It may seem strange to some people but there is an undeniable joy in watching films that are “so bad, it’s good”. Popular examples of these bad but enjoyable films would be The Room, Sharknado, the movies of Ed Wood etc. Since I’ve begun watching horror films again, particularly since I started watching whole franchises, I’ve come across several films that, while bad in their own way, are nonetheless enjoyable, particularly with friends. Given that, I thought it might be interesting to share some of the bad horror movies that I’ve seen that I really love to watch.
The genesis of this idea started when I was watching The Texas Chainsaw Massacre films and saw Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation. The movie is appallingly bad and is often listed by Texas Chainsaw Massacre fans as being the worst film in the franchise. While I do believe that, objectively speaking, it is the worst film in the franchise, it transcends into the territory of being so bad that it’s good. The writing is so bizarre that you find yourself constantly surprised and laughing at the character interactions whether they be the family or the protagonists. The so-called scenes of horror are also particularly funny with one scene halfway through the film sending me into hysterics because of how poorly executed it was. While it is a terrible film, it’s one that I end up enjoying every time I see it, whether that be by myself or with others who are experiencing it for the first time.
I recently ended up watching the Leprechaun films after seeing The Other Session do a Leprechaun marathon and, while it could be argued that several of them could make this list, the film in particular that I want to point out is Leprechaun 4 in Space. After three films of watching the Leprechaun terrorise North Dakota, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Trimark decided that it made perfect sense to produce a sci-fi Leprechaun film which sees the Leprechaun hunting space marines through a spaceship. While some of the special effects are laughably bad and the characters are, for the most part, one-dimensional, there is enough wackiness and insanity happening on screen that you can’t help but find yourself laughing at the madness.
My next choice is a bit odd in that I don’t necessarily see it as a bad movie. However, I understand that a lot of other fans of the Child’s Play franchise disagree with me so I thought I’d include Seed of Chucky. On one hand, I can understand why a lot of fans didn’t care for it. The horror element of the franchise takes such a backseat that the film is almost entirely a comedy while many of the characters are bland with little to interest you in them. However, I adored the interaction between Chucky and Tiffany in Bride of Chucky and I continued to love the way that they bounced off of each other in this film, something which I think was sadly lacking in future films. I also loved Jennifer Tilly’s performance in this film as both Tiffany Valentine and a fictionalised version of herself and I even thought that Glen was an interesting character that I hope we see again someday.
The last film that I want to bring attention to is unlike the others in that it isn’t part of a franchise. I recently watched a variety of Wes Craven films, 15 he directed to be exact, and one that stood out as being so bad that it’s good was his film Shocker. The first third of the film is easily the weakest as it feels like a standard slasher film but, as it continues, the movie gets increasingly more and more crazy until it climaxes with a scene that is so bonkers but well executed that it’s stood out as being one of the most enjoyable moments I’ve seen in any film recently. While there are much better Wes Craven movies to watch, I’d particularly recommend The People Under The Stairs as an underrated classic, I also can’t wait to show people Shocker and see their reaction.
While I believe that horror is a medium that can go toe to toe with others when it comes to quality, themes and storytelling, I do find myself craving an enjoyably bad movie every so often and these are some of my favourites. Let me know your thoughts on bad horror movies that I really love to watch, which ones you’ve seen and what you thought of them, other horror movies that you’ve seen that you thought were so bad that they transcended into being enjoyable experiences and have become films that you love to watch and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!