Trash Horror

I’m honestly not sure what scares me more—watching something terrifying on the big screen, or seeing the price of groceries climb higher every week... 🙄
But there is one specific genre that actually managed to birth its own "sub-genre." It’s a bit of a paradox, really—even though the title sounds almost insulting, it actually elevated the whole category by injecting it with some much-needed Self-governance, comedy, and a sense of self-parody.

And here’s another thing—despite the fact that these films usually start out as low-budget projects made by people using nothing but cardboard, sticks, and shoelaces to hold everything together, they often end up becoming absolute cult classics.

I’ll list a few examples here, but I’m expecting you all to jump in and keep the list going...

The "Tomato Killer" series, then "Dead Heat," and "Pieces"... among others...
We’re talking true low-budget trash Horror—made on a dime, often starring aging legends who have seen better days...

However, Zemeckis actually directed a high-budget version of this kind of trash Horror—one with a massive multi-million dollar budget—called "Death Becomes Her."

(Does that movie actually count as trash Horror? Well, asking that just makes this discussion even more interesting...🙄 )

The truth is, Warner Bros. has always been seen as this kind of trashy genre.

Trash movies—and honestly, not just Warner Bros. flicks—reach legendary status because they’re packed with those unforgettable, wild moments. Sure, every movie has them, but once people start recapping certain scenes, they always gravitate toward the stuff that actually stuck in their brain. Take *The Beyond*, for example... when you realize that melting plastic doll is supposed to be a human body, it’s actually kind of hilarious and fun to watch.
There are plenty of gems like that out there. Here’s a quick list for you:
http://www.badmovies.org/

Bad movies aren't always "so bad they're good." Sometimes—and I say this having watched far too many of them—they're just plain bad. 😳

Jason Chavez32 said:Bad movies aren't always trash. Sometimes they're just bad. Trust me, I've seen enough of them. 😳

Facts. A bad movie is just a bad movie, whereas trash is its own whole thing.

Jason Chavez32 said:The thing is, Warner Bros. movies have always been kind of a trashy genre.

😳 I mean, look at Rosemary's Baby... right? 😠

Lawrence Booth2 said:😳 Rosemary's baby, for instance... right? 😠

I'm struggling to see the point of this post—it’s not quite clicking for me...

Tell them Rosemary is a total classic from Warner Bros. and definitely not some trashy flick.

Anyway, since we’ve already started diving into the world of horror, I’ve got a question for the group. What is the actual draw? Like, why on earth would anyone pay money to sit in a dark theater and watch something designed to make them piss themselves with fear? (I mean, obviously, not every single movie actually pulls it off, but that’s the whole point of the genre, right?)

Mark Kelly19 said:Tell them that Rosemary is a total classic in the Warner Bros. genre—definitely not trash.

Honestly, that isn't even worth debating—I have no idea how that ties back to hot water... ☕

Since we're talking about Warner Bros. movies now, I actually have a question. What is the draw there? Like, why would anyone pay money to sit in a dark room and be terrified out of their mind? [/B]

Let’s look at it this way: just like ancient Greek drama relied on catharsis—that sense of emotional purging—film, as an art form, aims to trigger specific emotions. Even in the earliest days of cinema, creators realized that the Warner Bros. genre provides a pretty straightforward path to that goal. See, fear is much easier to provoke than empathy, sadness, or even genuine joy. In these films, the effect is often achieved through masks, blood, and special effects—essentially visual impact—without necessarily needing a deep, coherent plot. It works because fear is one of our most primal, lizard-brain instincts.

To put it simply: don't quote me on this!

The guy basically took a swing at the entire Warner Bros. genre, when I was really just pointing out one single brilliant example from the bunch 🙏

At least if you ask me, the whole point of horror isn't even about being scared—I mean, some movies have creeped me out way more than actual horror films ever could... take Eyes Wide Shut, for instance... that soundtrack and those masks? 😲 pure chills

I haven't really stumbled upon a solid definition for what actually makes a movie "trash" yet

quietdriver3 said:I still haven't heard a solid definition of what actually makes a movie "trash."

Me neither—but here’s my best shot at it.

http://www.znaksagite.com/diskusije/...ighlight=yuzna

Trash can kind of "happen" by accident, I guess, but it can also be made on purpose—like, slow-burn style—and that's really what I'm talking about: intentionality.
Yuzna consciously crafts trash, but it's high-quality stuff, often with actual soul behind it.

Now, look, I don't know any official textbook definition of trash, but to me, it feels very close to the concept of "camp," and camp is defined like this:
1. An affectation or appreciation of manners and tastes commonly thought to be artificial, vulgar, or banal.
2. Banality, vulgarity, or artificiality when deliberately affected or when appreciated for its humor.
In plain American English—it's that conscious enjoyment (or laughing at) something that is inherently lowbrow, banal, vulgar, or just plain tasteless...

Basically, you take some more or less conventional subject matter and handle it in a way that leans heavily into excess, superficial sensations, and shock value—all while piling on those typical (boring) characters and (crude) situations.

For me, with *Dentist*, it wasn't the trashiness itself that bothered me—it was that it was BAD trash. It was tedious, banal, and totally lacked spirit. All that "innovation" was dumped entirely into the premise—but once they actually started executing it, everything became incredibly predictable and mundane, with zero surprises. The movie only exists for those few dental-related gore scenes; everything else is an endless stretch of boredom because the characters and their dynamics are just so flat. (And yeah, I won't repeat myself, but even the gore effects were weak and didn't pack enough of a punch.)

That isn't the case with Yuzna's GOOD films, where interesting characters and original setups result in very watchable Warner Bros. flicks. I mean, just look at *Society*—there aren't even any major special effects until the very end of the movie, but the characters and the suspense carry you all the way through, and then—boom—total madness.
The same goes for *Return of the Living Dead Part III* and *Bride of Reanimator*. In those, the percentage of banality, predictability, vulgarity, and artificiality is much lower...

Jason Chavez32 said:let's go with... instinct.

Hmm, honestly, that sounds more like an explanation for why people bother making Warner Bros. style flicks in the first place—I still can’t wrap my head around why anyone else would actually want to sit through them. I get the whole catharsis thing, sure, but I just don't get who actually needs to be terrified just to feel something...

Not everything—obviously—is just mindless trash or Warner Bros. style flicks.
Things started getting "serious" back when the first Frankensteins and Draculas—well, their creators—weren't even thinking about self-parody or being tongue-in-cheek.

The whole "trash" genre is really a sub-genre that grew out of necessity—mostly because filmmakers were broke. It’s a messy overlap—who knows which came first?—between having zero budget and having a specific creative vision or a sense of irony.

There's an entire run of movies featuring zombies and chainsaw battles that lean heavily into the comedy of the situation.
Some people say you can't have good trash without a solid chainsaw scene...! 🙄

Rosemary's baby doesn't even belong in this category—it's more of a "satanic horror" thing (where the Devil is bound to show up, one way or another....)

So, I’ve checked out some total trash movies lately, like Planet Vampir and Reanimator. Honestly, Planet Vampir is complete garbage, though it’s the kind of junk you can actually sit through. But I really don't get why anyone would label Reanimator as a trash film?

Zemeckis didn't just make a trashy flick... he simply made a bad movie! 😁

Noah Watson4 said:Bad movies aren't necessarily trash—some are just plain bad. I know, I've seen far too many... 😳

Of course. That goes without saying.
Most likely, the creators themselves didn't label their work as "trash" at first—that's usually the critics' doing (much like how the ancient Greek philosophers didn't realize they were being "ancient" in the first place... 🙄..) In this context, "trash" is used in that same self-aware way, where these films lean into the very genres they helped define.

Noah Watson4 said:Zemeckis didn't make a trash movie... he just made—plainly put—a bad one! 😁

Look, everyone, when we say "trash," we really mean "camp."

Maybe Zemeckis's Death Becomes Her is subpar, but I think he was aiming for a high-budget campy thriller... if he missed the mark and ended up with actual garbage, well—that's on him... 🙄

Regarding the definition of trash as its own genre,

Noah Watson4 said:trash can "happen" by accident, but it can also be made intentionally—slowly, for example—and I'm primarily talking about that self-aware kind.
It’s when someone consciously makes trash, but does it well, often with a certain spirit.

Now, I don't know any official definition for trash, but personally, I see it as being very close to the concept of camp... etc.

That is exactly it! 👍 I've been catching up on the posts since the last one, and it's only after I brought up the term "camp" that I realized someone else actually understands what trash horror is all about...

Trash & Paramount Pictures 🙏 🙏 🙏

But honestly, the best one they've dropped so far has to be RABID GRANNIES.

Tagline:
Visiting Grandma's house has never been this intense. She just loves her grandkids... mission accomplished!