, high-energy body horror film that has never gotten the recognition it deserved. Hooper has reputation for being a B-movie savant, but Spontaneous Combustion requires no categorization as such. It’s just a really fun movie.
7 Rabid
Lionsgate
One of David Cronenberg’s first feature films, Rabid is among his most down and dirty. If you’ve ever wondered what a zombie movie from the king of body horror would look like, you’ve come to the right film. A young woman develops a taste for human flesh after getting an experimental plastic surgery operation, causing the whole of New York City to fall into disarray as the virus spreads. It’s a bare-bones concept as far as zombie movies go, but one that Cronenberg takes advantage of in its simplicity and elevates it through his unique visual prowess. The whole film works because of his commitment to making each set-piece and scene as visually unnerving as humanly possible. As with most of his films, there is very little room for respite in Rabid.
6 Near Dark
F/M Entertainment
Kathryn Bigelow may be known for a lot of different things: Oscar-winning director of The Hurt Locker; formerly married to James Cameron; and, maybe even, one-time horror filmmaker. Bigelow followed up here Willem Dafoe-starring first feature The Loveless with a vampire film called Near Dark: a dreary, blood-drenched romance/road-trip movie that is among the best films she ever made. When farmhand Caleb (Adrian Pasdar) is bitten by a beautiful drifter (Jenny Wright), he joins up with a gang of homelesss vampires on the hunt for a cure. Bigelow gets to stretch her muscles as a director here, capturing rural America with breathtaking wide shots and capturing the horror of transformation in the face of comfort in such magnificent ways. Near Dark is not only one of the best movies Bigelow made, but it’s one of the best vampire movies ever as well.
5 Dead Silence
Twisted Pictures
Before James Wan would go on to found two of the most successful and long-enduring horror franchises of the 21st Century in The Conjuring and Saw, he would cut his teeth on a little-seen movie about a killer doll that starred Ryan Kwanten and Donnie Wahlberg. Dead Silence predicts Wan’s future obsession with killer dolls and paying homage to the horror flicks that inspired him, but it also stands on its own as one of the more intriguing origin stories of a horror auteur. Dead Silence is scrappy and messy, but it shows Wans innate scare instincts. The film follows Kwanten’s character, a recent widower, whose returned home to search for answers in relation to his wife’s murder, but all he finds is connections to a ventriloquist and his dummy.
4 Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight
Ernest Dickerson might not be the most well known director on this list, but he is one that is incredibly notable in the world of horror. Being the director of 90s classic Juice, as well as Spike Lee’s go-to cinematographer in the 90s counts for a lot in the film world. Dickerson would make his foray into horror with the film Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight: an action-y fright fest that follows groups of demons that collect the souls of other demons in order to obtain a key containing the blood of Christ. It’s a bonkers concept that is only emboldened by Dickerson’s assured visual sense and a truly goofy lead performance by Billy Zane, as well as supporting performances by CCH Pounder and Jada Pinkett Smith.
3 The Howling
Embassy Pictures
While this is by no means an underrepresented film in the filmography of Joe Dante, it still deserves a shout-out for being the bigger, better, younger brother to An American Werewolf in London. Whereas that film has gone on to be one of the totemic werewolf movies, The Howling has never quite got it’s due even though it is a much better film. The Howling has better visual effects, a more convincing lead performance, and a much better director behind the camera.
2 Manhunter
De Laurentiis Entertainment Group
Michael Mann is not a filmmaker known for his contributions to the horror genre, but his one and only entry in the field stands tall. The first adaptation of Thomas Harris’ series of Hannibal Lecter novels, Manhunter rivals Silence of the Lambs in almost every avenue. It might not have the legendary performance of Sir Anthony Hopkins, but it has a great Brian Cox performance and William Petersen in the lead role. There’s nary a more 80s looking movie than this one, as well. Mann is always obsessed with having every shot look like it’s out of a magazine ad, but this film really takes it to another level. Plus, Tangerine Dream did the score for this film, and it’s immaculate.
1 Dead Alive / Braindead
ORO Distribution
Another unlikely suspect that got their start in horror, Peter Jackson is now known as the guy who brought The Lord of the Rings to the big screen. But when he was just starting out, his sights were set on a very different goal: and that was covering absolutely every single inch of a film in blood. Dead Alive (also known as Braindead) is a gonzo, high-energy, blood drenched horror comedy in the vein of Evil Dead 2, and it shows off Jackson’s talents as a director in an unexpectedly dynamic way. You can see his action instincts kick in during the last sequence of this film, while also seeing his propensity for practical effects. The film follows a man whose mother has been bitten by a Sumerian monkey, causing her and every other person in the town to become infected with a zombie virus. Mass zombie murder ensues, as seen above: so much in fact, that it deserves to be put up there with the best zombie movies of all time.
