10 Awesome Horror Movies Under 80 Minutes
5. The Amusement Park
The shortest film on this list by a nose also has by far the most fascinating production history.
George A. Romero's The Amusement Park was originally produced as an educational film about elder abuse and ageism, yet once Romero completed production the financiers opted to shelve it due to Romero's edgier-than-expected approach.
Gee, who could've seen that coming from the guy who gave the world Night of the Living Dead?
The 54-minute film - shot over the course of just three days - was largely believed to be lost until a 16mm print was sent to Romero in 2017, shortly before his death.
And last year, following an extensive 4K restoration process, The Amusement Park was finally released to the world at large on horror streaming Shudder.
While it would've surprised nobody if the end result was a calamitous mess, it was ultimately widely revered by both Romero die-hards and general horror fans.
Even with its rough technical edges - having been produced for just $37,000 - this is a genuinely disturbing socially conscious horror about the perils of ageing and society's upsetting disdain for the elderly.
Lead actor Lincoln Maazel, who sadly passed away in 2009 at age 106 (!) before the film was widely distributed, gives a masterful performance in the role of an aged man being stepped on by most everyone around him.
It may not be subtle, but it's genuinely visceral, heartbreaking stuff, and a welcome final gem of a film from one of the genre's undeniable masters. Plus, with such a short runtime you can watch the entire thing on your lunch break.