Horror Films from the VHS Era

I grew up in the days of VHS, a time that holds a nostalgic appeal for me. I was drawn to the horror genre fairly early on after a recording we made accidentally caught the final ten minutes of an old Hammer House of Horror. My tiny little mind had never seen anything like this before and, though it scared the daylights out of me, it left me intrigued as to how something that placed me in no danger whatsoever could leave me feeling so vulnerable.

Of course this is what horror is all about, it opens up our minds to what COULD be out there, lurking in the shadows, round the corner, over the top of the duvet, just out of view but fully realised in our own imagination as dread. I'm going to use these pages to re-visit some of my old VHS favourites, many of which have been released in pristine prints on blu-ray with enough bonus material to fill several VHS boxes. It's great to be able to see these dubious classics and 'jump to a scene' safe in the knowledge that the tracking won't hide the gruesome close up of the chainsaw evisceration or the shadowy movement of the masked killer but VHS had a charm that these beautiful shiny discs will probably never have. They're the sidekick that never gets the credit, the spotty kid who never got the girl, the insignificant crew member who perishes a third of the way through...the underdog that made the quarter-finals.

I'm working on my first review and, if your tastes lie in obscure 80s horror then the above photo may give it away. If you're reading this and there's a film you want me to take a look at then leave a comment and I'll do my best. Let's have a bit of fun together and re-live those glory days!