1981 Slasher Films
by aidan_phantom | created - 20 Jan 2011 | updated - 05 Oct 2015 | PublicThis is a COMPLETE list of slasher films which includes hybrid slashers as well.
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1. Absurd (1981)
Not Rated | 90 min | Horror
A priest-doctor chasing a man with supernatural regenerative abilities, who has recently escaped from a medical lab, reaches a small town where the mutant goes on a killing spree.
Director: Joe D'Amato | Stars: George Eastman, Annie Belle, Charles Borromel, Katya Berger
Votes: 3,551
A semi sequel to Antropophagus.
2. Bloody Birthday (1981)
R | 85 min | Horror, Thriller
Three children are born at the height of an eclipse of the sun. Ten years later, they begin to murder the people around them - even their family members.
Director: Ed Hunt | Stars: Lori Lethin, Melinda Cordell, Julie Brown, Joe Penny
Votes: 5,674
3. Bloody Moon (1981)
Not Rated | 90 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Girls are killed at a language-school in Spain.
Director: Jesús Franco | Stars: Olivia Pascal, Christoph Moosbrugger, Nadja Gerganoff, Jasmin Losensky
Votes: 2,789
4. The Burning (1981)
R | 91 min | Horror
A former summer camp caretaker, horribly burned from a prank gone wrong, lurks around an upstate New York summer camp bent on killing the teenagers responsible for his disfigurement.
Director: Tony Maylam | Stars: Brian Matthews, Leah Ayres, Brian Backer, Larry Joshua
Votes: 22,288
5. Corpse Mania (1981)
81 min | Crime, Horror, Mystery
A necrophiliac killer is murdering the prostitutes at Madame Lan's brothel.
Director: Chih-Hung Kuei | Stars: Ni Tien, Jung Wang, Tsui-Ling Yu, Siu-Kwan Lau
Votes: 447
Corpse Mania
6. Dark Night of the Scarecrow (1981 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 96 min | Horror
In a small Southern town, four vigilantes wrongfully execute a mentally-challenged man, but after the court sets them free mysterious "accidents" begin to kill them off one by one.
Director: Frank De Felitta | Stars: Charles Durning, Robert F. Lyons, Claude Earl Jones, Lane Smith
Votes: 8,212
7. A Day of Judgment (1981)
92 min | Drama, Horror
In the 1920s, a man in black rides into a small Southern town to visit retribution upon the citizens who have strayed from the path of righteousness and religion. He does this, of course, by killing them in various bloody ways.
Director: Charles Reynolds | Stars: William Hicks, Harris Bloodworth, Deborah Bloodworth, Susan Bloodworth
Votes: 313
8. Deadly Blessing (1981)
R | 100 min | Horror, Thriller
After her husband dies under mysterious circumstances, a widow becomes increasingly paranoid of the neighboring religious community that may have diabolical plans for her.
Director: Wes Craven | Stars: Maren Jensen, Sharon Stone, Susan Buckner, Jeff East
Votes: 6,993 | Gross: $8.28M
9. The Demon (1981)
R | 94 min | Horror
Random people are terrorized by a malevolent man wearing a black leather glove with razor-fingers, who brings their worst fears to life.
Director: Percival Rubens | Stars: Jennifer Holmes, Cameron Mitchell, Craig Gardner, Zoli Marki
Votes: 1,040
10. Don't Go in the Woods (1981)
R | 82 min | Horror, Thriller
Four friends camping in the woods inadvertently stumble upon the domain of a maniacal killer.
Director: James Bryan | Stars: Nick Cleland, Mary Gail Artz, James P. Hayden, Angie Brown
Votes: 3,502
11. Don't Go Near the Park (1979)
R | 80 min | Horror
Two siblings cursed in prehistoric times survive for millennia by feasting on the entrails of young people, prowling in what eventually becomes a park in contemporary Los Angeles.
Director: Lawrence David Foldes | Stars: Aldo Ray, Meeno Peluce, Tammy Taylor, Barbara Bain
Votes: 870
12. Evilspeak (1981)
R | 97 min | Horror
An outcast military cadet taps into a way to summon demons and cast spells on his tormentors through his computer.
Director: Eric Weston | Stars: Clint Howard, R.G. Armstrong, Joe Cortese, Claude Earl Jones
Votes: 4,888
13. Eyes of a Stranger (1981)
R | 84 min | Horror, Thriller
A news anchorwoman begins to suspect a man living in the same apartment complex as her to be the serial killer that's been raping and killing women in the Miami area.
Director: Ken Wiederhorn | Stars: Lauren Tewes, Jennifer Jason Leigh, John DiSanti, Peter DuPre
Votes: 3,185 | Gross: $1.12M
14. The Fan (1981)
R | 95 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Douglas, a record salesman, is an obsessive fan of actress Sally Ross. When his letters are rejected, he strikes out at her and her loved ones.
Director: Ed Bianchi | Stars: Lauren Bacall, James Garner, Michael Biehn, Maureen Stapleton
Votes: 2,846
15. Final Exam (1981)
R | 89 min | Horror, Thriller
A psycho killer shows up on college campus to slash up pretty co-eds and dumb jocks.
Director: Jimmy Huston | Stars: Cecile Bagdadi, Joel S. Rice, Ralph Brown, DeAnna Robbins
Votes: 4,625
16. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
R | 87 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Five years after the events of the first film, a summer camp next to the infamous Camp Crystal Lake is preparing to open, but the legend of Jason is weighing heavy on the proceedings.
Director: Steve Miner | Stars: Betsy Palmer, Amy Steel, John Furey, Adrienne King
Votes: 77,795 | Gross: $21.72M
17. The Funhouse (1981)
R | 96 min | Horror
Four teenagers visit a local carnival for a night of innocent amusement, but soon discover that nothing there is innocent or amusing.
Director: Tobe Hooper | Stars: Elizabeth Berridge, Shawn Carson, Jeanne Austin, Jack McDermott
Votes: 16,289 | Gross: $7.89M
18. Graduation Day (1981)
R | 96 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A masked killer begins murdering students on the school track team after a track runner dies upon completion of a 30 second 200-meter race.
Director: Herb Freed | Stars: Christopher George, Patch Mackenzie, E. Danny Murphy, E.J. Peaker
Votes: 4,894 | Gross: $23.89M
19. Halloween II (1981)
R | 92 min | Horror
While Dr. Loomis hunts for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and The Shape is not far behind her.
Director: Rick Rosenthal | Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Charles Cyphers, Jeffrey Kramer
Votes: 101,739 | Gross: $25.53M
20. The Hand (1981)
R | 104 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A comic book artist loses his hand, which in turn takes on a murderous life of its own.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Michael Caine, Andrea Marcovicci, Annie McEnroe, Bruce McGill
Votes: 6,709 | Gross: $2.45M
21. Happy Birthday to Me (1981)
R | 110 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
At the snobby Crawford Academy, Virginia's group of friends start to go missing years after horrible events that happened to her as a child around her birthday.
Director: J. Lee Thompson | Stars: Melissa Sue Anderson, Glenn Ford, Lawrence Dane, Sharon Acker
Votes: 11,237
22. Hell Night (1981)
R | 101 min | Horror, Thriller
Four college pledges are forced to spend the night in a deserted old mansion, where they are stalked by the monstrous survivor of a family massacre years earlier.
Director: Tom DeSimone | Stars: Linda Blair, Vincent Van Patten, Peter Barton, Kevin Brophy
Votes: 8,771
23. Home Sweet Home (1981)
TV-PG | 85 min | Horror
An escaped mental patient steals a station wagon and makes his way to the Bradleys' Thanksgiving celebration, where he plans to make them a little less thankful...
Director: Nettie Peña | Stars: Jake Steinfeld, Vinessa Shaw, Peter De Paula, Don Edmonds
Votes: 892
24. The House by the Cemetery (1981)
Not Rated | 86 min | Horror
A New England home is terrorized by a series of murders, unbeknownst to the guests that a gruesome secret is hiding in the basement.
Director: Lucio Fulci | Stars: Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni, Giovanni Frezza
Votes: 16,263
25. Just Before Dawn (1981)
R | 90 min | Horror, Thriller
Five young people venture into the backwoods of Oregon to claim a property, and find themselves being stalked by a hulking, machete-wielding psychopath.
Director: Jeff Lieberman | Stars: George Kennedy, Mike Kellin, Chris Lemmon, Gregg Henry
Votes: 7,144
26. Lady, Stay Dead (1981)
95 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A Young woman is looking after her sister's house, unaware that her sister and neighbor have been murdered by their handyman who also happens to be a serial killer.
Director: Terry Bourke | Stars: Chard Hayward, Louise Howitt, Deborah Coulls, Roger Ward
Votes: 514
27. My Bloody Valentine (1981)
R | 90 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A decades-old folk tale surrounding a deranged murderer killing those who celebrate Valentine's Day turns out to be true to legend when a group defies the killer's order and people start turning up dead.
Director: George Mihalka | Stars: Paul Kelman, Lori Hallier, Neil Affleck, Keith Knight
Votes: 25,109 | Gross: $5.67M
28. The Nesting (1981)
R | 103 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A writer suffering from agoraphobia rents an isolated house so she can concentrate on her writing. She doesn't know that the house is a former brothel, and is inhabited by the ghosts of dead prostitutes.
Director: Armand Weston | Stars: Robin Groves, Christopher Loomis, Michael David Lally, John Carradine
Votes: 1,658
29. Night School (1981)
R | 88 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Who's been decapitating the innocent girls at a local night school? The police are baffled.
Director: Ken Hughes | Stars: Leonard Mann, Rachel Ward, Drew Snyder, Joseph R. Sicari
Votes: 3,255 | Gross: $1.17M
30. Nightmare (1981)
R | 97 min | Horror
A mental patient embarks on a murder spree upon escaping from an institution.
Director: Romano Scavolini | Stars: Baird Stafford, Sharon Smith, C.J. Cooke, Mik Cribben
Votes: 4,434
Nightmares in a Damaged Brain
31. No Place to Hide (1981 TV Movie)
100 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Amy is the Mannings only daughter. After the death of her rich father, she lives together with her stepmother. Recently she sees a man in black following her, waiting for her in her car, ... See full summary »
Director: John Llewellyn Moxey | Stars: Mariette Hartley, Kathleen Beller, Arlen Dean Snyder, Gary Graham
Votes: 383
32. The Prowler (1981)
R | 89 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
An unknown killer, clad in World War II U.S. Army fatigues, stalks a small California town, bent on reliving a 35 year-old double murder by focusing on a group of college kids holding an annual graduation dance.
Director: Joseph Zito | Stars: Vicky Dawson, Christopher Goutman, Lawrence Tierney, Farley Granger
Votes: 13,007
33. Scream (1981)
R | 82 min | Horror, Mystery
A group of friends on a rafting trip down a river stop in at an old ghost town to spend the night. Soon their rafts disappear, and then they begin to be eliminated one by one by a mysterious killer.
Director: Byron Quisenberry | Stars: Pepper Martin, Hank Worden, Ethan Wayne, Ann Bronston
Votes: 917 | Gross: $1.08M
34. Strange Behavior (1981)
R | 87 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A scientist is experimenting with teenagers and turning them into murderers.
Director: Michael Laughlin | Stars: Michael Murphy, Louise Fletcher, Dan Shor, Fiona Lewis
Votes: 2,411
35. Student Bodies (1981)
R | 86 min | Comedy, Horror, Mystery
A serial killer with his signature heavy breathing proceeds to systematically kill the students and teachers of Lamab high school.
Directors: Mickey Rose, Michael Ritchie | Stars: Kristen Riter, Matthew Goldsby, Jerry Belson, Joe Flood
Votes: 5,366 | Gross: $5.17M
36. Madhouse (1981)
Not Rated | 92 min | Horror
A woman is pursued by her murderous, psychopathic twin sister in the days leading up to their birthday.
Director: Ovidio G. Assonitis | Stars: Patricia Mickey, Michael MacRae, Dennis Robertson, Morgan Most
Votes: 2,525
Madhouse
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