The Crypt Charts
The Top 13 Horror Movies of 1980
The thirteen horror films of 1980 that the crypt judged worthiest, ranked by the Crypt Score.
Ranked by Crypt Score · Updated weekly · captured Jul 20, 2026
Eligibility: a title needs at least 2 rating sources and 1,000+ votes to chart — no thin-data entries.
The Changeling
R1980 · Horror · 107m · George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, Melvyn Douglas, John Colicos
After a tragic event happens, composer John Russell moves to Seattle to try to overcome it and build a new and peaceful life in a lonely big house that has been uninhabited for many years. But, soon after, the obscure history of such an old mansion and his own past begin to haunt him.
Dressed to Kill
R1980 · Thriller, Mystery, Horror · 105m · Michael Caine, Nancy Allen, Angie Dickinson, Keith Gordon
After witnessing a mysterious woman brutally slay a homemaker, prostitute Liz Blake finds herself trapped in a dangerous situation. While the police thinks she is the murderer, the real killer is intent on silencing her only witness.
Altered States
R1980 · Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller · 103m · William Hurt, Blair Brown, Bob Balaban, Charles Haid
A research scientist explores the boundaries and frontiers of human consciousness. Using sensory deprivation and hallucinogenic mixtures from Native American shamans, he explores these altered states of cognizance and finds that memory, time, and reality itself are states of mind.
The Fog
R1980 · Horror · 90m · Adrienne Barbeau, Tom Atkins, Jamie Lee Curtis, Hal Holbrook
Strange things begin to occur as a tiny California coastal town prepares to commemorate its centenary. Inanimate objects spring eerily to life; Rev. Malone stumbles upon a dark secret about the town's founding; radio announcer Stevie witnesses a mystical fire; and hitchhiker Elizabeth discovers the mutilated corpse of a fisherman. Then a mysterious iridescent fog descends upon the village, and more people start to die.
The Ninth Configuration
R1980 · Drama, Comedy, Horror · 118m · Stacy Keach, Scott Wilson, Jason Miller, Ed Flanders
Army psychiatrist Colonel Kane is posted to a secluded gothic castle housing a military asylum. With a reserved calm, he indulges the inmates' delusions, allowing them free rein to express their fantasies.
The Private Eyes
PG1980 · Comedy, Mystery, Horror · 91m · Don Knotts, Tim Conway, Trisha Noble, Bernard Fox
The lord and lady of a capacious manor are killed, and the lord's ghost seems to have returned to knock off the staff one by one, causing Inspector Winship and Dr. Tart to investigate the wacky house and its inhabitants.
Alligator
R1980 · Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller · 91m · Robert Forster, Robin Riker, Michael V. Gazzo, Dean Jagger
A baby alligator is flushed down a toilet and survives by eating discarded lab animals that have been injected with growth hormones. The now gigantic animal escapes the city sewers and goes on a rampage, pursued by a cop and a big-game hunter.
Cruising
R1980 · Crime, Mystery, Thriller · 102m · Al Pacino, Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen, Richard Cox
When New York is caught in the grip of a sadistic serial killer who preys on patrons of the city's underground bars, rookie cop Steve Burns infiltrates the S&M subculture to try and lure him out of the shadows.
Friday the 13th
R1980 · Horror · 95m · Adrienne King, Betsy Palmer, Kevin Bacon, Jeannine Taylor
Camp counselors are stalked and murdered by an unknown assailant while trying to reopen a summer camp that was the site of a child's drowning.
Motel Hell
R1980 · Comedy, Horror · 102m · Rory Calhoun, Paul Linke, Nancy Parsons, Nina Axelrod
Farmer Vincent Smith and his sister Ida run a motel attached to a farm where they capture unsuspecting travelers, bury them alive, fatten them up and then harvest their bodies as ingredients for his famous brand of "smoked meats."
The Watcher in the Woods
PG1980 · Fantasy, Horror, Thriller · 83m · Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards, Carroll Baker
After an American family moves to an old country manor in rural England, one of the daughters is tormented by the spirit of the owner's long lost daughter, who mysteriously disappeared 30 years ago during a solar eclipse.
The First Deadly Sin
R1980 · Crime, Drama, Mystery · 112m · Frank Sinatra, Faye Dunaway, David Dukes, George Coe
A serial killer is stalking New York City. Inspector Edward Delaney is an NYPD detective, nearing retirement, who is trying to put together the pieces of the case. Are the victims somehow linked? What does the brutal method of death signify?
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