Horror in the 90s: Update on My Book Project

It's been a minute since I have offered an update on my long term book project Horror in the 90s. So, I thought I would do a quick update and assure those following my book journey that I have no abandoned the project in any way. With the holidays, and a major personal setback at the end of 2023, along with some obligations regarding awards season, things just had to be put on hold. Until now.

When we last left off on this journey through the horror genre in the 1990s, I had completed the first year of the project, 1990. 23 movies, 23 reviews. Below is a ranking and links to each review.

1990

1. Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer

2. Tales from the Dark Side The Movie

3. Nightbreed

4. Misery

5. Arachnophobia

6. Child's Play 2

7. Graveyard Shift

8. Tremors

9. Hardware

10. Shakma

11. The Exorcist 3

12. Mirror Mirror

13. Brain Dead

14. Night of the Living Dead

15. Leatherface Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3

16. Gremlins 2: The New Batch

17. The First Power

18. Jacob's Ladder

19. Frankenhooker

20. The Guardian

21. Frankenstein Unbound

22. Troll 2

23. Soultaker

First, let's talk about the best horror movie of 1990, Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer. I hear you complaining about the fact that the movie was made in 1986 and was even shown in theaters in a few places between 1986 and 1990. Nevertheless, I included it here because it received its only wide release exposure in 1990. The release of Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer fits firmly into the 1990s as the film was part of the impetus for the creation of the NC-17 rating, a still controversial rating created specifically for films aimed at an adult audience that is not distinctly or intentionally pornographic.

Also, Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer belongs on this list because it's legacy and influence in the horror genre and on the depiction of horrific realistic violence in film, did not begin until the film became widely available on its theatrical release and subsequent home video release. It was in the international home video release in late 1990/early 1991 when Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer sealed its reputation among fans.

The film was censored in release in 1991 in England and though it was repeatedly edited to remove some of the more horrific images, the film would gain traction among horror fans as a movie that they were not supposed to watch. It's a film with an outlaw reputation, a reputation that would become influential among hardcore horror fans who would champion the film and keep its reputation alive for years to come. That happened in the 1990s making Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer an influential horror movie of... the 1990s. So there, mythical person I made up.

The award for the biggest and best surprise of 1990 goes to Tales from the Dark Side: The Movie. I know that I had seen it before watching it for this project but something in my re-watch of this movie truly struck a chord. This is one of the best crafted horror anthologies that I have ever seen. That's a low bar, there aren't many great horror anthologies if we're being brutally honest. There will be two more covered in the rest of this decade, 1993's Body Bags and 1995's Tales from the Hood, and then nothing really happens in the realm of Horror anthologies until 2003. Horror anthologies were deeply out of favor in the 90s and that is part of what makes Tales from the Darkside: The Movie so special.

The worst horror movie of 1990 is not actually Soultaker, Troll 2, or Frankenstein Unbound. Those movies were made with no chance of being good. The truly worst horror movie of 1990 is The Guardian, a film made by a good director, William Friedkin, that fails on every level. I put it above Soultaker and Troll 2 because Friedkin gives The Guardian a professional veneer, but it's far less fun than the utterly bonkers and poignantly misguided Troll 2, Soultaker, and Frankenstein Unbound.

So, obviously, the next step is 1991 and I have already begun those steps. I am already several entries into 1991 including...

Warlock

Meet The Applegates

Popcorn

Silence of the Lambs

Nothing But Trouble

So what's next? There were only 14 wide release horror movies in 1991 so I am already well into the year. Coming soon...

The Haunted

Omen 4 The Awakening

Scissors

The Unborn

The Reflecting Skin

Bride of Re-Animator

Body Parts

Child’s Play 3

Freddy’s Dead The Final Nightmare

Two Evil Eyes

The People Under the Stairs

If you'd like to help support my book project, Horror in the 90s, you can leave donations here on Vocal. Making a monthly pledge here on Vocal also helps. I also have a Ko-Fi account where you can make a donation as well. Linked here. I still have a ways to go but serializing portions of the book here on Vocal is a great way for me to work out other elements of the book while trying to make a little money to support the project. Many of you have been wonderfully supportive along the way and I can't thank you enough for encouraging me to keep going.