Movies Under 90 Minutes Part 3: Horror-Comedies

 

Part Three

Scared Silly: The Horror-Comedy Subgenre  

Now that I’ve worked my way through all the films that are purely scary, it’s time to tackle a special group of films that ride the line between the genres of horror and comedy. I always appreciate horror-comedies that work because it’s not an easy feat to make something that can be both scary and funny. Often a movie will be more comedy than horror, perhaps with a couple elements typical of something scary, like monsters or a killer. Those kinds of movies I’ve delegated to just the comedy category to be examined later. 

CONTENDERS

Let’s start with the Abbott and Costello movies, even though they really do belong in the comedy genre, but many fans count them among the classic Universal Monsters, and since I just spent all that time going through the majority of those films in part two, I better cover them before the rest, which are all more recent. Abbott and Costello had already been in many films together for Universal prior to their careers getting rejuvenated with the first monster crossover Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), which also rejuvenated the dusty old monsters of the 1930s, having gotten stale in the early ‘40s after a number of sequels. Following that hit there was Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949), Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951), Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953), and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955). All of these movies are between 75 and 85 minutes long, but only three really stand out: the one with the Frankenstein monster (which also includes Dracula and Wolf Man), the one with the Invisible Man, and the one with the Mummy.

I’ll go through the remaining contenders in chronological order. There’s a pretty big time gap between the last Abbott and Costello monster film and the first in a trilogy of horror-comedies that are sure to be heavy hitters in this round of eliminations. The Evil Dead (1981) is the 85-minute start to a franchise that has had a surprisingly long life, with sequels, remakes, reboots, a TV legacy sequel, comics, video games, and even a musical. Evil Dead 2 (1987), like its predecessor, is under 90 minutes—one minute shorter, in fact—and is arguably one of the best horror sequels ever made, comedy-horror asterisk notwithstanding. Also released the same year, there’s The Monster Squad (1987), which includes several classic monsters from some of the previous best under-90 horror films. Army of Darkness (1992), the third film in the Evil Dead series, runs under 90 minutes whether we count the international cut (88 minutes) or the original US cut (81 minutes). Less of a contender, but still worthy of inclusion, is the campy Christmas slasher Jack Frost (1997), which just barely qualifies at 89 minutes. The last four films are all heavy hitters from the 21^st century: Trick ‘r Treat (2007), Zombieland (2009), Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010), and The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020).

How the hell am I supposed to eliminate any of these?

 

ELIMINATIONS

I feel bad for the comedy duo of Budd Abbott and Lou Costello here, but they are the first ones to go. Even the best films of theirs cannot compare to the other films they are up against. Abbott and Costello were pretty funny in their time, and they are still funny to this day, but even to compare something like Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein to the original 1931 Frankenstein, there really is no comparison. I’m also saying farewell to The Monster Squad, Jack Frost, and Army of Darkness. The problem is how stiff the competition is not just for how funny and scary these movies all are, but how good they are. Some fans would cite Army of Darkness as their favourite Evil Dead film, but I, like most others, see it as a very entertaining slapstick medieval comedy with some Evil Dead horror elements, though not quite as thoroughly entertaining or as well realized as Evil Dead 2.

The most recent film on here, The Wolf of Snow Hollow, while a surprisingly funny and well-made werewolf tale, just doesn’t stand out as funny enough or rewatchable enough in comparison to several others. In the trio of Zombieland, Trick ‘r Treat, and Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, it’s very tough to pick just one. Zombieland is incredibly rewatchable and is more than just a great spoof of zombie movies. It tells such a complete and entertaining story with excellent characters, and really has no big faults. Tucker & Dale is arguably a cleverer film and does more with even less. It, too, has great characters, and has moments that are just as funny as the best comedic moments in Zombieland. Trick ‘r Treat, though, has a unique advantage of being one of the ultimate Halloween movies, and telling multiple stories with its anthology format, threading them all together into a festive tapestry of thrills and chills. It isn’t as funny as either overall, but I can watch it anytime in the Halloween season very easily.

Where do The Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 stand in comparison to these three, then? Do they even stand a chance? I’ve always appreciated The Evil Dead for its commitment to being so disturbing despite the obvious production limitations, and I sometimes go back and forth as to which one I enjoy watching more: the original or the sequel. I can’t say The Evil Dead would win out over Trick ‘r Treat or Zombieland, for me, but when I consider the movie that really goes for broke in terms of shocking violence and pitch perfect humour, Evil Dead 2 nails it. That movie set the bar for horror comedy, and on those terms alone, I can’t say any other movie in this conversation outshines it. But, I’m not eliminating movies based solely on how well they compare to Evil Dead 2.

As much as it pains me to do so, I’m eliminating Zombieland and Trick ‘r Treat. What it comes down to is they just cannot compete with the originality of The Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2, or Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. Zombieland is ingenious with its gags and characters, but the story is nothing too exceptional in terms of zombie plots. Even Trick ‘r Treat, for all its clever ways of blending many short stories together, ultimately is a tribute to the Halloween season and ends up playing on tropes and familiar storytelling techniques. Even in the case of Evil Dead 2 being a sequel, it manages to find ways to separate itself from the original and not just duplicate what made that one great in the first place. It even gets a weird distinction of being partly a remake, streamlining what happened in the whole first movie to just part of the first act, then continuing from there with all-new creative scares and laughs. The effects, the acting, and the balance of humour and horror all hold up so well that even though I appreciate the original a bit more for how was made, I can’t deny that Evil Dead 2 is just a better movie overall.

We are down to the final two for horror-comedy: Evil Dead 2 (1987) and Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010). I’m surprised with these results, to be honest. I thought Trick ‘r Treat would make it to the end, but without it, I’m left with these two competing for the top spot in this sub-genre. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil holds up upon a rewatch, but once you know the premise and the twists and the deaths, it maybe isn’t quite as entertaining as it is with the initial surprise of it all. That’s not to take away from its underrated qualities and how funny it is, but I think what it all comes down to here is this: which movie is the most timeless for what it is, and has the most consistent entertainment value, regardless of content, production quality, and when it was made?

I have to declare Evil Dead 2 as the undisputed winner in the horror-comedy subgenre. I love Tucker & Dale for what it is, but between that movie and Evil Dead 2, I would have to pick Evil Dead 2 to watch again. Even though it’s not necessarily my favourite out of all these great movies, I think it holds up as the most well-rounded horror/comedy experience with a runtime of less than 90 minutes.

Next time I am tackling another big genre. We started with horror, and now bridge from horror-comedy to straight up comedies, featuring numerous spoofs, mockumentaries, and much more!