10 Syfy Original Horror Movies That Actually Aren't Awful
There's more to Syfy than perplexing animal hybrids, you know.
At a glance it may seem like every single Syfy original movie features a shark. Many of us are unlucky enough to have been exposed to one of the Sharknado films at some stage, though this tale of a freak cyclone flooding the streets of LA with shark infested sea water is just the tip of the iceberg. Ghost Shark, Sand Sharks, Avalanche Sharks, Shark in Venice - think of an impossible situation involving a shark and there is a good chance that Syfy already made a movie out of it.
That said, with the amount of films that Syfy dutifully churn out for fans of the B-movie year upon year, it is hardly surprising that not every idea is an Oscar winner. Since 2001 the channel has made and premiered over 200 movies, most of which were either horror, sci-fi, or a mixture of both. While most of these pictures are sold on the offer of simple escapist fun with a few jumps thrown in, a few Syfy films dare to take themselves a little seriously.
Most of the productions Syfy give the green light to are based on budgets of between $1 and $2 million dollars, and while that is a huge amount of money to the common man, in the film world it remains a pittance. Budget has to be taken into account when judging the success of a film as Syfy channel stalwart John Rhys-Davies has pointed out on more than one occasion, and the following films used the money available to them to create horror pictures that aren't as awful as you might think...
10. Pumpkinhead: Blood Feud
Syfy Air Date: February 10, 2007
Pumpkinhead is something of a rarity in that he is great movie monster that has somehow never been the focus of a great movie. Created by legendary special effects man Stan Winston, the original Pumpkinhead film was panned upon release in 1988, with the blame put onto Winston for refusing to hand the creation over to a director and helming the movie himself.
When Winston did relent and pass the Pumpkinhead torch he probably lived to wish that he hadn't, because things went from bad to worse with 1994 sequel Blood Wings. It wasn't until Syfy gained control of the franchise and announced two new sequels that it finally made steps in the right direction.
2006's Ashes To Ashes was a largely forgettable exercise in reestablishing the character, though the demon of vengeance was finally done some semblance of justice the following year with Blood Feud. The film, while nothing groundbreaking, is a modestly enjoyable slasher that makes the most of its R-rating.
The titular demon hacks, slashes and stabs his way through the Hatfield family, summoned to do so by Ricky McCoy, who blames the rival family for the death of his sister. By the end of proceedings a number of McCoys have also fallen victim to Pumpkinhead's vicious rampage, and the viewer cannot help but get behind the families as they team up to take the battle to the villain.