# The best horror movies of the 1980s

The decade of Carpenter, Craven, Cronenberg and Clive Barker: the 80s horror films that top critics' rankings (Rotten Tomatoes, The A.V. Club).

- 63 votes · 12 items
- Nov 2, 2025 · Mitchell King
- https://even.best/en/l/1894/the-best-horror-movies-of-the-1980s

## Top 12

1. **The Thing (1982)** (8 · ▲8 ▼0) — John Carpenter's Antarctic paranoia and Rob Bottin's effects.
2. **The Shining (1980)** (7 · ▲8 ▼1) — Kubrick, Jack Nicholson and the Overlook Hotel.
3. **Evil Dead II (1987)** (5 · ▲6 ▼1) — Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell's horror slapstick.
4. **Poltergeist (1982)** (5 · ▲5 ▼0) — «They're here»: the haunted suburban house.
5. **Hellraiser (1987)** (4 · ▲5 ▼1) — Clive Barker's Pinhead and the puzzle box.
6. **A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)** (3 · ▲4 ▼1) — Wes Craven creates Freddy Krueger.
7. **The Evil Dead (1981)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — The cabin in the woods that started it all.
8. **Videodrome (1983)** (1 · ▲4 ▼3) — Cronenberg's nightmare about television and the flesh.
9. **The Fog (1980)** (1 · ▲3 ▼2) — John Carpenter, a coastal town and the ghosts in the fog.
10. **The Fly (1986)** (1 · ▲2 ▼1) — David Cronenberg and Jeff Goldblum's slow transformation.
11. **An American Werewolf in London (1981)** (-1 · ▲1 ▼2) — John Landis and Rick Baker's Oscar-winning transformation.
12. **The Lost Boys (1987)** (-3 · ▲0 ▼3) — Teenage vampires in Santa Carla.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.