10 Best 80s Horror Movies You Probably Haven't Seen

As you can tell from this list, a lot of 80s horror movies are fun, gory and campy that border on “so bad, it’s good”. However, if you’re looking for a 80s horror that goes straight for pure horror, then look no further that Peter Medak’s The Changeling.

The film centres on John Russell (George C. Scott), a recently widowed composer, who moves into a sinister and enormous mansion. After a number of strange encounters and odd going-ons, he begins to investigate the mansion’s strange history.

Seen as one of the archetypal “haunted house” movies, the film has been regarded as a blueprint for many popular successor movies, including The Conjuring, Paranormal Activity and The Others.

What’s so special about the movie is that it executes classic scares (like a ball being bounced down the stars and creaking doors opening) without ever making them feel rehashed or overused - instead more a love letter to the films that came before.

With exceptional performances by its leads (particularly Scott), The Changeling is a chilling, scary horror that relies on atmosphere and mood rather than cheap gore and jump scares.