The line between comedy and horror isn’t as defined as it used to be. There have been horror comedies for decades, but it still took a long time for audiences to get films that worked as great examples of both genres.
Even now, horror comedies tend to lean more towards comedy than horror. But there are a handful of movies that do both well.
Since Friday the 13th is coming up this week, the Watch With Us team has selected five great horror movies that are actually funny.
And for the most part, each of the following films manages to be a little scary as well.
‘Scream’ (1996)
Some might argue that the later Scream movies are superior to the original, but none of the sequels have recaptured the magic of the first one. Horror veteran Wes Craven was at the top of his craft when making this film, and the script by Kevin Williamson has some genuinely hilarious moments. Drew Barrymore‘s extended cameo at the beginning of the film went a long way towards establishing this as a horror film with teeth that just happened to be funny as well.
Neve Campbell stars as Sidney Prescott, a teenager who is haunted by the murder of her mother. Despite her attempts to keep her head down, Sidney is more closely linked to the Ghostface serial killer than she suspects. And while Sidney puts up the fight of her life, not all of her classmates are going to be as lucky when they face Ghostface themselves.
Scream is streaming on Max.
‘Shaun of the Dead’ (2004)
Edgar Wright‘s Shaun of the Dead may be more rom-com than zom-com, but these zombies are lethal when they have to be. Shaun (Simon Pegg) barely notices the world ending around him, because his world is already over now that his girlfriend, Liz (Kat Ashfield), has dumped him.
Shaun gets his chance to win Liz back when the zombie apocalypse descends upon London. With his best pal, Ed (Nick Frost), by his side, Shaun plans to pick up Liz, a handful of their family and friends, and wait out the emergency at a local pub. It’s a terrible plan, and Shaun’s lack of foresight may cost him everyone he holds dear.
Shaun of the Dead is streaming on Peacock.
‘Zombieland’ (2009)
Before The Walking Dead TV series redefined zombies for a generation, Zombieland embraced horror comedy and made the undead funny through the perspective of Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg). The end of the world as he knows it is no laughing matter, but Columbus’ rules for surviving the zombie apocalypse almost always bring a smile to our faces. After he’s forced to kill his infected dream girl (as played by Amber Heard), Columbus allies himself with Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a very efficient zombie killer.
Their partnership is complicated by the arrival of two con artist sisters, Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). As smitten as Columbus is with Wichita, it may be a mistake to trust either of the sisters.
Zombieland is available to rent or buy on Prime Video.
‘The Cabin in the Woods’ (2012)
Every horror movie trope you’ve ever seen has an explanation in The Cabin in the Woods, but it would ruin the surprise and more than a few jokes if you knew what it was ahead of time. This very funny film sat on a shelf for so long that Chris Hemsworth became a star in the interim, although he doesn’t portray the primary character.
Instead, that honor belongs to Kristen Connolly, who plays a college student named Dana Polk. Dana and her friends, Jules Louden (Anna Hutchison), Curt Vaughan (Hemsworth), Marty Mikalski (Fran Kranz) and Holden McCrea (Jesse Williams), become trapped in a scenario straight out of a slasher flick. Even if they realize what’s happening, it may already be too late to escape.
The Cabin in the Woods is streaming on Prime Video.
‘The Final Girls’ (2015)
Your enjoyment of The Final Girls may depend upon how familiar you are with the ’80s horror films it spoofs, particularly the early Friday the 13th films. Amanda Cartwright (Malin Åkerman) starred in a movie just like that called Camp Bloodbath, and that’s all her daughter, Max (Taissa Farmiga), has to remember her by.
Years after Amanda’s death, Max’s friends, Gertie (Alia Shawkat), Duncan (Thomas Middleditch) and Chris (Alexander Ludwig), convince her to see a midnight screening of Camp Bloodbath. That’s also where they run into Max’s former friend, Vicki Summers (Nina Dobrev). A fire soon forces all of them to flee the building, and they somehow wind up trapped inside Camp Bloodbath‘s story. That gives Max a chance to bond with Nancy (Akerman), the character played by her mother. But it also means that serial killer Billy Murphy (Daniel Norris) is coming to kill everyone.
The Final Girls is streaming on The Roku Channel.
Just For You
