
Have you ever had such a bad day that you wanted to do nothing more than grab a bag of chips, curl up on the couch, and watch coed after coed get run down and slaughtered by a machete-wielding maniac? While we’re still waiting on the scientific data to back it up, there really is something to be said about the cathartic release of watching a genuinely entertaining slasher movie. Whether it’s laughing at the oftentimes questionable decision making of characters or gawking at the endlessly creative death scenes, slasher movies are a quick and enjoyable way to forget all about your troubles, at least for 90 minutes. But sometimes, it’s easy to overlook some of the most underrated slasher movies that you might have forgotten about over the years.
Obviously slasher film franchises like Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street are deeply entrenched in mainstream pop culture. Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and Freddy Krueger are a few of the most iconic and easily recognizable movie characters of all-time. But what about the psycho killers who have managed to slip through the cracks and vanish from your memory? Despite slashing and dashing their way through scores of helpless victims, their presence just wasn’t enough to keep them on your horror radar. But fear not: we’ve rounded up a collection of underrated and forgotten slasher movies that should definitely make time to rewatch.
The Burning

Some of the best scary stories are ones that are grounded in at least a seedling of truth. Released in 1981, The Burning chronicles the cursed events surrounding a summer camp not named Crystal Lake. The story kicks off when a group of teenagers attempt to pull a prank on the camp’s caretaker, Cropsy (Lou David). However, the prank goes terribly wrong and results in Cropsy being set on fire. In shock, the teens flee, leaving the scorching caretaker for dead. Years later, the burned and disfigured Cropsy returns to the camp, seeking to dish out brutal vengeance for the fiery prank with his blood-soaked garden sheers. As unsuspecting teens begin to drop like flies, the remaining campers are forced to run for their lives or be doomed to become Cropsy’s next victims.
In addition to the dubious note of being disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein’s first movie, The Burning also has a real-world connection that helps add another layer of spookiness to the film. The character of Cropsy is based on the 1970s urban legend of Cropsey, a supposed escaped mental patient who would come out late at night and snatch kids off the streets before murdering them with an ax. By the late 1980s, it was revealed that the legend of Cropsey was actually rooted in the true story of notorious serial killer Andre Rand. With such a morbid backstory, The Burning is one slasher movie that begs not to be forgotten.
You can stream The Burning on Tubi.
The Prowler

If this next list entry taught us anything, it’s that you always have to be on the alert for prowlers in the night, even when you’re just trying to blow off some steam. Directed by Joseph Zito, The Prowler follows a group of college students in a coastal California town who are stalked and preyed upon by a killer at a graduation party. But this killer is your ordinary run-of-the-mill masked killer. No, the Prowler is decked out in his World War II combat gear, complete with his helmet, of course. After killing his ex-girlfriend back in 1945, the Prowler has seemingly been on an unstoppable mission to take out anyone who is attempting to actually enjoy themselves.
The Prowler doesn’t sport as iconic of a killer as a Halloween or Friday the 13th, but while it lacks dynamic characters, it certainly makes up for it with its attention to detail in the blood and guts department. Special effects guru Tom Savini is the mastermind behind the elaborate and gore-filled murder sequences that reportedly took days to film. The Prowler doesn’t offer anything new or groundbreaking to the slasher genre, but it is a very fine horror flick that has flown under the radar for far too long.
You can stream The Prowler on Amazon Prime.
Maniac

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Another early ’80s slasher movie, another entry into Tom Savini’s filmography. Maniac is certainly not the prettiest film on this list, but it might just be the most chaotic and brutal. The film centers around Frank Zito (Joe Spinell), a serial killer in New York City who uses his traumatic past as fuel to carry out his sadistic crimes. Frank develops a taste for killing women, scalping them, and then adhering their hair to mannequins in order to act out his twisted fantasies. As Frank scours the streets of the Big Apple, it seems like nobody is safe from his demented mission.
Directed by William Lustig, Maniac was financed by the profits from his previous career as a pornographic filmmaker, making it one of the best horror movies from an unexpected director. Even with that money, Maniac was still filmed on a shoestring budget which forced the crew to get creative throughout the film’s production. The result is a frenzied arthouse-style movie that thrives in creating a disturbing experience for even the most experienced slasher movie fan. As one of the most provocative slashers in the ’80s, Maniac is one movie that deserves to be remembered.
You can stream Maniac on Fandango at Home.
Sleepaway Camp

Despite having one of the most memorable endings in horror movie history, Sleepaway Camp still feels like a forgotten slasher film. Similar to The Burning, the movie is also set at a happy-go-luck summer camp that will soon find out that blood isn’t easy to wash out of its favorite pair of basketball shorts. Like any good slasher film, Sleepaway Camp starts out with a horrible tragedy, as young Angela Baker witnesses her father and brother killed in a boating accident. Years later, Angela (Felissa Rose) is sent to a summer camp where she attempts to make friends and act like a normal kid. However, when people start to die all around the camp, all eyes begin to focus on the quiet and unassuming Angela.
Despite being billed as a ripoff of Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp performed fairly well at the box office, raking in over $11 million in 1983. Based on the modest success, the slasher classic has spawned four sequels. Although Sleepaway Camp isn’t the most inventive or creative in its assortment of death scenes, the movie still retains a certain level of charm 40 years later. While it might be best known for its ending, Sleepaway Camp is a slasher that begs to be rewatched every now and then.
You can stream Sleepaway Camp on Peacock.
Stage Fright

If you prefer your slasher films to have a heaping helping of personality, then Stage Fright might be just for you. The highly creative Italian horror film is dripping with more than just blood. The movie is stylish and a perfect entry into the slasher genre. Directed by Michele Soavi, Stage Fright tells the story of a small group of actors who have been locked inside their local theater by their director in the hopes of locking down a perfect rehearsal. But as they walk through a production of a play about a murderous psychopath known as the Night Owl, they soon learn that an escaped mental patient has found his way inside the theater and wants to take the concept of method acting to a whole new level.
Perfect for any horror fan who appreciates a movie that tries something different, Stage Fright is not afraid to spread its wings and let loose. While you could argue that the movie is squarely in the style-over-substance camp, it would be hard to find a reason to complain about it. There’s a tremendous amount of bloody fun to be had while watching this fast-paced and thrilling slasher. If that doesn’t convince you, maybe the killer sporting a large owl mask will. Who can argue against that?
You can stream Stage Fright on Tubi.
The Final Terror

With a brisk runtime of just 82 minutes, The Final Terror might seem like an afterthought, but this underrated slasher movie is anything but. Wasting very little time, the movie sprints right out of the gate with not one but two kills that quickly let it be known that it’s not playing around. The Final Terror follows a small group of campers who soon discover that they may have stumbled into the wrong woods. What begins as a peaceful hike quickly turns into a nightmare. As they begin to be picked apart by an unseen force, the group of campers must work together or risk having the woods be their final resting place.
The Final Terror isn’t going to wow anybody with jaw-dropping visuals or a truly compelling killer, but it excels as an enjoyable slasher that never takes itself too seriously. Just don’t expect it to be one of the 10 best horror movies list according to IMDB. It’s a fun little movie that transforms into a survival horror as the bodies start to pile up. With a script co-written by Alien writer Ronald Shusett and the vision of The Fugitive director Andrew Davis, this is one forgotten slasher that you should definitely uncover.
You can stream The Final Terror on Tubi.
Tourist Trap

Don’t you just hate when you’re on a road trip and are forced to take a quick pit stop at a unique-looking roadside attraction only to learn a deranged lunatic is lurking inside its walls? That’s exactly what happens in Tourist Trap. The 1979 underrated slasher gem from David Schmoeller and J. Larry Carroll follows a group of young people who stumble upon a roadside museum filled with mannequins, run by Mr. Slausen (Chuck Connors), a lonely curmudgeon who resents the fact that his establishment has been forgotten about by passersby. While the group of friends are reassured by Mr. Slausen and his desire to help them, they soon find themselves in a twisted game of cat and mouse with a killer with psychokinetic powers.
Tourist Trap is a disturbing and oftentimes mind-boggling experience that deserves to not be forgotten about. A film that takes the basic concept of coeds being killed and throws that concept deep into a fever dream. While Mr. Slausen is a rich character with a mysterious backstory, it’s his creepy mannequins that steal the show. They are hypnotizing and truly unsettling elements that will be burned into your memory. On the bright side, it will certainly help you remember Tourist Trap.
You can stream Tourist Trap on Amazon Prime.
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