12 Most Underrated Horror Movies Of The 1970s

Every decade brings with it a plethora of its own unique scary films to challenge and scare audiences, and the 1970s was a massive decade for the expansion of horror.

Horror movies began to get more aggressive and ruthless with more blood, hard-hitting themes, and penchant for being banned due to obscenity. It's often stated the 1970s was the birth of the Modern Era of horror where the world was shown these films could be artistic, thought-provoking, and a focus on scaring the viewer psychologically.

Then there were the many films that challenged the ideology of the time such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Last House on the Left involving people going into a strange land they shouldn't be in, a commentary of the Vietnam war.

The first Stephen King adaption in 1976 Carrie was released. Alien, Dawn of the Dead, Suspiria, The Wicker Man, all of these and more are horror masterpieces and helped gain the often-overlooked genre some respect. The '70's also gifted us Jaws, The Exorcist, and Halloween that gained mainstream box-office success for the genre too.

The following, however, are 10 horror films not as well known as these massive hits. None-the-less they deserve praise for just how effective they are, showcasing some of the best scares the '70s have to offer.

Just nipping in before the end of the decade is this supernatural slasher that follows a group of ill-fated young people who happen upon a roadside museum filled with killer mannequins.

Surprisingly overlooked, Tourist Trap elevates its by-the-numbers plot by being off the wall insane for the majority of its runtime, while also chilling you to the bone with its superb villains. The masked killer not only sports a deeply unsettling look, but his method of killing is not your typical slasher fare.

The forever-frozen, disturbing faces of the living dummies are guaranteed nightmare fuel, but there are so many things going on at once the film feels more like a crazed fever dream that somehow holds a dreaded atmosphere throughout. It carefully chooses elements from many other horror films of the time, to create a fantastic blend of sub-genres to become something unique.

Often compared to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre for it look and feel, the production design is fantastic and every scene feels purposefully framed to be as suffocating as possible, with any of the hundreds of mannequins ready to pounce at a given moment.

It's an under-rated, anxiety-riddled freakshow that shouldn't be missed.