Those Glorious Slasher / Mad Killer Films Of The 1970s and 80s!...
Remember those murdering maniacs, killing at will with axes, knives, or whatever they could get their bloody hands on? Well, here's a little list of some personal favorites. There are classics and masterworks, along with some lesser-known films, and a few that probably should stay that way! While original movies and their direct sequels have been included, none of the endless installments from movie "franchises" have been listed. So, don't expect Such-And-Such Part 58! Enjoy...
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- DirectorCharles B. PierceStarsBen JohnsonAndrew PrineDawn WellsThe story of a hooded, berserk killer who terrorized the border town of Texarkana, Arkansas in 1946--leaving no fewer than five murder victims in his wake. He was never caught. Based on one of America's most baffling murder cases.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsOlivia HusseyKeir DulleaMargot KidderDuring their Christmas break, a group of sorority girls are stalked by a stranger.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsMarilyn BurnsEdwin NealAllen DanzigerFive friends head out to rural Texas to visit the grave of a grandfather. On the way they stumble across what appears to be a deserted house, only to discover something sinister within. Something armed with a chainsaw.
- DirectorPercival RubensStarsJennifer HolmesCameron MitchellCraig GardnerRandom people are terrorized by a malevolent man wearing a black leather glove with razor-fingers, who brings their worst fears to life.
- DirectorPaul LynchStarsLeslie NielsenJamie Lee CurtisCasey StevensAt a high-school senior prom, a masked killer stalks four teenagers who were responsible for the accidental death of a classmate six years previously.
- DirectorJoseph ZitoStarsVicky DawsonChristopher GoutmanLawrence TierneyAn unknown killer, clad in World War II U.S. Army fatigues, stalks a small California town, bent on reliving a 35 year-old double murder by focusing on a group of college kids holding an annual graduation dance.
- DirectorHerb FreedStarsChristopher GeorgePatch MackenzieE. Danny MurphyA masked killer begins murdering students on the school track team after a track runner dies upon completion of a 30 second 200-meter race.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsDonald PleasenceJamie Lee CurtisTony MoranFifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.
- DirectorRick RosenthalStarsJamie Lee CurtisDonald PleasenceCharles CyphersWhile Dr. Loomis hunts for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and The Shape is not far behind her.
- DirectorPete WalkerStarsRupert DaviesSheila KeithDeborah FairfaxAfter escaping a death sentence for her hideous crimes, a seemingly rehabilitated woman settles in an isolated farmhouse with her husband, only to ache, once more, for blood, and a crash-course in surgery. Is, indeed, her old self back?
- DirectorRoger WatkinsStarsRoger WatkinsKen FisherBill SchlageterAfter being released from prison, a young gangster with a chip on his shoulder decides to punish society by making snuff films.
- DirectorJoe GiannoneStarsGaylen RossTony NunziataHarriet BassA legendary psychopathic murderer stalks a summer camp.
- DirectorS.F. BrownriggStarsBill McGheeJessie Lee FultonRobert DracupA young psychiatric nurse goes to work at a remote asylum following a murder. There, she experiences varying degrees of torment from the patients.
- DirectorRené Cardona Jr.StarsAnjanette ComerHugo StiglitzZulma FaiadA wealthy playboy kidnaps and murders young women, feeding their corpses to his horde of felines.
- DirectorCarlton J. AlbrightStarsEdward TerryJoan RothStacy HaidukA psychotic killer convicted of multiple murders is released on parole after spending twenty years in prison. His psychosis immediately takes over and he goes on a killing spree.
- DirectorGeorge MihalkaStarsPaul KelmanLori HallierNeil AffleckA decades-old folk tale surrounding a deranged murderer killing those who celebrate Valentine's Day turns out to be true to legend when a group defies the killer's order and people start turning up dead.
- DirectorTom HollandStarsCatherine HicksChris SarandonAlex VincentA struggling single mother unknowingly gifts her son a doll imbued with a serial killer's consciousness.
- DirectorRobert HiltzikStarsFelissa RoseJonathan TierstenKaren FieldsBunks and showers are a mad stabber's beat at a summer camp strictly for teens.
- DirectorAmy Holden JonesStarsMichele MichaelsRobin StilleMichael VillellaA female high school student's slumber party turns into a bloodbath, as a newly escaped psychotic serial killer wielding a power drill prowls her neighborhood.
- DirectorEmmett AlstonStarsRoz KellyKip NivenChris WallaceDuring a New Year's Eve celebration, a Los Angeles disc jockey receives a phone call saying that when New Year's strikes in each time zone, someone will be murdered - and she will be the last one.
- DirectorMarc LawrenceStarsToni LawrenceJesse VintCatherine RossThe owner of a roadside diner, and his new helper, kill people and feed them to pigs.
- DirectorAndrew DavisStarsJohn FriedrichAdrian ZmedErnest Harden Jr.A group of rangers go camping on unfamiliar forest grounds. All's well until the group members start getting killed by a cunning killer in the woods.
- DirectorOvidio G. AssonitisStarsPatricia MickeyMichael MacRaeDennis RobertsonA woman is pursued by her murderous, psychopathic twin sister in the days leading up to their birthday.
- DirectorAlfred SoleStarsLinda MillerMildred ClintonPaula E. SheppardIn 1961, a divorced Catholic couple's life is turned upside-down when one of their two adolescent daughters is suspected of her younger sister's brutal murder during her First Holy Communion and a series of subsequent stabbings.
- DirectorPeter F. BuffaStarsJulie AmatoVictor MohicaHenry BalThe spirit of a long-dead warrior possesses the body of an Indian medicine man and turns him into a homicidal maniac.
- DirectorJoseph EllisonStarsDan GrimaldiCharles BonetBill RicciA disturbed young man who was burned as a child by his sadistic mother stalks women with a flamethrower.
- DirectorTheodore GershunyStarsPatrick O'NealJames PattersonMary WoronovA man inherits a mansion which once was a mental home. He visits the place and begins to investigate some crimes that happened in old times, scaring the people living in the region.
- DirectorRomano ScavoliniStarsBaird StaffordSharon SmithC.J. CookeA mental patient embarks on a murder spree upon escaping from an institution.
- DirectorS.F. BrownriggStarsCamilla CarrChelcie RossStephen TobolowskyA crazy woman who lives in an old mansion thinks she's with her brother/lover, who lures victims to her.
- DirectorSean S. CunninghamStarsBetsy PalmerAdrienne KingJeannine TaylorA group of teenage camp counselors attempt to re-open an abandoned summer camp with a tragic past, but they are stalked by a mysterious, relentless killer.
- DirectorSteve MinerStarsBetsy PalmerAmy SteelJohn FureyFive years after the events of the first film, a summer camp next to the infamous Camp Crystal Lake is preparing to open, but the legend of Jason is weighing heavy on the proceedings.
- DirectorJohn PeyserStarsJaime Lyn BauerAldo RayDennis OlivieriA depraved religious fanatic sets out to punish all the "immoral" women who have posed for the center-fold of a men's magazine.
- DirectorJack SholderStarsJack PalanceDonald PleasenceMartin LandauA few dangerous and delusional mental patients break out of a mental asylum during a power blackout, and lay siege to their new doctor's house, who, they believe, killed their previous doctor.
- DirectorJeff LiebermanStarsGeorge KennedyMike KellinChris LemmonFive young people venture into the backwoods of Oregon to claim a property, and find themselves being stalked by a hulking, machete-wielding psychopath.
- DirectorArmand MastroianniStarsDon ScardinoCaitlin O'HeaneyElizabeth KempA young bride-to-be is being stalked upon by a serial killer in Staten Island. She gets help from a former lover, but will they manage to escape?
- DirectorEdwin BrownStarsDebbie ThuresonSteve BondLori LethinThree couples go on a camping trip in the woods of southern California during the summer, where a deformed man is stalking their camp.
- DirectorRobert HammerStarsJames WestmorelandBen FrankFlo LawrenceA deeply disturbed Vietnam veteran terrorizes the young women of Los Angeles and taunts a radio psychologist with descriptions of his grisly crimes.
- DirectorJeff GillenAlan OrmsbyStarsRoberts BlossomCosette LeeLeslie CarlsonA deranged rural farmer becomes a grave robber and murderer after the death of his possessive mother, whose corpse he keeps, among others, as his companion in a decaying farmhouse.
- DirectorFred WaltonStarsCarol KaneCharles DurningRutanya AldaA psychopathic killer terrorizes a babysitter, then returns seven years later to menace her again.
- DirectorWes CravenStarsHeather LangenkampJohnny DeppRobert EnglundTeenager Nancy Thompson must uncover the dark truth concealed by her parents after she and her friends become targets of the spirit of a serial killer with a bladed glove in their dreams, in which if they die, it kills them in real life.
- DirectorTony MaylamStarsBrian MatthewsLeah AyresBrian BackerA former summer camp caretaker, horribly burned from a prank gone wrong, lurks around an upstate New York summer camp bent on killing the teenagers responsible for his disfigurement.
- DirectorStu SegallStarsJohn F. GoffSteve VincentDouglas GudbyeTwo police detectives try to catch a serial killer who is stalking a rural California drive-in theater, randomly killing people with a sword.
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsBen JohnsonJamie Lee CurtisHart BochnerThree years after a prank went terribly awry, the six college students responsible are targeted by a masked killer at a New Year's Eve party aboard a moving train.
- DirectorTim RitterStarsAsbestos FeltCourtney LercaraRaymond CarboneA man suspects his wife of adultery and goes on a killing spree, eliminating all he believes are sleeping with her, but his victims don't stay dead.
- DirectorHoward AvedisStarsMary Beth McDonoughDavid WysockiBill PaxtonConvinced that her father's death was not accidental, a beautiful girl decides to investigate to find out the truth, aided by her boyfriend. Her sleuthing draws her to a local mortuary, where many secrets will be revealed.
- DirectorJimmy HustonStarsCecile BagdadiJoel S. RiceRalph BrownA psycho killer shows up on college campus to slash up pretty co-eds and dumb jocks.
- DirectorNick MillardStarsPriscilla AldenMichael FloodJane LambertAn obese woman recently released from an insane asylum kills anyone who attempts to get her to stop eating.
- DirectorJim McCullough Sr.StarsBill ThurmanAnna ChappellWill MitchellA mentally-unstable elderly woman recently released from a mental asylum proceeds to slaughter all the guests staying at her motel.
- DirectorWallace PottsStarsRobert R. ShaferJeff QuallePalmer Lee ToddSix college students on their weekend vacation are humiliated and killed one by one by a psycho cop.
- DirectorRuggero DeodatoStarsBruce PenhallMimsy FarmerDavid HessA group of teens are stalked and killed by a Shaman at a cursed camping site.
- DirectorJosé Ramón LarrazStarsBarton FaulksChristina Marie LanePage MoselyAn axe murderer terrorizes a small Northern California mountain community, while two young computer-obsessed adults attempt to solve the killings.
- DirectorBuddy CooperJohn DouglassStarsMatt MitlerRuth MartinezBill HitchcockA college student, who accidentally killed his mother as a child, decides to take his friends to his father's fishing cabin during fall break, not knowing that his crazed father is stalking the place.
- DirectorConstantine S. GochisStarsJerry LazarusJeannetta ArnetteNick CarterSix people are trapped within the confines of their old high school during their 10th high school reunion with a psychotic, masked preacher who kills them off for their sinful lives they have made for themselves.
- DirectorRichard FranklinStarsAnthony PerkinsVera MilesMeg TillyAfter twenty-two years of psychiatric care, Norman Bates attempts to return to a life of solitude, but the specters of his crimes - and his mother - continue to haunt him.
- DirectorAnthony PerkinsStarsAnthony PerkinsDiana ScarwidJeff FaheyNorman Bates falls in love with a fallen nun who stays at the Bates Motel alongside a drifter and a curious reporter. Meanwhile, "Mother" is still watching.
- DirectorKevin ConnorStarsRory CalhounPaul LinkeNancy ParsonsA seemingly friendly farmer and his sister kidnap unsuspecting travelers and bury them alive, using them to create the "special meat" they are famous for.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsNeville BrandMel FerrerCarolyn JonesA psychotic redneck, who owns a dilapidated hotel in rural East Texas, kills various people who upset him or his business, and he feeds their bodies to a large crocodile that he keeps as a pet in the swamp beside his hotel.
- DirectorTobe HooperStarsElizabeth BerridgeShawn CarsonJeanne AustinFour teenagers visit a local carnival for a night of innocent amusement, but soon discover that nothing there is innocent or amusing.
- DirectorCharles E. Sellier Jr.StarsLilyan ChauvinGilmer McCormickToni NeroLittle Billy witnesses his parents getting killed by Santa after being warned by his senile grandpa that Santa punishes those who are naughty. Now Billy is 18 and out of the orphanage, and he has just become Santa himself.
- DirectorLewis JacksonStarsBrandon MaggartJeffrey DeMunnDianne HullA toy factory worker, mentally scarred as a child upon learning Santa Claus is not real, suffers a nervous breakdown after being belittled at work, and embarks on a Yuletide killing spree.
- DirectorEdmund PurdomStarsEdmund PurdomAlan LakeBelinda MayneSomebody with very little Christmas spirit is killing anyone in a Santa suit one London holiday season, and Scotland Yard has to stop him before he makes his exploits an annual tradition.
- DirectorMarc B. RayStarsFred HolbertLeigh MitchellRobert KnoxA deranged kid murders his father and has his arm crushed by the farm tractor. After being discharged from the mental hospital with an amputee, he discovers that his mother has remarried, prompting him to go on a homicidal rampage.
- DirectorCurtis HarringtonStarsAnn SothernJohn SavageRuth RomanA young Terry Lambert returns home after serving a prison sentence for a gang rape he was forced to participate in. He seeks revenge on his lawyer and the girl who framed him.
- DirectorCurtis HarringtonStarsDebbie ReynoldsShelley WintersDennis WeaverTwo middle-aged women move to Hollywood, California after their sons are convicted of a notorious murder and open a dance school for children eager to tap their way to stardom.
- DirectorDavid WellingtonStarsWings HauserLynne AdamsPierre LenoirA mad woman and her cheating husband hire men to fix up their new house. Mysterious carpenter, Ed, becomes her guardian angel, but he is actually an executed killer whose spirit has returned to finish the dream house he once started.
- DirectorRichard CiupkaStarsJohn VernonSamantha EggarLinda ThorsonSix young actresses auditioning for a movie role at a remote mansion are targeted by a mysterious masked murderer.
- DirectorTibor TakácsStarsJenny WrightClayton RohnerRandall William CookA bookshop clerk and wannabe actress starts seeing the disfigured killer from her 1950s pulp novels come to life and start killing people around her. She tries to convince her cop boyfriend, but to no avail.
- DirectorWilliam LustigStarsJoe SpinellCaroline MunroAbigail ClaytonA psychopathic man goes on a killing and mutilation spree in New York City.
- DirectorWilliam LustigStarsTom AtkinsBruce CampbellLaurene LandonA killer dressed in a police uniform begins murdering innocent people on the streets of New York City.
- DirectorKen WiederhornStarsLauren TewesJennifer Jason LeighJohn DiSantiA news anchorwoman begins to suspect a man living in the same apartment complex as her to be the serial killer that's been raping and killing women in the Miami area.
- DirectorJean-Claude LordStarsMichael IronsideLee GrantLinda PurlA deranged, misogynistic killer assaults a journalist. When he discovers that she survived the attack, he follows her to the hospital to finish her off.
- DirectorBoaz DavidsonStarsBarbi BentonCharles LuciaJon Van NessWhile receiving a routine check-up, a woman finds herself stranded on the hospital's eighth floor, while someone dressed as a doctor is intent on her never leaving, even if it means killing any staff member who comes into contact with her.
- DirectorWilliam GirdlerStarsCharles KissingerJames Carroll PickettSherry SteinerFour girls go on a romping weekend at a lake, and have car problems on the way home. A nice local boy takes them back to his farm, where he lives with his father. Something ghastly happens, but the father helps his son as he has in the past. When the boy meets a girl and begins falling in love, the father worries about a repeat performance.
- DirectorJim O'ConnollyStarsBryant HalidayJill HaworthMark EdwardsA group of experienced archeologists are searching for an old and mystic Phoenician treasure when they are surprised by a series of mysterious murders...
- DirectorRichard FriedmanStarsPatty MullenRuth CollinsKristin DavisA horribly disfigured lawyer, wrongfully pronounced dead after a terrible car accident, is taken to an asylum for dissection, only to come back alive, kill everyone, and make the asylum his killing grounds.
- DirectorSean S. CunninghamStarsKate MulgrewRip TornJames NaughtonThe 11-year old daughter and girlfriend of a man whose wife had been raped and killed in front of his daughter three years earlier are kidnapped by the same killer. Held captive in a bunker below Grand Central Station, the two plot their escape while the police try to track the kidnapper.
- DirectorJohn GrissmerStarsLouise LasserMark SoperJulie GordonA boy kills a man and accuses his twin brother of the murder, and the innocent brother ends up institutionalized, while his psychotic twin goes free. 10 years later, the innocent twin escapes, which triggers his brother into killing again.
- DirectorPeter CarterStarsHal HolbrookLawrence DaneRobin GammellFive doctors on a wilderness outing are stalked by disfigured, crazed killers.
- DirectorDavid PaulsenStarsKlaus KinskiDonna WilkesMarianna HillAn advice columnist in the midst of getting a divorce begins receiving threatening notes from an anonymous stalker. Meanwhile, members of her group therapy session are being murdered by an unknown assailant.
- DirectorRichard AttenboroughStarsAnthony HopkinsAnn-MargretBurgess MeredithA ventriloquist is at the mercy of his vicious dummy while he tries to renew a romance with his high school sweetheart.
- DirectorFrederick R. FriedelStarsLeslie LeeJack CanonRay GreenThree criminals on a murder spree arrives at a farmhouse, where a girl is living with her paralyzed grandfather.
- DirectorGary GraverStarsJacqueline GirouxPeter JasonChris GraverA baby sitter is stuck watching over a young brat on Halloween night who keeps playing vicious pranks on her. To add to her trouble the boy's deranged father has escaped from an asylum and is planning on making a visit.
- DirectorS.F. BrownriggStarsSusan BrackenLarry O'DwyerGene RossIn this horror movie, a dutiful grand-daughter goes home to take care of her elderly grandmother. Once there, she finds herself trapped inside the house with a homicidal maniac.
- DirectorDenis HérouxGéza von RadványiStarsMathieu CarrièreDebra BergerChristine BoissonA disturbed American war veteran arrives in Belfast during the Northern Ireland conflicts, and proceeds to terrorize a household of female nursing students.
- DirectorAbel FerraraStarsAbel FerraraCarolyn MarzBaybi DayAn artist slowly goes insane while struggling to pay his bills, work on his paintings, and care for his two female roommates, which leads him taking to the streets of New York after dark and randomly killing derelicts with a power drill.
- DirectorRobert HughesStarsJohn KerryMark MearsMark CasoA newly opened campsite is terrorized by a primitive young man who begins killing campers to defend his territory.
- DirectorHerb FreedStarsMay BrittCameron MitchellAldo RayMay Britt plays a seemingly innocent farm girl convinced that her slovenly uncle (Cameron Mitchell) is the man responsible for the bloody scissor-murders of several local girls.
- DirectorJoe MazzucaStarsArthur FranzClaudia JenningsCheri HowellDuring an all-girl secret society initiation, one of the new members is killed playing Russian Roulette. Many years later the survivors are invited for a reunion to a lavish estate.
- DirectorDavid HessStarsJennifer RunyonForrest SwonsenLinda GentileA group of teenagers at a party find themselves being stalked by a maniacal killer in a Santa Claus costume.
- DirectorWilliam FruetStarsKay HawtreyLesleh DonaldsonBarry MorseA young woman arrives at her grandmother's house, which used to be a funeral home, to help her turn the place into a bed-and-breakfast inn. After they open, however, guests begin disappearing or turning up dead.
- DirectorMario BavaStarsClaudine AugerLuigi PistilliClaudio CamasoThe murder of a wealthy countess triggers a chain reaction of brutal killings in the surrounding bay area, as several unscrupulous characters try to seize her large estate.
- DirectorJohn D. LamondStarsJenny NeumannGary SweetNina LandisA stage actress - who is hiding a deep trauma over the car accident that killed her mother - finds herself living a new nightmare when her fellow cast members are butchered by a glass-wielding killer.
- DirectorRichard CaseyStarsPhil TherrienMax MantheyIrene CagenA van full of college students traveling down a highway is terrorized by a psycho killer in a Richard Nixon mask.
- DirectorLeonard KirtmanStarsEarle EdgertonJudith ResnickMartin BarolskyA psychopathic killer uses the carousel ride at a carnival to pick his victims, who he then murders and dismembers.
- DirectorMichael S. O'RourkeStarsBlake GibbonsIngrid VoldJohn MarzilliDuring the winter season, a family camping in the woods, and a group of camp counselors training in the same forest both find themselves being killed one by one by an unhinged psycho.
- DirectorMurray MintzStarsGarry GoodrowMichael Paul ChanMax GailA serial killer is plaguing San Francisco, surgically removing the hearts of his victims. Assigned to the case is a weak-stomached homicide detective who investigates the possibility of black market organ transplants.
- DirectorPaul NicholasStarsAnthony FranciosaSybil DanningIsabelle MejiasA teenage girl whose inaction caused her mother's death arranges a similarly gruesome fate for her stepmother and brother.
- DirectorFernando Di LeoStarsJoe DallesandroLorraine De SellePatrizia BehnAn escaped convict plays the occupants of a remote home against one another for his own sadistic pleasure while searching for the loot he buried there following a previous robbery.
- DirectorWilliam GreféStarsWilliam ShatnerRuth RomanJennifer BishopA paranoid, leisure-suit-wearing conman/gigolo named Matt Stone seduces lonely women, bilks them of their savings via an investment scam, then kills them. When he begins seeing an attractive widow, her daughter Tina becomes suspicious of his motives.
- DirectorJoseph MerhiStarsNatasha PavlovichDelores NascarJimmy WilliamsA family must keep moving from town to town because the mother is a psychotic axe murderer who keeps flipping out and murdering people.