BD: 10 Great Horror Movies from the ‘90s, ‘00s You Maybe Haven’t Seen

[JamesG]

10 Great Horror Movies from the ‘90s You Maybe Haven’t Seen
by Meagan Navarro
August 16, 2018


Hardware (1990)




The feature debut by the enigmatic writer/director Richard Stanley, Hardware is a great example of low budget sci-fi horror done right. Set mostly in the single location of an apartment in the middle of a post-apocalyptic slum, a scavenger brings his reclusive girlfriend, Jill, the head of a robot he bought from a junk dealer.

It turns out that the head belonged to a military grade combat machine capable of self-repair. The robot reassembles itself using pieces of metal from Jill’s apartment and proceeds to follow its programmed orders; genocide.

Gritty cyberpunk horror with style, Hardware flips the bird at its minuscule budget.







Mister Frost (1990)




This hidden entry of ‘90s horror is made harder to find by being unavailable on DVD, this supernatural thriller sees Jeff Goldblum in the titular role as a man arrested and placed in an asylum after committing multiple murders.

After two years of silence, he finally speaks to Dr. Sarah Day (Kathy Baker), confessing to her that he’s Lucifer himself and plans to convince her to murder him. Naturally, she doesn’t believe him, but strange occurrences begin to happen around her.

A slow burn cat and mouse game, this one favors atmosphere over overt, traditional scares. Jeff Goldblum’s chilling performance is worth the price of admission alone.







Two Evil Eyes (1990)




This collaboration between Dario Argento and George A. Romero, with gory effects by Tom Savini, quietly slipped into home video release in 1991 without much buzz.

Bringing their own take on Edgar Allan Poe (a seeming trend in the early ‘90s), Romero adapted Poe’s short story The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, while Argento (loosely) took on The Black Cat.

Romero’s tale is mixed, but the true star and reason to watch is Argento’s mashup of Poe stories. In it, Harvey Keitel plays a creepy photographer slowly driven mad by a cat. The spiral into insanity with gory visuals is an absolute highlight.







The Pit and the Pendulum (1991)




Everyone is familiar with Stuart Gordon’s From Beyond, Re-Animator, and Castle Freak, but this loose adaptation of the classic Edgar Allan Poe short story is one that doesn’t get mentioned much. It’s also more of a combination of many Poe stories in one.

Set during the Spanish Inquisition, horror vet Lance Henriksen plays the sinister Torquemada, the one responsible for deciding whether someone is deemed a witch or not. Atmospheric and gothic, it’s a more sedate horror story but features a lot of gruesome torture sequences.

Frequent Gordon collaborator Jeffrey Combs does appear in a small role, but it’s Henriksen that shines in his villainous turn as the sadistic Grand Inquisitor of Spain.







Popcorn (1991)




This wacky horror comedy slasher lovingly pays homage to the B-movie with its entertaining setup. A group of college film students decide to raise funds by setting up an all-night horror movie marathon in an abandoned theater, complete with William Castle-like gimmicks themed toward each film they’re showing.

It makes for a perfect cover for the killer picking off the students one by one. The lead heroine is Jill Shoelen (The Stepfather), and horror vet Dee Wallace plays her mother. Though there are supernatural elements that are not quite fleshed out, the killer’s modus operandi of assuming his victims’ appearances add a level of fun.







The Resurrected (1991)




This direct-to-video adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Case of Charles Dexter Ward is not only faithful but boasts a really fun final act with gore effects.

Directed by Dan O’Bannon (The Return of the Living Dead), the plot follows a woman who hires a private investigator to find out what her husband is up to in his remote family-owned home after his behavior becomes increasingly strange. Chris Sarandon is fantastic here, playing two major roles.

Though this starts out a bit slow, stick with it as the payoff is absolutely worth it. The Resurrected makes for a great hidden Halloween gem with its fall and October setting.







Man Bites Dog (1992)




Though technically a crime dark comedy, the humor is pitch black with razor-sharp teeth. Shot in black and white, this Belgian film plays out mockumentary style as a film crew follows a rising serial killer in his daily routine.

Ben (Benoit Poelvoorde) waxes poetic on philosophy, giving an air of sophistication, before ruthlessly dispatching various kids, bystanders, and elderly people in shocking acts of violence. The film crew remain complacent until Ben’s murderous ways begin to affect them personally.

It’s grim, nihilistic, and brutal. Overlooked, this twisted satire is a precursor to films like Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon.







H.P. Lovecraft's: Necronomicon (1993)




A Brian Yuzna produced and partially directed horror anthology based on H.P. Lovecraft stories got a direct-to-video release in 1993 and has since slipped further into obscurity.

The wraparound features an unrecognizable Jeffrey Combs as H.P. Lovecraft, reading the three stories straight from the pages of the Necronomicon in the cellar of a library. Both the segments and the wraparound are a great display of special effects by artists like Screaming Mad George and John Carl Buechler, and consultant work by Tom Savini.

This anthology is still stuck on VHS, only getting a proper DVD release in Europe and Asian markets, where it fared much better upon release.







Dark Waters (1994)




A surreal atmospheric horror film that feels like a throwback to the earlier works of Lucio Fulci and Mario Bava, this dreamlike story follows a woman who travels to an isolated island to find out why her father funded a monetary there before he died.

Director Mariano Baino’s first and only feature length film, Dark Waters doesn’t always make much sense, but it’s visually stunning and weird. Occult horror with a demonic presence, the setting alone also makes this feel akin to something H.P. Lovecraft would’ve created.







The Nameless (1999)




Almost a decade before Jaume Balaguero teamed up with Paco Plaza to terrify audiences with [Rec], he proved his uncanny ability to scare with this underseen thriller that he wrote and directed.

It opens with the discovery of a mutilated child who had been missing. It’s so mutilated that only a bracelet and a leg could be used to identify her. Five years later, her mother Claudia receives a phone call from someone claiming to be her dead daughter. This begins a twisted tale of Claudia trying to uncover who is actually behind the phone call.

While Balaguero may not exactly stick his landing here, it’s an atmospheric, haunting story and the director nails the foreboding sense of fear. The creepy set pieces and cinematography is also a major highlight.

https://bloody-disgusting.com/editor...y-havent-seen/

[Torgo]

Saw Hardware in the theater when it was released. Prefer Richard Stanley's later film Dust Devil.

Two Evil Eyes, while I agree Argento's segment is better than Romero's, even Argento''s isn't enough to make me want to watch it again.

I saw Mr. Frost back in the 90's, don't remember much of it.

Haven't seen The Nameless.

My favorites on the list- The Resurrected, Man Bites Dog, Popcorn (saw this in the theater too), Dark Waters, Necronomicon.

The Pit In The Pendulum was okay.



Some of my favorite lesser known favorites from the 90's:

The Reflecting Skin
Mirage
Mute Witness
No Telling
Vermillion Eyes
That Little Monster
Dead Girls
Aswang
Evil Ed
Shakma
Kolobos

[JamesG]

10 Great Horror Movies From the ’00s You Maybe Haven’t Seen
by Meagan Navarro
Sept. 15, 2018


Anatomy (2000)




Franka Potente stars as Paula, a med student who wins a spot at the select Heidelberg medical school. It’s daunting, competitive, and exclusive enough as it is, but Paula realizes there’s something more sinister happening at the school when a man she met on the train soon after makes his way to the dissection table in class.

Paula discovers the secret Anti-Hippocratic Society, a group that vivisects people they deem unfit for living. A medical thriller that mostly sticks to convention, it’s slickly shot and doesn’t shy away from the gruesome nature of cutting people up.

A sort of slasher that revels in gory nature of vivisections is pretty fun.







Uzamaki (2000)




Proving that J-horror is more than just long-haired vengeful ghosts, Uzumaki (aka Spiral) is a surreal adaptation of Junji Ito’s regarded horror manga of the same name.

It’s not a film for those wanting something more linear in plot with cohesive answers, but a journey into madness. Consisting of four parts, the narrative tells of a town becoming obsessed and tormented by spirals. Yup. Spirals.

It’s weird, offbeat, and wholly unique.







Love Object (2003)




2003 marked a year that Desmond Harrington starred in two horror films; the higher profiled Wrong Turn and the underseen horror romance film Love Object.

The latter sees Harrington star as lonely tech writer, Kenneth, who falls head over heels and then becomes obsessed with Nikki. Nikki is a sex doll. Kenneth’s obsession and psychological descent is unsettling, but what really elevates this into something special is that director Robert Parigi keeps the viewer guessing; is there more to Nikki than meets the eye?







Shutter (2004)




Forget the 2008 American remake and head straight for the 2004 Thai horror film on which it was based. It’s grittier, creepier, and somewhat forgotten.

When photographer Tun and his girlfriend Jane get into a hit and run, leaving a girl dying on the side of the road, strange faces and shadows begin taking over Tun’s photographs. The haunting escalates, and first appearances would lead you to believe it’s tied to the hit and run, but the twisty mystery behind the haunting is much more surprising and sinister.

Shutter takes the Asian ghost horror tropes and makes it feel fresh again with effective jump scares and an engaging mystery.







Fragile (2005)




Two years before Jaume Balagueró teamed up with Paco Plaza to unleash one of the most terrifying movies of the decade, [REC], he proved an aptitude for delivering chills with this underseen haunted hospital spookfest, Fragile.

Calista Flockheart stars as Amy, a nurse brought on to the nightshift in the children’s ward at an old hospital in the process of closing down. The problem is that the hospital’s closing means a ghost is very, very unhappy about the children leaving, and Amy has to somehow find a way to keep the children safe from unseen attacks.

Fragile is creepy and atmospheric with effective scares, but even better is that Balagueró gives this ghost story an emotional center that really connects.







The Baby's Room (2006)




The plot is simple; a young couple moves into an old house with their baby and soon begin hearing voices on the baby monitor at night. But being that this was co-written and directed by Alex de la Iglesia (The Day of the Beast, Witching and Bitching), this is less straightforward haunted house fare than you’d expect.

A study of paranoia and tension, The Baby’s Room is even more surprising in that it’s a made for TV movie, which is also why it likely slipped under the radar. An entry in the Spanish horror TV series "Historia paras no dormir", The Baby’s Room didn’t get much notice stateside, occasionally popping up on streaming services and getting a DVD release with the other episodes, titled "6 Films To Keep You Awake", but it’s worth seeking out.







Timecrimes (2007)




Writer/director Nacho Vigalondo’s first feature film is a twisty sci-fi horror time travel story that sees its lead, Hector, stuck in a time loop following an attack by man covered in bloodied bandages.

Those that are a stickler for time travel logic and characters whose decisions compound their own misfortune might be frustrated, but Timecrimes is a creative, fun face-paced romp in suspense. The more Hector continues his time loop, the deadlier things get.

What starts as a slasher evolves into something completely different.







The Cottage (2008)




Playing like two movies in one, The Cottage is a British horror comedy begins as a kidnapping gone wrong and then turns into a satisfying homage to slasher films.

Andy Serkis stars as David, one half of the brother duo who decide to kidnap the daughter of a crime boss only to find her a feisty handful who doesn’t take to being kidnapped well. Even still, none of them are prepared for the deformed killer dubbed The Farmer.

The gore is a fun surprise to this horror comedy.







Sauna (2008)




This Finnish period horror follows two brothers, Knut and Eerik, on their quest to mark the border between Finland and Russia after a 25-year war between the countries has finally ended.

In their journey they come upon a village set in a swamp, with a mysterious sauna that they hope to use to cleanse away their sins of war.



Full confession; I still don’t know that I fully grasp everything presented in Sauna. It’s abstract and non-linear in narrative, and explores the toll of guilt in a unique way.

But it’s haunting in atmosphere and offers some of the most stunning cinematography.







Triangle (2009)




Director Christopher Smith (Black Death, Severance) brought forth on of the decade’s most mind-bending horror films in Triangle.

Melissa George stars as Jess, a woman desperate for a break from her autistic son so she agrees to join a friend for a day on a yacht. A storm leaves them stranded until an ocean liner comes along, only it’s deserted.

The group finds themselves hunted by a masked killer on board, a serious case of Déjà vu sets in for Jess, and no one can effectively predict the twists and turns the story takes from there.

https://bloody-disgusting.com/editor...e-havent-seen/

[Torgo]

^Haven't seen Sauna, Fragile, or Uzamaki. Of the rest my favorites are The Cottage and Timecrimes.

The Cottage is a fun blend of horror and comedy. Creepy small town and backwoods horror.



Some of my favorite lesser knowns from the 00s:

Soft For Digging (2001) A reclusive old man becomes haunted by visions of a murdered child.


Witches' Night (2007)




Shallow Ground (2004) A naked teenage boy covered in blood appears at a remote sheriff's station one year after the brutal unsolved murder of a local girl. Now Sheriff Jack Shepherd, guilt ridden over the girl's murder, must confront his own demons as he desperately searches for the boy's true identity and possible victims. Little does Jack realize that he has started down a path that will bring him face to face with an unthinkable horror. Before sunrise the living will pay for the pain the dead have suffered.


The Hazing (2004)



Zombie Honeymoon (2004)



Make-out with Violence (2008)

[JamesG]

Fragile was meh, in my opinion. One of those movies you only need to see once.

I didn't care for Triangle at all. The original Shutter was good.

[Torgo]

Originally Posted by JamesG

Fragile was meh, in my opinion. One of those movies you only need to see once.

I didn't care for Triangle at all. The original Shutter was good.

I loved Christopher Smith's Severance, enjoyed Creep, Black Death was really good, but Triangle was a letdown. Haven't seen his other films.

[Torgo]

Some more...


Spiral (2007) Directed by Adam Green and Joel David Moore.



The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu (2009) Fun horror comedy.



Doghouse (2009) The lesser known British zombie comedy.



The Locals (2003) I'm a sucker for horror films centered around creepy small towns.



Dance Of The Dead (2008) An 80's teen comedy meets zombie movie.



The Roost (2004) Directorial debut of Ti West (House Of The Devil, The Innkeepers)



Babysitter Wanted (2008)



I'll Never Die Alone (2008)




June 9 (2008) Has a few actually creepy moments, and went in a direction I did not expect.