The 1990s were a contentious decade for horror movies, with many films from the era not holding up to the scrutiny of modern sensibilities. Though perhaps not as highly regarded as the previous decade, the greatest 90s horror movies showed off what the decade was capable of, from clever slashers that deconstructed the genre like Scream to thrilling intersections of horror and drama like The Silence of the Lambs. Sadly, not every scary movie ages quite as well as these masterpieces, as the 90s has demonstrated repeatedly.
There are many things that can date a movie quite substantially when looked back on through a modern lens. In many cases, it’s changing social norms and the constant evolution of pop culture that reflects poorly on films of the past. However, especially bad special effects or outdated filmmaking practices can be just as destructive to a given movie’s longevity, especially in the horror space, where such aspects are especially important.
10 Halloween: H20
1998
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Halloween H20: 20 Years Later R
Director Steve Miner Release Date August 5, 1998 Studio(s) Dimension Films , Nightfall Productions , Trancas International Distributor(s) Miramax Films Writers Debra Hill , John Carpenter , Robert Zappia , Matt Greenberg Cast Jamie Lee Curtis , Adam Arkin , Michelle Williams , Adam Hann-Byrd , Jodi Lyn O’Keefe , Janet Leigh , Josh Hartnett , LL Cool J , Joseph Gordon-Levitt Runtime 85 Minutes Expand
While not considered to be the worst entry in the venerated Halloween franchise, the legacy sequel Halloween: H20 has only gotten worse with time. Much like 2018’s Halloween, Halloween: H20 sees the return of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode after 20 real-life and in-universe years. Here, it’s revealed that the former is actually the latter’s long-lost brother, a startling lore addition that remains controversial, even to this day. Halloween: H20 got some things right, but has aged particularly gruesomely in several key aspects.
Essentially taking the same premise as Halloween: H20 and upgrading it with more thoughtful cinematography, better performances, and more creative kills.
The simple fact that 2018’s Halloween now exists renders the movie somewhat obsolete. Essentially taking the same premise as Halloween: H20 and upgrading it with more thoughtful cinematography, better performances, and more creative kills, 2018’s Halloween almost feels like a patch of its outdated older sibling. This is only compounded by Halloween: H20‘s infamously bad Michael Myers mask, one of the most important things to get right with the Halloween franchise.
9 It
1990
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It (1990) TV-14MysteryDrama
Cast Tim Curry , Harry Anderson , Dennis Christopher , Richard Masur , Annette O’Toole Release Date November 18, 1990 Seasons 1 Creator(s) Stephen King
It’s easy to forget that 2017’s It wasn’t the first feature-length adaptation of Stephen King’s iconic horror novel. As early as 1990, a straight-to-TV two-part movie with the same title invaded screens on syndication, famously featuring Tim Curry as Pennywise the dancing clown. Even if Curry’s performance in the villainous role is iconic, there’s no denying that the modern version of events is stronger for more than a few reasons.
The film was also hamstrung heavily by TV censorship at the time, which did away with iconic scenes like Pennywise devouring Georgie’s arm.
First and foremost, the lean budget of 1990’s It limited the film greatly in portraying Pennywise’s dizzying powers of fright, coming off as unintentionally funny as it attempted to squeeze terror out of simple balloons. The film was also hamstrung heavily by TV censorship at the time, which did away with iconic scenes like Pennywise devouring Georgie’s arm. With the 2017 version being free of such limitations, while having a massively increased production value thanks to the magic of modern cinema, it’s hard not to feel like the original It is anything more than a curious artifact.
8 The Lawnmower Man
1992
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The Lawnmower Man R
Director Brett Leonard Release Date March 6, 1992 Studio(s) New Line Cinema Distributor(s) New Line Cinema Writers Gimel Everett , Brett Leonard Cast Jeremy Slate , Pierce Brosnan , Geoffrey Lewis , Jeff Fahey , Jenny Wright Runtime 108 minutes Expand
Speaking of Stephen King adaptations, undoubtedly one of the strangest of them all is none other than 1992′ The Lawnmower Man. Very loosely based on a short story of the same name, Stephen King actually sued The Lawnmower Man in an effort to remove his name from the project, considering its abysmal quality and dramatic departures from the original narrative. Rather, The Lawnmower Man fabricates essentially an all-new plot surrounding mad experiments involving elaborate virtual reality simulations.
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The Lawnmower Man is a strange early 90s cyberpunk horror film very loosely based on a short story by Stephen King that remains oddly compelling.
The Lawnmower Man‘s special effects already looked dated by the time of their release in 1992, and to modern eyes, they somehow look even worse. Outside the terrible CGI, the plot itself has some questionable depictions of intellectual disabilities that haven’t aged gracefully, either. Never considered to be an unambiguous classic, The Lawnmower Man is even lowlier of a horror movie by present day standards.
7 Jack-O
1995
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Often confused on a surface level with 1988’s creature feature Pumpkinhead, the similarly gourd-themed Jack-O isn’t quite as well-known. Featuring a suspiciously similar pumpkin-headed monster, Jack-O tells the story of a terrifying animated scarecrow that rises from a shallow grave to punish the ancestors of the family that executed its creator. The aptly-named Jack-O-Lantern proceeds to go on a killing rampage in search of its vengeance, though not without a few awkward missteps that are very indicative of the film’s time period.
Despite its far-out premise, Jack-O attempts to offer some ham-fisted commentary on the rise of the right-wing American cultural war as perpetrated by figures like Rush Limbaugh, hilariously parodied in the film by a televised stand-in referred to as “Rush Gingbaw.” But the film has no graceful way to marry these ambitious statements with the actual horror, as Jack-O-Lantern’s rampage happens more-or-less in the background. Today, the film’s political themes feel very much a product of their time.
6 The Faculty
1998
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The Faculty R
Director Robert Rodriguez Release Date December 25, 1998 Studio(s) MiraMax Distributor(s) Dimension Films , MiraMax Writers Kevin Williamson Cast Clea DuVall , Josh Hartnett , Jordana Brewster , Laura Harris , Elijah Wood Runtime 104 minutes Expand
One of the earliest horror movie appearances of Elijah Wood, The Faculty may be fondly-remembered by those who haven’t seen it since it’s late 90s premiere. Sadly, looking back from a modern perspective, there are a few areas in which the science fiction mystery thriller fails to withstand the test of time. The Faculty tells an Evasion of the Body Snatchers-style story evoking the great B-movies of the 50s, with alien creatures invading an average high school.
It’s cast of shallow student stereotypes problematically includes an outcast girl who pretends to be a lesbian, but is in actuality secretly straight, something that the movie frames as a relief.
It’s because of this high school setting that The Faculty ages so remarkably badly, catering to behaviors and slang that late 90s teens may have found cool, but seem painfully outdated today. It’s cast of shallow student stereotypes problematically includes an outcast girl who pretends to be a lesbian, but is in actuality secretly straight, something that the movie frames as a relief. It’s not surprising that a horror movie like The Faculty doesn’t have the best LGBTQ takes, but it’s still disappointing nonetheless.
5 Tales From The Hood
1995
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Tales from the Hood R
Director Rusty Cundieff Release Date May 24, 1995 Writers Darin Scott , Rusty Cundieff Cast Lamont Bentley , Clarence Williams III , Corbin Bernsen , David Alan Grier , Tom Wright Runtime 98 minutes
A horror anthology film with an urban twist, it’s easy to guess why Tales from the Hood aged poorly from its very title. The film’s narrative weaves through a collection of four short horror films as told through the framing device of a trio of drug dealers talking to a funerary director they’re buying from. Some of these segments are stronger than others, but the worst of them present some disastrous attempts at social commentary that feel out-of-place in the modern age.
Tales from the Hood mixes in very real racist threats like police brutality and terrorist organizations like the KKK with fantastical elements, creating an odd polarization of the film’s tone. By modern standards, it seems absurd to attach such serious themes to ghoulish and fantastical elements like zombies and monsters. This is especially true in a cinematic landscape following the release of Get Out, which actually managed to perfect this balancing act in a meaningful way.
4 Leprechaun
1993
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Leprechaun (1993) R
Director Mark Jones Release Date January 8, 1993 Studio(s) Lionsgate Distributor(s) Lionsgate Writers Mark Jones Cast Robert Hy Gorman , Mark Holton , Ken Olandt , Jennifer Aniston , Warwick Davis Runtime 92 minutes Expand
Of all the mythological creatures and deities to turn into horror movie villains, the humble leprechaun seems like an odd choice. Still, that didn’t stop 90s filmmakers from trying, and the legacy of Leprechaun speaks for itself. The plot concerns an American who attracts the ire of the titular malicious fae after stealing his pot of gold, resulting in the trapped Leprechaun rising again to terrorize a family after being trapped for ten years.
Leprechaun wasn’t exactly a critical success upon its release in 1993, and the years since haven’t been any kinder to it. From the bad performances to the uncanny makeup and cringeworthy attempts at humor, everything Leprechaun does is a testament to the laziest filmmaking practices of yesteryear. Yet somehow, the film managed to spawn an entire Leprechaun franchise, featuring a whopping 8 movies.
3 Se7en
1995
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Se7en R
Director David Fincher Release Date September 22, 1995 Studio(s) New Line Cinema Distributor(s) New Line Cinema Writers andrew kevin walker Cast Brad Pitt , Gwyneth Paltrow , John C. McGinley , Morgan Freeman , Kevin Spacey Runtime 127 minutes Expand
In nearly every quantifiable aspect, Se7en is a chilling horror-thriller worthy of the conversation for the most disturbing widely-released film of all time. Featuring Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman as a leading pair of detectives tracking down the perpetrator of a grisly series of murders themed around the biblical seven deadly sins, Se7en is a triumph of acting skill, tone, and visceral discomfort. Sadly, the film has aged incredibly poorly for one single reason out of its control entirely.
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The reveal of Kevin Spacey as the film’s elusive serial killer is a tough pill to swallow with present-day knowledge. In 2017, several alarming allegations of sexual misconduct came out against Spacey, which went on to tank his career. While Spacey was acquitted of all criminal charges, his new reputation puts his sexual crimes in Se7en as the deranged John Doe in a disturbing new light.
2 The Blair Witch Project
1999
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The Blair Witch Project R
Director Eduardo Sánchez , Daniel Myrick Release Date July 30, 1999 Studio(s) Summit Entertainment Distributor(s) Summit Entertainment Writers Daniel Myrick , Eduardo Sánchez Cast Joshua Leonard , Michael C. Williams , Heather Donahue Runtime 81 minutes Expand
One of the most important films to help popularize the found footage horror genre, calling The Blair Witch Project outdated may be a tad sacrilegious. The film was assuredly clever with what it was able to accomplish with so little, stringing the viewer along with a slow burn of dread as it expounded upon the story of a documentary crew searching for an elusive witch. That being said, The Blair Witch Project offers very little payoff for its impressive foundation of tension.
Famously, the advertising campaign of The Blair Witch Project misled many prospective viewers into thinking the footage was genuine, something that could’ve been easily disproven with the internet today. It’s not absurd to suppose that the film owes a large portion of its success and popularity to this confusion over its authenticity, the idea that the film could be a genuine documentary carrying its scare factor.
1 Brain Twisters
1991
The Lawnmower Man wasn’t the only horror film to attempt scares via the digital landscape. Enter Brain Twisters,a seldom-seen conspiratorial sci-fi thriller centered around a mad scientist of a college professor that subjects his students to devious virtual realities, resulting in deadly violent outbursts. Another early exploration of the digital age through a sufficiently cheesy horror story, Brain Twisters has become a quaint time capsule of a film years later.
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It almost goes without saying that the crude CGI depicting the film’s digital worlds looks absolutely abysmal by today’s standards, not even being particularly impressive in 1991. As if that weren’t enough, Brain Twisters also goes heavy on the exacerbating 90s wardrobe choices, with some eye-sore outfits worn by the college students that look positively foreign by today’s fashion trends. One of the most intensely 90s horror movies ever made, Brain Twisters hasn’t exactly aged gracefully.
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