The Dr. Phibes suggestion reminds me- Watch Vincent Price give Shakespeare the same treatment in THEATRE OF BLOOD. Especially the Robert Morley scene!
Also, BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR is as good or better than the original. However, BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR is merely decent.
In the late 80’s-early 90s, a studio named FULL MOON ENTERTAINMENT churned out a bunch of creepy low budget fare- The Puppet Master series being the most well known. I recommend Dark Angel: The Ascent (a gorgeous red-haired demoness comes to the Earth’s surface on a mission of redemption), Shrunken Heads (three good kids killed by a gang are raised as flying heads by a friendly voodoo master). and Doctor Mordrid (a Dr. Strange rip-off/homage starring Jeffrey Combs).
Your definition of “horrible” may vary. Here’s a few:
**The Deadly Claw
Monsters from Green Hell
Killers from Space
Wes Craven’s Deadly Friend
10,000 B.C.
The Wasp Woman
Invaders from Mars** (I know, the original’s a “classic”, direction by William Cameron Menzies. But I saw a showing in an art cinema that had suited people yelling derisive comments at the screen. It really doesn’t hold up well. And the remake is just as commentable)
** Flash Gordon** (any version, but especially the 1980 version with Sam Jones, Timothy Dalton, and Max von Sydow)
Die., Monster, Die (just about any Lovecraft adaptation, actually, but this one has Neil Adams and Boris Karloff)
**The Manster
The Monster that Challenged the World** (Killer Snails! Walk for your lives!)
Prophecy (The circa 1982 movie with the mutated killer bear. The 1980s answer to The Giant Claw)
Personally, I’m partial to “The Mangler” starring Ted Levine. Laundry press possessed by Satan. Of course, I saw it as a 17-year-old; it may be considerably less funny now.
You meant “The Giant Claw”, right? Has to be the silliest monster of all time. I saw it when it first came out (Dad took me to the movies) and even though I was only seven or eight, I laughed out loud at the first sight of the monster.
HA! Good one!
Here’s my fave: “Beast From Haunted Cave” has a bit of genuine creepout to it.