Plot: Shy teenager Megan moves to a new town with her widowed mother and quickly becomes the most unpopular girl in high school. But when she starts to communicate with a mysterious mirror, her tormentors begin to meet with a horrifying series of accidents. Is the mirror a reflection of Megan’s own inner demons… or has she unwittingly opened the doorway of the damned?

KBZ’s Take: In any other decade, this film probably wouldn’t have made a Top 10 list. But, as we mentioned before, there were very few subgenre films to select from this decade.

As for the film, it’s typical of the early 90’s period with a slight gothic style and creepy atmosphere. The film isn’t all that scary but does have some nice horror moments and gory kill scenes. We only recommend it for fans and completists of the subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3WQ3De2

Plot: On the set of a dark war time drama at an old movie studio, a young director, Toshio Murai (Yanagi), is trying to complete his debut film. The two starring actresses, Hitomi Kurokawa and Saori Murakami, play sisters in his film. Murai has a crush on Hitomi (Shiroshima), the seasoned leading actress, and keeps a photo of her by his bed. The younger and less experienced actress, Saori (Ishibashi), is annoying and likes to have recess on the set. The production of the movie is consistently interrupted by strange occurrences and the cast and crew begin to get spooked.

KBZ’s Take: Also known as Joyû-rei, we’re including this film here because it was one of Hideo Nakata’s first films. Nakata was one of the premiere directors of J-Horror films including Ringu (1998) and Dark Water (2002).

Don’t Look Up isn’t a very long film clocking in at 74 minutes and the film isn’t a high budget affair. However, even with a low budget and confusing plot, you can see some of the early inklings of the creepy atmosphere and visuals that Nakata would become famous for. It’s another film we only would recommend for fans and completists of this subgenre and the J-Horror subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://youtu.be/mWREJKpgzBE

Plot: Based on a short story by Stephen King, a man and his family return to his hometown, but he is then harassed by teenagers that died when he was a kid.

KBZ’s Take: Regardless of the Horror subgenre, there always seems to be a few Stephen King film adaptation released every decade. Some of these adaptations are Horror classics – Carrie (1976) & Pet Sematary (1987) – while other adaptations were better off not ever being made – Children of the Corn (2020). Sometimes They Come Back (adapted from King’s Night Shift novel) falls somewhere within the average to above average tier of King adaptations.

For starters, the adaptation of Sometimes They Come Back was a TV Movie adaptation. Most of King’s works perform much better on film (or pay TV) where there are fewer restrictions on the content. Second, the story itself was a mid-tier selection in Night Shift. Battleground, I Am the Doorway and Quitters, Inc. were some of the better stories featured in the novel.

But the TV Movie does an admirable job of translating King’s story about ghostly vengeance to the screen. Tim Matheson does a fine job as the unstable Jim Norman and Robert Rusler is a great villain as the ghostly greaser.

Even though the film has some of the tamer scares of the subgenre, Sometimes They Come Back does have a creepy atmosphere making it a King adaptation worth checking out. On another note, if you’re looking for more King adaptations, you can check out our entire list of Stephen King Films.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3WQ4QBS

Plot: In a Korean all-girl school, the spirit of one student who died ten years ago, periodically returns in the guise of a new girl, to take revenge on the abusive teachers.

KBZ’s Take: While Whispering Corridors might seem tame by today’s standards, it was one of the first Korean Horror films that opened the door to more extreme K-Horror that would dominate the next few decades. While J-Horror films often tend to include Splatter & Gore and Survival Horror themes, most K-Horror films are firmly entrenched in tales of Ghosts, Hauntings and the Supernatural.

What you won’t find in Whispering Corridors and other K-Horror films like it are numerous jump and shock scares often found in other subgenre films. What you will find are creepy visuals and atmosphere that are trademarks of K-Horror. These films excel at moving slowly along while building up the mystery and underlying fear that something bad is about to happen – and it often does.

This film also has something to say about the abuse of the students at the hands of teachers, and like other K-Horror films, they often take a societal issue and turn it on its head with terrifying results.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/43LLfFw

Plot: After Terry (Karen Allen) tells a computer store clerk where she lives, the information falls into the hands of the clerk’s co-worker Karl (Ted Marcoux), the serial murderer known as the “Address Book Killer.” When Karl is injured in a car crash, his doctors place him in an MRI machine. As Karl dies, the computer powering the machine extracts his soul. The murderous computer system then locates Terry and tries to kill her by turning technological devices into deadly weapons.

KBZ’s Take: We’re listing this film here mainly for nostalgic reasons. It’s not a great film, has a ton of plot holes and the entire concept of the film is ridiculous. But it’s a fun film and has some of the decade’s better scares of the subgenre.

The film is a time capsule from the 1990’s and seems to have been made to capitalize on the growing interest in tech (and Virtual Reality). The Lawnmower Man (1992) was released a year earlier, and you can see some of the similarities in this film. But Ghost in the Machine takes a more direct Horror route with some unique ‘kills’ by the serial killer Karl Hochman (Ted Marcoux). Some of these kills need to be seen to be believed including death by microwave, death by hand dryer and various other deaths by electronics.

What Ghost in the Machine lacks in believability it more than makes up for with creativity and is worthy of a watch by subgenre fans.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3qxcaGq

Plot A young woman is hired by a wealthy but sinister man to tutor his two children at the family’s isolated estate. When the woman gets there, she finds that the two children are not quite what they seem to be – in fact, they are possessed by the spirits of the evil Quint and his lover.

KBZ’s Take: Henry James’ novella is a classic Gothic Horror tale and has been adapted numerous times over the last century. Though the film adaptation The Innocents (1961) is often considered the best film adaptation and The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020) is considered the best television adaptation, the 1992 film adaptation is lesser-known but one of the better adaptations of James’ work.

The 1992 film adaptation stands out for a few reasons. First, it does a great job of emulating the creepy atmosphere of the novel from page to screen. Some of the film’s visuals are the best representations from the novella which help enhance the Gothic setting of the story.

Second, this is one of Patsy Kensit’s best roles as the caregiver who slowly discovers the mystery of the creepy kids. The mystery is the heart of the story and relies on the psychological transformation of the caregiver as things are revealed. Kensit excels at showing the effects of someone under constant psychological duress.

And finally, while the novel is much more subtle with the story’s ‘secrets’, the film is much more blatant in showing disturbing and erotic content. It’s something purists of the novel don’t like about the film, but for modern audiences, we feel it helps enhance the essence of James’ novel.

If you saw The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020) on Netflix, you might also like this adaptation with similar story elements but more unique visuals and atmosphere.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://youtu.be/62VDhSKg2Pc

Plot: For Halloween 1992, the BBC decides to broadcast an investigation into the supernatural, hosted by TV chat-show legend Michael Parkinson. Parky (ably assisted by Mike Smith, Sarah Greene & Craig Charles) and a camera crew attempt to discover the truth behind the most haunted house in Britain. This ground-breaking live television experiment does not go as planned, however…

KBZ’s Take: One of the early precursors to the Found Footage Horror craze, Ghostwatch is shot in Mockumentary format and caused a minor panic during its release. Similar to the public panic over the War of the Worlds 1938 radio broadcast, some confused (and scared) English viewers thought this BBC broadcast was real.

By today’s standards, the content in Ghostwatch isn’t scary at all. However, it excels in luring the viewer into a false sense of security that it’s just a ‘reality tv’ show and the haunted house elements are staged. However, fear will start to creep in as the house is explored and things get chaotic at the studio.

This is a film to check out on Halloween and is a good one for kids (over the ages of 10). They might find it initially boring but will soon be drawn in by the film’s unique format.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3oWWmMN

Plot: A young girl wanders into a wing of her elementary school that has been abandoned for years and is rumored to be haunted. When she doesn’t come back, a group of her classmates go looking for her, only to find that they, too, are trapped inside. They must somehow find their way to safety, and quickly, because the rumors of ghosts are turning out to be true…

KBZ’s Take: This film is very hard to find but it’s one of the best ‘kids’ horror films we have seen. It’s reminiscent of films like Gremlins (1984), Ghostbusters (1984) and The Goonies (1985) – all films with Horror and Adventure elements for kids.

However, like Gremlins (1984), the scares in this film won’t be suitable for kids under the age of 10. Like other J-Horror films, there are some scenes that might be disturbing for Western viewers. As an example, there is a scene when the kids are trapped in a school room and a life-sized body mannequin comes alive – complete with its innards falling out. It’s not shot in a gory way, but in a funny, gross way. How you interpret that as scary or humorous for your kids is entirely up to you.

Even though it’s marketed as a kids film and the main cast is comprised of 10-12 year olds, any adult fan of the subgenre should seek out this film. It’s a hidden gem of J-Horror and this subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3NcvgdU

Plot: Professor David Ash exposes false spiritualists and mediums. He is invited to Edbrook to resolve the fears and torments within its secretive family. Soon after arriving Ash begins to doubt his own senses, and watching the strange behavior of its residents does not make his task any easier. In time, he finds there’s more to Edbrook than even he can debunk.

KBZ’s Take: Haunted isn’t a typical ‘scary’ ghost film of the subgenre but rather about a man haunted by his past. The film features a compelling narrative as Professor Ash (Aidan Quinn) encounters the secretive family and he (and the viewer) are not sure what to expect.

Quinn’s chemistry with Christina Mariell (Kate Beckinsale) is one of the strengths of the film as their screen time together helps carry the film past some slow-moving parts. The narrative of the film is also slow (by design) to let the Gothic creepiness and underlying mystery play out.

The film is based on a James Herbert novel of the same name, and like the novel, it’s an engrossing film you won’t be able to turn away from.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3OYV4vA

Plot: A mysterious video has been linked to a number of deaths, and when an inquisitive journalist finds the tape and views it herself, she sets in motion a chain of events that puts her own life in danger.

KBZ’s Take: Ringu is a classic of the subgenre and is often credited with kickstarting not only the J-Horror craze but the flood of J-Horror remakes that started in the 2000’s. Ringu was remade as The Ring (2002) in the U.S. and there’s been an ongoing debate as to which is better – the original or the remake.

We feel both films have their strengths and weaknesses and personally prefer the original to the remake. Though the original film doesn’t have the budget or style of the remake, it has more subtle creepiness that is often found in J-Horror and K-Horror films. It also has a more realistic representation of Sadako (the tragic ‘villain’ of the film).

If you haven’t seen either film, we would advise starting with Ringu first. It will give you a glimpse into J-Horror of the time period and help show how these films became so popular in the 2000’s. You’ll also see why both the original and remake (even though essentially the same film) are considered classic Horror films of the subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: https://tubitv.com/movies/571822/ringu