The 1970s remain a ‘Golden Age’ for a lot many reasons. This decade gave us both vinyls and cassettes, disco music, and a plethora of new generation horror films. Marked by memorable events like the break up of The Beatles, the death of Elvis, political scandals, and street protests, novelist Tom Wolfe rightly termed the time as the ‘Me Decade’, given the heavy shift of public ideology from communitarianism to individualism. Although American horror films ruled this decade, movies all around the world introduced a modern-age influence showcasing to the world that horror movies can be artistic. Although it was clear that 60s horror played a significant role in shaping the releases of the 70s, the latter gave us truly iconic films we cannot forget.
At the top of these films stand the likes of Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), The Amityville Horror (1979), Halloween and Friday the 13th franchises and the start of many years that would revere Stephen King as the one true pioneer of horror. Themes of insanity, children possessed or influenced by the Devil, supernatural forces and telepathy became very common and were stimulating for fans who enjoyed a good scare. According to Peter Vronsky, a criminal justice lawyer, most serial killings started in the beginning of the 70s and lasted till about the late 90s. This heavily impacted the films that were released in the time being as slasher horror was a subgenre that gained immense popularity.
Despite people’s peaked interest in the genre during this time, there were some gems that went unnoticed and today we will be recalling some of those forgotten horror films that made the 70s the thrill that they were.
0:00 Intro
2:38 The Creeping Flesh (1973)
6:04 Deranged (1974)
9:15 Stranger in Our House
12:33 Sisters (1972)
16:16 Willard (1971)
19:24 Vampyres (1974)
21:54 Fascination (1979)
24:07 The Legend of Hell House (1973)
27:23 House (1977)
30:05 Tourist Trap (1979)
33:08 The Manitou (1978)
35:54 The Shout (1978)
