The horror films of the '90s were a unique lot. The last decade of the millennium saw a resurgence of the slasher genre, the rise of found footage horror films, and a lot of sequels and remakes of classics. If you were a kid during this era, there's a good chance that you remember '90s horror movies as being utterly terrifying. But here's the thing: despite all the blood, supernatural creatures, and jump scenes, a lot of horror movies from the '90s aren't actually that scary.
You see, when you're a kid, you typically judge a movie's scariness based on its story and visuals, without paying as much attention to the quality of the writing, acting, special effects, etc. It's also easier as a kid to get sucked into a story without noticing how utterly unrealistic it is, or how stupidly all the characters are behaving. But when you go back as an adult to watch some '90s horror movies, you experience less feelings of fear and more thoughts of "why does everybody think it's a good idea to split up when there's a killer in the house?" and "why does everybody have bangs?" You also realize that some of the movies you thought were horror films were actually horror comedies, and others still are actually dramas that just have some horror elements. Here are some of the "scariest" movies of the '90s that may not seem so scary now.
1. Scream
When you watch this infamous movie (which was hugely successful in the '90s) as an adult, it's hard not to laugh. The characters discussed all of the mistakes that people in horror movies typically make, and then they all fell victim to those exact same mistakes in some super cheesy sequences.
2. The Blair Witch Project
This movie terrified viewers in 1999 with its documentary-style narrative, but you never actually saw the Blair Witch. In fact, most of the film was just three film students walking around the woods arguing, which I guess is its own kind of nightmare.
3. Interview With The Vampire
I'm always confused when people market this movie as a horror film; although it dealt with traditional horror subject matter, Interview with the Vampire was much closer to being a drama, and even had some moments of humor. Although, I will say that Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt looked scary good as 18th-century vampires.
4. Dead Alive
This "splatstick" zombie film from Peter Jackson was as absurd as it was gory.
5. The Sixth Sense
Once Haley Joel Osment's character realized that the dead people weren't trying to hurt him, this movie's supernatural elements weren't as scary.
6. The Haunting
This adaptation of The Haunting of Hill House was too campy to take seriously, garnering five Razzie Award nominations.
7. Urban Legend
Every silly urban legend possible was combined into this slasher flick, in which unassuming coeds found themselves the victims of a crazed killer with a fondness for scary stories.
8. Bride Of Chucky
Taking a departure from the strictly-horror formula of the first three Child's Play movies, Bride of Chucky was deliberately humorous and actually parodied some aspects of the previous films.
9. Leprechaun
This movie was about an evil leprechaun who went on a murderous rampage to retrieve his stolen pot of gold. 'Nuff said.
10. Anaconda
J.Lo, Ice Cube, and some hokey special effects involving giant snakes... this movie was so deliciously bad that it earned multiple sequels.
11. I Know What You Did Last Summer
Another over-the-top teen horror flick that will seem way less scary as an adult than it did when you were a kid.
12. Gremlins 2
Although this sequel still featured plenty of creepy gremlins, it was much closer to a comedy than was the original.
13. House On Haunted Hill
Released only a few months after The Haunting, this similar movie was equally over-the-top.
14. Army Of Darkness
In this movie that was part of the Evil Dead franchise, the protagonist was stuck in the Medieval era and had to battle zombies as he tried to find his way out. No, really.
15. Halloween: The Curse Of Michael Myers
This installment in the Halloween series tried to tie up loose ends from the previous movies but ended up feeling more jumbled than scary.
16. Tremors
Kevin Bacon was up against some giant evil worms (and an awful '90s haircut) in this campy monster movie.
17. Disturbing Behavior
This sci-fi horror movie was like The Stepford Wives but with more teenage angst... and it just didn't work.
18. American Werewolf In Paris
The title pretty much tells you everything you need to know about this movie and its cinematic quality.
19. Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
Even the return of Jamie Lee Curtis and the addition of some new stars (Josh Hartnett and Michelle Williams, among others) couldn't revitalize this stale horror story.
20. Mimic
Giant evil cockroaches threatened to take over Manhattan in this movie starring Mira Sorvino. Gross, but not outright terrifying.
21. Alien 3
The Alien franchise was all downhill after this one.
22. Mary Reilly
Julie Roberts got a Razzie nomination for her performance in this misguided Jekyll and Hyde spinoff.
23. I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
Another movie about the killer with a hook for a hand? Snooze.
Try rewatching some of these '90s horror movies now that you've grown up, and you'll find that their fear factor is a lot lower than you remember. That being said, all the blue eyeshadow and baggy sweaters in these movies might haunt your dreams for weeks after watching.
Image: Columbia Pictures
