Criterion Channel Kicks Off October With Tribute To 80s Horror Classics

The 30 film series will include classics and cult features such as Cat People, Scanners and Near Dark.

By Amber T · @hornbloodfire · September 22, 2022, 4:29 PM EDT
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Kathryn Bigelow's Near Dark will be one of the many 80s classics hitting the Criterion Channel.

Heralded by many as horror’s most iconic era, the 1980s delivered a hefty helping of classics, from The Thing to A Nightmare on Elm Street to Hellraiser. The era is famed for experimentation, creativity and also for birthing many of the tropes we hold dear today.

In honor of this monumental decade, starting on October 1st, the Criterion Channel be streaming thirty (yes, THIRTY) ‘80s horrors to see you through to Halloween.

Not only does the ‘80s Horror Series feature more well-known classics such as Cronenberg's Scanners, Criterion Channel subscribers can also check out those of a more cult variety, such as Larry Cohen’s monster movie Q: The Winged Serpent and Ken Russell’s kooky horror-comedy The Lair of the White Worm.

Lair of the White Worm

Fans of international cinema will be pleased to see some of the best horrors from across the globe, with Dario Argento's Inferno, Shinya Tsukamoto's Tetsuo: The Iron Man and George Sluizer's The Vanishing all featured in the lineup.

The collection (which was programmed by Clyde Folley) will have something for everyone, so whether if you’re into sci-fi, slashers, true crime, body horror, cyberpunk or (like us) you’re into horror of all shapes and sizes: this is one streaming event you won’t want to miss out on.

Check out the gargantuan list of features below:

  • Inferno, Dario Argento, 1980
  • The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne, Walerian Borowczyk, 1981
  • Dead & Buried, Gary Sherman, 1981
  • The House by the Cemetery, Lucio Fulci, 1981
  • The Funhouse, Tobe Hooper, 1981
  • Strange Behavior, Michael Laughlin, 1981
  • Wolfen, Michael Wadleigh, 1981
  • Scanners, David Cronenberg, 1981
  • Road Games, Richard Franklin, 1981
  • The Fan, Ed Bianchi, 1981
  • Basket Case, Frank Henenlotter, 1982
  • Next of Kin, Tony Williams, 1982
  • Cat People, Paul Schrader, 1982
  • Q: The Winged Serpent, Larry Cohen, 1982
  • The Slumber Party Massacre, Amy Holden Jones, 1982
  • The Keep, Michael Mann, 1983
  • The Hunger, Tony Scott, 1983
  • Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, John McNaughton, 1986
  • The Hidden, Jack Sholder, 1987
  • Prince of Darkness, John Carpenter, 1987
  • White of the Eye, Donald Cammell, 1987
  • Near Dark, Kathryn Bigelow, 1987
  • The Vanishing, George Sluizer, 1988
  • Brain Damage, Frank Henenlotter, 1988
  • Dream Demon, Harley Cokeliss, 1988
  • The Blob, Chuck Russell, 1988
  • Lair of the White Worm, Ken Russell, 1988
  • Vampire’s Kiss, Robert Bierman, 1989
  • Society, Brian Yuzna, 1989
  • Tetsuo: The Iron Man, Shinya Tsukamoto, 1989

Check out the teaser for the series over on the Criterion Channel, and get ready to celebrate the best of the '80s.