10 Most Underappreciated '80s Horror Movies

9. Razorback

Pumpkinhead 1988
Warner Bros.

A good ol' creature feature, the 'big bad' of 1984's Razorback is a ravenous, murderous wild boar that's tearing its way through the Australian outback.

Viewed by some as pulling loose inspiration from the real-life tragedy that saw nine-week-old Azaria Chamberlain killed by a dingo, Razorback opens with Jake Cullen's grandson being butchered by the crazed titular beast. And much like Azaria's mother Lindy, some believe that Jake actually murdered this youngster.

Despite being acquitted of a murder charge due to lack of evidence, Jake is out to clear his name and track down this damn hog. Added to that, the death of a US journalist by this creature brings her husband Carl Winters out to Oz, and he soon ends up joining Cullen's crusade. Throw in the subplot of some questionable practices of a local pet food producer, and that's the basis of what's a hugely enjoyable horror picture with some brilliantly lit, slightly trippy tension and kills.

Interestingly, the legendary Jeff Bridges would miss out on that Carl Winters role to a Gregory Harrison who was at that point best known for Logan's Run and Trapper John, M.D. The reason why the future Academy Award winner (and the Dude...) was passed over for that gig? That's because producer Hal McElroy thought he lacked the appeal to penetrate any international markets.

In this post: 
Pumpkinhead
 
Posted On: 
Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.