I talked about these some when I talked about Gremlins because Gremlins are a creature that are featured in that film, but they aren’t what people would always consider a creature feature. Generally they would surround more of a bigger monster than something like a bunch of Gremlins, and things like Frankenstein’s Monster would qualify as well. So what are some good creature features if you’re not feeling an 80’s horror flick out there, and generally with creature features, good means bad in a wonderful way, but some are just really good.

Cloverfield

I think in terms of modern creature feature films that fall into that Halloween horror camp, Cloverfield is one that really stands up well. This JJ Abrams found-footage style film where a giant monster attacks New York City. This one works really well because when everything starts you don’t really know what is going on, even as the film goes on, you know as much as the rest of the characters. So often in films you know more than the characters but this really allows you to get into their shoes and join them as they try and find out what is going on and survive.

The Descent

This one, you can question whether or not it’s creature feature, and I’ll let you do that if you watch the European version, but the American cut is definitely a creature feature. This is a great Neil Marshall film and the psychological aspect of this horror stands out really well. One of my favorite horror films and the monsters themselves are very interesting. If you want a good scary creature feature this one is up there.

Dog Soldiers

Another Neil Marshall film, this one is less straight up scary, though it does carry over some of the elements that make a strong horror film that Marshall then uses in The Descent as well. This one is a werewolf creature feature and just has an interesting and tight premise for something that doesn’t seem to have a large budget. But it really doesn’t need it, it has a bit of camp to it, but you’re always wondering what might be happening in it. Really well done and in terms of a horror film, also very high up there.

Cabin in the Woods

Some movies have a monster in them, and other movies have all the monsters in them. Cabin in the Woods is a smartly played horror movie where it critiques the tropes of horror while playing them out as expected. It does some very interesting things to turn everything on it’s head though, and how it plays out is definitely unique. You’ll have to see it to know what I say that it has every monster, but if you’re a fan of the creature feature horror genre, this is one to definitely checkout.

Pitch Black

This is horror film really hits on a lot of tropes, a group crashed onto an alien planet and something stalking them, that’s extremely normal. That said, it works well in this film. Riddick is a great main character and this film just works well. It plays off of the fears that people have, the unknown of what could be out there in the dark and just is really enjoyable to watch.

Tremors

For some giant worms, the spice must flow. But not in Tremors. This is a classic B horror film that is just completely absurd. Enjoyable none the less as Kevin Bacon tries to save as many people as he can and escape after giant worms start attacking the area in which he lives. Of course, he has to get them to believe him first.

Sharknado

Now, if you want a good B film, this isn’t it. But it is a lot of fun, this is completely absurd and just completely out there. Sharks getting sucked up into a tornado and then falling down to earth is a grand old crazy time. The plot is dumb but fun, the acting is bad, but the whole thing is just completely absurd horror humor.

Obviously, there are so many of these films out there. There are things like The Thing, The Fly, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Blob, or even much better shark films like Jaws that you could be watching as well. I wanted to give a good range of films though that ranged from just a goofy Halloween horror type of creature film, like Sharknado or Tremors to some more serious horror films. What are some of your favorite creature feature horror films?

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