Sep '18
70s vs 80s horror. A long discussed topic, though maybe losing its relevance the further in time we continue and the more distant those decades become. The way pre-70s horror really has no influence on me or my tastes, 70s-80s horror is an ancient relic to the current generation.
But anyway, that isn't really what this topic's about. I'm aging and out of touch and fine with that.
I'm team 80s horror all the way. The conundrum that I'm in is, for folks that prefer 70s horror, why? Yes, there's plenty to love from that decade. But dang. Aren't there more horror films from 1981 alone than the years 1970-1974 combined that are just....well, better? Yeah, I get that it's all subjective. And quality over quantity and all that. I dunno. What're your thoughts? How can you honestly prefer 70s horror as a whole, over 80s, when there's just not nearly as much to like? For collectors, wouldn't you agree your collection is made up of more 80s horror films than 70s?
I mean, I suppose if you own 100 films from the 80s but only 15 of them you rate, say, an 8/10, and own 20 films from the 70s and 15 of them you rate an 8/10....I suppose I can see one's point.
*partially inspired by Troma's 70s horror thread.
But anyway, that isn't really what this topic's about. I'm aging and out of touch and fine with that.
I'm team 80s horror all the way. The conundrum that I'm in is, for folks that prefer 70s horror, why? Yes, there's plenty to love from that decade. But dang. Aren't there more horror films from 1981 alone than the years 1970-1974 combined that are just....well, better? Yeah, I get that it's all subjective. And quality over quantity and all that. I dunno. What're your thoughts? How can you honestly prefer 70s horror as a whole, over 80s, when there's just not nearly as much to like? For collectors, wouldn't you agree your collection is made up of more 80s horror films than 70s?
I mean, I suppose if you own 100 films from the 80s but only 15 of them you rate, say, an 8/10, and own 20 films from the 70s and 15 of them you rate an 8/10....I suppose I can see one's point.
*partially inspired by Troma's 70s horror thread.
I suppose in the 70s, horror was still up and coming. You had some legitimately creepy films from that era, and if they weren't creepy, they were at least good stories. Then when the 80s came around, producers were more well aware of such a thing known as "horror fans", and they'd cater to the formulaic nature of what those people liked about these movies, leading to more exaggerated takes on these movies. More gore, more tits, and a general sense of debauchery about them that was relished by fans from this era.
You had a lot more humor thrown into the 80s movies, too. This could lead to a general lighter tone to most of them, which can also lead to a better replay value, especially when VHS was becoming a thing, and people would in fact rewatch these movies on home media.
I was talking with @der yesterday about the skate scene from the early 2000s. We were watching "Ridiculousness" (surprised that it's still going) and we thought of where all these skaters are now. I used to skate when I was a mid-teenager, but I'd notice more and more skaters became less about the skating and more about the crowds, and I think that type of metaphor can apply to this situation too. In the 80s, horror became the scene, and it started off strong, but then more people stopped caring about the actual horror aspect of these movies until they became jokes, and that's what led to the fucking 90s.
So I can see why someone would choose either one of these decades. 70s still had that lingering sense of class from the 60s, but 80s had more fun, colors, and abundance.