The Fright Stuff: Top 10 Funny Horror Films
Posted on September 3, 2024
by Amy H
There’s something about dark comedy that enhances both elements of the genre. The comedy is funnier, the dark is…well, not darker per se, but weirder, maybe? Way more fun, definitely. Here are some great funny horror films to tide you over until Halloween comes around.
tucker & dale vs. evil
Two lovable bumbling West Virginian schlubs are headed to their “fixer-upper” vacation cabin to drink some beer, do some fishin’, and have a good time. But when they run into a group of preppy college kids who assume from the way Tucker and Dale look that they must be inbred, chainsaw-wielding killers, suddenly everyone’s vacation takes a bloody and hilarious turn for the worse. Rated R
shaun of the dead
Shaun is a salesman with no direction in his life. His colleagues disrespect him, he has a superficial relationship with his parents, and his girlfriend Liz breaks up with him, unhappy spending every date at his local pub where he drowns his sorrows with his best friend and equally directionless housemate. At home, their third housemate Pete, complaining of a bite wound from a drunk, berates Shaun to get his life together. By morning, a zombie apocalypse has overwhelmed London, but hungover Shaun is slow to notice. There comes a day in every man’s life when he has to get off the couch – and kill some zombies. It’s now up to slacker Shaun and his best pal to save their friends and family from becoming the next entrée in the community zombie buffet. Shaun finally wakes up from sleepwalking through life, determined to win back his ex-girlfriend, reconcile his relationship with his mother, and in the process, possibly save London. Rated R.
zombieland
In the early twenty-first century, zombies have taken over America. A shy and inexperienced college student in Texas has survived by following his 30 rules: such as “look in the back seat,” “double-tap,” and “avoid public restrooms.” He decides to travel to Ohio to see if his parents are alive. He gets a ride with a boisterous, zombie-hating, good-old boy seeking the last Twinkie and headed for Florida, and soon they confront a young woman whose sister has been bitten by a zombie and wants to be put out of her misery. The sisters were headed to an LA amusement park they’ve heard is zombie free. Can the kid from Ohio get to his family? And what about rule thirty-one? Rated R.
what we do in the shadows
Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav are aging vampires who are finding that modern life has them struggling with the mundane – like paying rent, keeping up with the chore wheel, not being able to get a sense of their fashion choices without a reflection, trying to get into nightclubs, and overcoming flatmate conflicts. A mockumentary crew (who are wearing crucifixes) follow four vampire roommates, reality-television-style, as they negotiate the many challenges they face.
what we do in the shadows
No, you're not seeing double. The movie was so popular, it spawned a series!
the cabin in the woods
Five teenagers head off for a weekend at a secluded cabin in the woods. They arrive to find they are quite isolated with no means of communicating with the outside world. When the cellar door flings itself open, they of course go down to investigate. They find an odd assortment of relics and curios, but when one of the women, Dana, reads from a book, she awakens a family of deadly zombie killers. However, there’s far more going on than meets the eye. Rated R.
he never died
Jack’s in a rut. Depression and severe anti-social behavior has whittled down his existence to a bare minimum as he strives to avoid a powerful impulse to eat other people. He spends his days hanging out in a diner, watching television, playing church bingo or sleeping. Then all in one day, he finds out he has a daughter from a long-ago relationship and some hired thugs show up. Jack’s monotonous life is stirred up and the question of his endless existence comes to light. Rated R.
army of darkness
A discount-store employee (“Name’s Ash. Housewares.”) is time-warped to a medieval castle beset by monstrous forces. Initially mistaken for an enemy, he is soon revealed as the prophesized savior who can quest for the Necronomicon, a book which can dispel the evil. Unfortunately, he screws up the magic words while attempting to collect the tome, and releases an army of skeletons, led by his own evil “Deadite” counterpart. What follows is a thrilling, weirdly amusing battle between Ash’s 20th Century tactics (handy chainsaw and “boomstick” gun) and the minions of darkness. Rated R.
ash vs evil dead
A television series set approximately 30 years after the first three “Evil Dead” films, and serves as a sequel to that trilogy. Ash Williams works at the “Value Stop” as a simple stock boy. Also working at the store is his friend Pablo and the object of Pablo’s affections, Kelly. Ash has seemingly done very little with his life since returning from 1300 AD at the end of “Army of Darkness,” and the beginning of the series sees him living in a trailer and drinking alone in bars. However, Ash must soon renounce his routine existence and become a hero once more by taking up arms and facing the titular Evil Dead. Pablo and Kelly decide to join him on his quest to save humanity. (Get the first season via SearchOhio) Rated TV-MA
the final girls
When Max (Taissa Farmiga) and her friends reluctantly attend an anniversary screening of "Camp Bloodbath," the infamous '80s horror film that starred Max's late mother (Malin Akerman), they are mysteriously sucked into the silver screen. They soon realize they are trapped inside the cult classic movie and must team up with the fictional and ill-fated camp counselors, including Max's mom as the scream queen, to battle the film's machete-wielding killer. With the body count rising in scene after iconic scene, who will be the final girls left standing and live to escape this film?
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