Set in the early 1970s, The Conjuring reminded everyone that the decade was filled with scary sights for unsuspecting families, whether real or born of the imagination. Horror fans today are familiar with movie classics such as The Exorcist, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, The Last House on the Left, Carrie, Halloween and Black Christmas, but what about some of the freakier fright flicks?
We've selected a handful of the wilder tales to get started, but what are we missing? What are your favorite, unsung gems of horror from the 1970s? Let us know in the comments section!
Eraserhead (1977)
The feature debut of visionary filmmaker David Lynch is a trippy experience that relies less on its ostensible "plot" -- which, for what it's worth, revolves around a hapless soul played by Jack Nance -- than on its unique, ultimately absorbing mixture of sounds and visuals. It's not the usual kind of horror movie, but it slowly plays on the nerves until it becomes quite frightening and unsettling.
House (1977)
The premise may sound familiar: seven young women visit an isolated house on a summer trip, where they discover ghosts and ghouls. Now here's the twist: it's a comedy! And another twist: these creatures are unlike any you've seen before! To begin with, Nobuhiko Ôbayashi's film reflects its Japanese heritage, which makes it different for those not familiar with Asian ghost stories. But the fun only starts there.
The Visitor (1979)
This is a very bizarre movie, but at its core, it's a would-be horror-thriller. A secret council of wealthy businessmen want to tighten their grip on worldwide power by controlling the 'very special' offspring of a certain woman. How special? How about murdering children just for fun? Or somehow inspiring a hawk to cause an automobile accident? It bears repeating: this is a very bizarre movie! Glenn Ford, Shelley Winters, John Huston and Mel Ferrer lead the cast.
The Crazies (1973)
The 2010 remake is far more straightforward -- and, to be sure, more intense and suspenseful -- than George A. Romero's 1973 original, which comments acidly on both oppressive governmental and military activities, as well as counterculture groups that are unable to ever get their act together. Viewed today, the "crazies" appear less clinically insane than simply freaky and unfocused, making the horror elements all the more harrowing.
Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1973)
Bob Clark, who would later direct the raunchy comedy Porky's and the heartwarming A Christmas Story, made a trio of unrelated horror films in the early 1970s that have stood the test of time. First came Deathdream, a Vietnam War-themed zombie movie. Next, Clark and writer Alan Ormsby came up with this thriller, mixing comedy with horror as a theater group deals with a zombie uprising. It's not entirely successfuly, but the parts that work are wonderfully macabre and, yes, truly freaky. Clark's next movie stuck to suspense: Black Christmas.
