In Joss Whedon’s supernatural series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Buffy Summers just wants to be a normal high school student in Sunnydale. This just can’t ever be the case, though, because Buffy inherited a special status from her female ancestors, vampire hunter. The show, which first aired on the WB in 1997 and concluded on UPN in 2003, made young actors like Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, and Seth Green household names.
Since its release, the show has spawned numerous tie-in products, like novels, comics, and video games. It also influenced all the dark and paranormal teen dramas that would come after it, from Supernatural to The Vampire Diaries. Buffy has left an enduring imprint on pop culture, yet the melodramatic and campy nature of her show has many cinematic kin. Here are 10 movies in line with the fun and theatrical tone of Buffy The Vampire Slayer that its fans will love.
The Lost Boys (1987)
The Lost Boys was a big deal when it came out. Directed by Joel Schumacker and starring attractive young stars like Jason Patric, Jami Gertz, and Kiefer Sutherland. It also stars the Coreys who defined the ’80s, Feldman and Hamm.
Patric and Hamm play brothers who move to a small Northern California town with their mom. The pair get involved with a pack of motorcycling-riding vampires, led by Sutherland’s character, and things get bloody from there. Poppy and glamorous, The Lost Boys features some pretty cutting-edge special effects and a hip, atmospheric soundtrack.
Idle Hands (1999)
Released concurrent to Buffy and starring ’90s teen heartthrob Devon Sawa, Idle Hands is a dark comedy about a teenage slacker whose right hand becomes possessed by Satan. Sawa plays Anton, and the movie employs equal parts slapstick humor and slasher movie gore.
After Anton’s possessed hand kills his best friends, played by Seth Green and Elden Henson, they are reanimated as zombies to keep him company. Anton seeks the guidance of a local Satanist named Andy and a demon slayer played by Vivica A. Fox in hopes he can take care of his affliction before the big school dance, where he plans to make a move on his neighbor Molly, played by Jessica Alba.
The Final Girls (2015)
This meta-horror movie finds a group of friends who attend a screening for an ’80s slasher film transported back in time and into the movie, where they must fight for their lives against a machete-yielding serial killer in league with Jason Voorhees.
A comedic, satirical dissection of the genre, The Final Girls stars Taissa Farmiga, Malin Akerman, and Alia Shawkat. It’s a smart reimagining of slasher movies, many of which deprive their female characters of agency or roundedness, instead treating them like objects to be destroyed.
The Craft (1996)
The Craft is the classic teen horror movie. It follows a trio of social outcasts who recruit the new girl in town into their burgeoning coven. Robin Tunney plays the new girl, while Neve Campbell, Fairuza Balk, and Rachel True are the locals who have been messing around with the occult.
After successfully summoning the power of the deity Manon, the girls are able to seek revenge against their bullies and tormentors. Things get out of hand quickly, and the girls soon realize that whatever energy they cast out comes back at them with much more intensity.
Dance Of The Dead (2008)
An indie zombie film, Dance of the Dead is a comical tale about a high school prom that’s interrupted by an undead invasion. Instead of cutting a rug, drinking punch, and smooching in the shadows, the couple at the center of the action are forced to fight.
Bloody and excessive, Dance of the Dead provides a scathing critique of one of the most important traditions among teens. While the lead female character, Lindsey, wants the perfect night, her boyfriend, Jimmy, only cares about boozing it up and getting laid. In the end, neither get what they want.
Ginger Snaps (2000)
A cult Canadian horror film, Ginger Snaps is a feminist take on the werewolf creature feature. Two misanthropic sisters living in a dull suburb amuse themselves with macabre activities like staging their own deaths. After they are attacked in the woods one night by a mysterious beast, one of the sisters, Ginger, soon begins to display some strange behaviors.
Hair grows out of her wounds, she develops a voracious appetite, and she starts sleeping with boys. Soon, her sister, Brigitte, comes to understand that what got her sister is a werewolf, and the lycanthropy will spread like a disease unless it’s eradicated.
The Evil Dead (1981)
Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead franchise has been one of the most successful in horror, and it all began with a low-budget, gory feature in 1981. A group of college students spending the night in an old Tennessee cabin decide to mess around with a bunch of occult artifacts they find in the basement, unleashing evil spirits that possess them.
Bloodsoaked and over-the-top, the movie made a career for Bruce Campbell, who has been a figurehead in almost every sequel or spin-off. It also set the standard for jocular horror films.
The Faculty (1998)
Blending science fiction and horror, The Faculty is the stuff of any high school student’s nightmares. Directed by Robert Rodriguez, the movie stars some of the coolest actors around in the late ’90s, including Usher, Clea DuVall, Josh Hartnett, Elijah Wood, and Shawn Hatosy.
In the movie, a divergent group of teens comes to realize their school’s faculty and staff have been infected by extraterrestrial worms with nefarious plans. They must band together to strategize and send the slithering aliens back into space. This gem also features performances from Jon Stewart, Salma Hayek, and Bebe Neuwirth as teachers.
I Was A Teenage Werewolf (1957)
I Was a Teenage Werewolf is a representative B-horror movie. Temperamental and mean high school student Tony is sent to Dr. Brandon, a psychiatrist who is supposed to help him deal with his anger issues. In reality, Dr. Brandon is a mad scientist who uses Tony to experiment with regression therapy using drugs and hypnosis.
Tony definitely regresses, transforming into a hungry and jaded werewolf. People go missing in town, and the local police soon conclude that Tony is responsible for the gruesome deaths.
Fright Night (1985)
Focusing on a teenager obsessed with horror movies and mythology, Fright Night explores what happens when it turns out your weird next-door neighbor is really a vampire. Chris Sarandon plays the vampire in question, a man named Dandridge who targets the snooping Charley and his single mom.
As tensions escalate between Dandridge and Charley, the teen seeks out a vampire hunter named Peter Vincent, a washed-up actor who doesn’t really believe in the supernatural. He has a big surprise coming his way.
