Who says a horror movie needs to be scary? Sure, that’s typically the goal to aim for, but one can’t always control how an audience receives a movie, and if they’re having a good time with it, who’s to say that’s a bad thing? Although a horror movie intends to frighten its audience, there is a selection of horror flicks that enjoyed a longer life by making their crowd laugh.
Certain horror films prove that terrifying an audience is overrated, especially if they offer endless laughs at midnight screenings. The following horror movies led to more chuckles than gasps, and fans of each wouldn’t have it any other way. These are the worst horror movies that are unintentionally hilarious, ranked by how entertaining these misfits of the macabre remain years later.
10
‘Night of the Lepus’ (1972)
Lions are vicious, sharks are dangerous, but only the apex predator known as the bunny rabbit can truly strike fear into the heart of man. At least, that’s what the producers of Night of the Lepus prayed would be the case. The film follows a group of unfortunate humans who look like walking and talking carrots to a pack of giant, mutated rabbits.
Amazingly, Night of the Lepus is not an original script, but rather based on the Russell Braddon novel, The Year of the Angry Rabbit. For the skeptics who think the idea of killer rabbits is ridiculous… well, they’re right, but it’s a funny B-movie that’s worth a watch if it’s free and you’re on a plane, and you’re finding it impossible to go to sleep. It’s hard not to look at shots of rabbits running on miniature sets so that they appear large and not think, ‘I too could make a movie with a personal loan of two grand.’
9
‘The Wicker Man’ (2006)
In the notorious 2006 remake The Wicker Man, Nicolas Cage stars as police officer Edward Malus. When Edward receives word from his former fiancée that his daughter went missing, he follows a lead that takes him to a remote island inhabited by a pagan community. Quickly, Edward perceives the villagers to be hiding a secret, but his investigation blinds him to what they have in store for him.
The original 1973 version of The Wicker Man is a creepy folk horror classic that’s still admired, but as the old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, make a worse version of it later.” It’s an uphill battle to remake a movie that hangs its hat on an iconic twist ending because you’ve already lost the shock factor of the unexpected climax. The remake disregards the subtle slow build that gives the original its atmosphere of dread, but then again, the 1973 version didn’t have a bee helmet, so they each have their strengths.
8
‘Maximum Overdrive’ (1986)
Horror master Stephen King put away his typewriter in favor of a director’s chair to film the movie <em>Maximum Overdrive</em>. The movie follows the horror that ensues when a passing comet gives machines sentience to do as they please. Turns out, machines have always wanted to kill, and they get to killing immediately because who’s to say how long this gift to murder will last.
In a crowded sea of classic cheesy 80s horror movies, Maximum Overdrive is typically remembered as the only movie King directed. Those who have watched the movie were treated to a hyper-over-the-top montage of mechanical carnage that’s elevated with a performance from Emilio Estevez as the heroic lead. Landing more closely to an R-rated Saturday morning cartoon than a serious piece of horror, Maximum Overdrive is a fun watch with a relentless pace.
7
‘Chopping Mall’ (1986)
If watching large robots chase teenagers in a mall is the ideal premise for a movie, you’re in luck because Chopping Mall was the only horror film brave enough to tackle the plot. The movie tells the story of malfunctioning security robots who attempt to kill a group of mall employees and their friends who stayed in the shopping plaza after hours. To be fair, Chopping Mall is frequently in on the joke of what it is, but it’s not attempting to be a comedy, which is how the movie predominantly lands.
This is possibly a silly gripe, but there’s no chopping in Chopping Mall. There is a mall so the title gets it half right, but the security robots shoot lasers so expectations are toyed with a little bit. There’s probably someone who wrote a fantastic slasher movie set in a mall but then the title had already been taken so they threw the whole thing away and wrote something like Out of Africa instead.
6
‘Manos: The Hands of Fate’ (1966)
InManos: The Hands of Fate, a family gets lost in the desert of Texas and doubles down on their mistake by inviting themselves into a house against the caretaker’s wishes. The family will remember to heed future strange caretaker’s warnings because their impromptu bed and breakfast actually houses an undead cult leader. With their car unable to start, the family is now at the mercy of evil forces.
The easy insult when something is poorly written is to say “Ha, that must have been written by AI,” butManos: The Hands of Fate stands as proof that bad writing existed long before ChatGPT.The little independent horror movie is drunken unrehearsed community theatre put to film but in that silliness lies its charm.Manos: The Hands of Fate was made on a bet, and after watching 70 minutes of hilariously dubbed lines nonsensical plotting and awkward staging it won’t be clear who won or lost.
