Horror movies have certainly had an up and down ride through the years, but they never stay down long. 1979 was actually a rather interesting year for horror movies, and was fresh off the heels of the red hot Halloween, with Michael Myers. The success of this movie spurred a whole glut of horror movies and eventually the slasher film was a regular thing. The horror movies of 1979 were far from classics, but there were a few that are noteworthy. Here are the best of the year 1979.
The Fog - The Fog was a movie that was anticipated on a feral level by fans of the Halloween genre only because the great John Carpenter was directing. The movie itself was not really all that great, though it did have it’s moments. Even as a youngster watching a horror movie at the theater, the movie was more tension than delivery. It had a John Carpenter feeling to it, but the payoff never seemed to come. It was a movie that John Carpenter would likely want back given the chance, but it was still pretty decent overall.
The Brood - The Brood is one of David Cronenberg’s babies and it makes the list simply because of the little dwarf mutant killers that run around killing folks. These little creatures represent the creepiest beings ever in cinema in my opinion, and I would rather be attacked by the Alien Queen any day.
The Amityville Horror - This movie is a cult classic for the primary reason of being true for many years. Later, the actual “truth” part of the movie was proved wrong, but for many years this was the ultimate “true horror movie” for fans of the genre. It does not hold up very well today, but it is still creepy in certain parts.
Phantasm - Now Phantasm was a scary movie to me in 1979. I watched it the other day as a man, and it still was scary. The only difference was the fact that I also realized how weird it is. The tall man in Phantasm is one of the all time creepy old men in cinema, and the flying razor ball is a classic horror movie iconic vision. Phantasm was the movie you avoided on Halloween night for years, just because it was so darn creepy.
The Prophecy - Now this was seventies horror! A mutated grizzly bear that wants to eat humans wreaks havoc on a tribe of Indians, a scientist and crew, and the horrible big company that is polluting the water supply. Ironically, the mutated grizzly is created by that very water that is being polluted. This movie was seventies all the way. Horror movie with insane violence, and a political EPA statement to boot. The scene with the sleeping bag annually rates near the top of every horror kill list to this day. Watch it with the lights out, and you will understand why.
