20 Horror Movies That Were Way Too Cruel
17. Prom Night (1980)
Prom Night is one of the most influential films of the slasher genre's heyday. It opens with several children accidentally causing a little girl to fall to her death and making a pact not to tell anyone (this story was probably the template for I Know What You Did Last Summer). Six years later, on prom night, a masked figure goes on a killing spree which appears to be targeting those responsible.
Despite its iconic status, Prom Night is a pretty mediocre flick for most of its run-time. It's all fairly whatever stuff right up until the ending, where it becomes unexpectedly uncomfortable. During the climax, protagonist Kim (played by Jamie Lee Curtis, who else?), who is the older sister of the girl who died at the beginning, is attacked by the killer alongside her prom date, Nick (Casey Stevens). She manages to fatally wound the killer before they murder Nick, and then the attacker is unmasked as her brother, Alex (Michael Tough). As the movie ends, Kim cradles Alex's body and weeps.
Kim had already lost one sibling, and now, she's accidentally killed her other surviving sibling too. Thanks to this oddly melodramatic ending, the movie ends on a sour note, contrasting with what was otherwise fairly light-hearted horror fare in the worst kind-of way.