10 Horror Movies That Deserved To Become Cult Classics (But Didn’t)
A selection of classy genre movies, which are all too often mistakenly overlooked.
The horror movie genre has one of the most fanatically dedicated fan bases; a fanbase which often passionately follows franchises that have spewed out decades worth of sequels, loyally soaking up whatever is served, while defending their favourite series no matter the quality. It’s also a genre which has produced more cult classics than any other, movies that never quite found their success at the box office, and which have taken a little more time to find their true devoted following.
When the Halloween producers intended to move away from their iconic antagonist Michael Myers with the idea of trying something new, they delivered their third instalment, Season of the Witch (1982). Once that threequel was released, the backlash from fans unable to comprehend a Halloween picture without the masked killer left the movie sitting as the ugly duckling in the series.
However, Season of the Witch is now looked back upon much more fondly, and is a true example of a horror film that has found its cult status long after it was first dismissed by fans. Here are ten examples of other movies which should also be considered cult classics today, but sadly have still not quite received the appreciation they deserve.
10. The Gate
A charming fantasy horror with an almost all child/teenage cast, The Gate (1987) threw into the melting pot influences from movies such as Poltergeist (1982), Weird Science (1985) and Labyrinth (1986). The end result is a film which should be looked back on with nostalgic glory, but is one that unfortunately got nudged out of the limelight by the plethora of other fine movies from the era.
The Gate stars a young Stephen Dorff (Blade) as an adolescent boy who is left home alone with his older teenage sister, while their parents take a weekend trip away. But the recent removal of a large tree in their garden has unwittingly opened a gateway to a hellish dimension, and the siblings are in for a shocking surprise as their house becomes over-run with demons and a supernatural force.
When looking back, the effects are fairly basic and cheesy throughout, but this really only adds to the modest charm of a genre movie which deserves to be considered a cult classic, as The Gate is a fine representation of '80s shtick. There are a number of memorable scenes, and the film has plenty to offer as a gateway horror movie which will whet the appetite of younger blossoming fans of the genre. It’s short, sharp and paced well from start to finish, and decades later The Gate still remains a lot of fun to re-watch