As much as we appreciateThe Shinings andThe Exorcistsof the World, sometimes there’s nothing truly better than a good “bad"horrormovie. Over-the-top horror movies, while they often result from marketing disasters or odd tonal mishaps, can also be something created quite intentionally, leading to truly mesmerizing results.
We wouldn’t have demented classics likeThe EvilDead IIwere it not for the gloriously over-the-top minds of people like Sam Raimi. Over-the-top horror movies can be a joyous thrill ride, but also a bit dreadful to watch, if they take themselves too seriously - it definitely becomes a toss-up. For better or for worse, these are a few of the most over-the-top horror films of all time, ranked in no particular order.
Related:The 10 Most Disturbing Horror Movies of All Time
Updated on August 20, 2025, by Gargi Chatterjee:This article has been updated with additional content to keep the discussion fresh and relevant with even more information and new entries.
13The Happening (2008)
M. Night Shyamalan is responsiblefor some of the most iconic horror and suspense films of the past twenty years - unfortunately, 2008’sThe Happeningis not one of them. Rife with some of the most over-the-top performances of the decade, the film follows the victims of an airborne toxic disaster that mysteriously drives people to suicide.
Despite its promising premise and intriguing trailer, the film was relentlessly lampooned for its poor acting and script. Mark Wahlberg feels critically miscast as a teacher in the film, and his performance, along with what exactly Shyamalan was going for, is just confusing. Unlike the legendary finale inThe Sixth Sense, people also found the “twist” here to be just a tad too ridiculous.
12Snakes on a Plane (2006)
Snakes on a Planeis an action horror movie whose title describes perfectly what the movie is about- a bunch of snakes on an airplane. Nathan Philips plays the character of Sean Jones, who is being transferred via a plane to give testimony against a gang boss who he saw commit a murder.
Samuel L. Jackson plays the role of the FBI agent Neville Flynn, who has been tasked with keeping his safe. But in the true over-the-top manner, the gangster Eddie Kim lets a bunch of venomous snakes on the plane attack and kill everyone indiscriminately. The whole movie is a bit out there and makes for a truly hilarious watch for those who don’t really mind snakes.
11Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
Even wackier and more elaborate than its predecessor,Gremlins 2: The New Batchsees havoc wreaked on the streets of New York City as opposed to small-town suburbia. Billy has moved to the city with his girlfriend to work for a high-tech company, but, of course, a gremlin from the first film finds its way to the headquarters and begins to reproduce.
The movie is borderline meta at times, with its bizarre, yet infinitely entertaining combination of genres; at one point, we get a gremlin “New York, New York” musical number. Throughout the film, gremlins also mutate into bears and make the ingenious decision to create their own caveman civilization.
10Bride of Chucky (1998)
Every true horror fan knows of the Chucky franchise. One of the most famous movies to come out of this dark-comedy horror series is the 1998 flickBride of Chucky.If you think that a doll possessed by a murderous spirit is a bit too much then wait till you see two of them.
This movie first introduced the character of Tiffany Valentine, famously known as the bride of Chucky. First seen as a human, Tiffany is murdered and her spirit is transferred into a doll by Chucky himself during the movie. The rest of it is also filled with some hilarious scenes as these two go on to cause mayhem all over the town. Bride of Chucky is a classic example of an over-the-top horror movie.
Related:10 Terrifying Monsters in Non-Horror Movies
9House (1977)
Houseis an inimitableJ-horror flickthat will probably never be made again - it is definitely one of the most visually arresting movies of all time. The film follows a group of schoolgirls, all named things like “Professor,” “Kung Fu,” and “Gorgeous” on a trip to one of their aunt’s remote homes.
This is far from your typical haunted house movie - in Obayashi’s film, the house and furniture are literally alive, attacking and trying to eat the girls in completely surreal visions. In one case, a girl is eaten by a piano; in another, a girl’s head turns into a watermelon. The film is also drowned in vibrant psychedelic colors and designs that make it even more of a deeply unsettling, memorable experience.
8ThanksKilling (2007)
ThanksKilling,which came out in 2007 is the first movie of the ThanksKilling movie series. This horror comedy made it to our over-the-top list because it features a demonic, murderous turkey. Yes, you read that right. This demonic turkey is released again on unsuspecting victims after an unfortunate incident and terrorizes everyone with its evil might.
A bunch of college kids are chased and killed by this axe-wielding bird. If you are a fan of comedic slasher movies that have weird murders and vicious homicidal birds, then this might be the perfect Thanksgiving movie for you. There is also a sequel to this movie that you can watch for added fun.
Also known by its original nameBraindead,Dead Aliveis a supreme testament to theearly powers of Peter Jackson. Yes, the luminary from New Zealand who directedTheLord of the Rings. One of the first films to satirize the zombie genre, the movie follows a man named Lionel who must defend his home after his mother is bitten by a Sumatran rat monkey.
The film is filled with some of the funniest, and goriest scenes of all time, including one such instance in which Lionel mows down a gaggle of zombies with a lawnmower. The effects throughout the movie were pretty top-notch for the day, especially when it came to transformation scenes, like the early one of Lionel’s mother. The outrageousness ofDead Alive’sgore also contrasts stupendously with the mundanity of its setting.
Another hilarious Peter Jackson gore-fest, this time around we follow a group of aliens who come to Earth to harvest humans for their intergalactic fast food chain. As if the premise alone wasn’t enough to putBad Tasteon this list, it’s complete with incomparable levels of gore, but also a general level of absurdity.
The aliens in the movie, pictured above, are instantly memorable in their grotesqueness, which might have been cute were it not for their agenda, and the movie features some all-time great stunts, such as cliff diving and (possessed) sheep explosion. Through his zany horror efforts, it’s clear that Jackson was a visionary inmore ways than one.
Related:Scary Movies from the ’80s That Are More Funny Than Frightening
Zombies are scary, Nazis are even scarier. So what happens when you combine the two of them? Well, you getDead Snow,a Norwegian horror comedy where a bunch of medical students go on a ski vacation.
They come face to face with Nazi zombies who have been terrorizing the town since the Second World War. The whole movie is made up of these few students dying at the hand of vengeful Nazi zombies and trying to escape the place but failing. Fans of comedic slashers will enjoy this over-the-top zombie movie as it’s filled with bloody murders at every turn.
4Basket Case (1982)
Anyone who enjoyed 2021’sMalignantwould be highly advised to giveBasket Casea whirl. The film follows two conjoined twins, Duane and Belial, who were separated at birth and moved to New York City to get revenge on their former doctors. Belial is basically a blob of flesh who lives in a basket, so, yes, the film is just as ridiculous as one would suspect.
Basket Casewas one of the earliest films to merge together the horror and comedy genres in such a bold, inventive new way, and it certainly served as inspiration for many horror comedies that would prevail throughout the decade. The gore becomes increasingly outlandish as the movie goes on, with Belial attacking his victims in unimaginably horrifying ways (i.e. much face-ripping, intestine-pulling. etc.)
