For obvious reasons, audiences and viewers are meant to be afraid of horror films. It's their purpose, engineered to strike terror into one's heart and send them scuttling beneath their covers in fright. However, there are the odd moments, the rare occasions, were horror movies make us laugh.
It's no small feat for a horror film to still contain a bit of horror, a small amount of fear and yet still have the ability to make audiences laugh. Whether they be engineered that way, through horror-comedies that can still be terrifying, cheesiness, or simply excellently timed jokes, sometimes audience screams are replaced with laughter.
Freddy Vs Jason (2003)
Now, the likes of Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger facing one another down sounds like it wouldn't be funny. On the surface, one would think— perhaps even hope— that the movie would be brutal, scary, and be a great horror crossover film with perhaps a few problems here and there.
While Freddy Vs Jason definitely has plenty of terrifying moments and fantastically over the top kills, there are more than enough moments of cheesy bits and jokes that will leave anyone chuckling, specifically from Robert Englund's scene-chewing yet wonderful portrayal of Freddy.
Leprechaun (1993)
There came a time in Hollywood where just about everything was getting made into a horror movie, with classic holidays and said holiday figures being made into what studios hoped would be terrifying monsters. Instead, most of them ended up being like the Leprechaun.
Leprechaun followed a group of kids who find a Leprechaun, played by Warwick Davis, who is freed from a well and begins to wreak havoc on the kids. Throughout all the mayhem and blood, Davis is able to deliver a pretty funny performance in a ridiculous horror flick.
Ready Or Not (2019)
Most of the horror films that leave the audience laughing are more than likely to be horror-comedy films. However, that's not to say that horror-comedies can't still be scary and leave audiences recoiling in fear while at the same time relishing in the twisted humor.
Ready Or Not, a horror movie literally based on the children's game hide-and-seek, is a horror-comedy for sure, and yet the film has plenty of terrifying moments— from a cellar full of dead bodies to some gruesome kills all leading into a ridiculously enjoyable and bloody finale.
Final Girl (2015)
Let it be said that sometimes, horror is stupid. The very concept of immortal killers or an evil doll running around trying to kill horny teenagers sounds ridiculous but at the same time terrifying. So while most horror films continue the terrifying tradition, some take advantage of the stupidity.
Final Girl is a complete riff on the slasher genre that still keeps somewhat true to its inspirations, placing well-timed scares and thrills next to great parodies of cliched and overdone moments that audiences can't help but laugh at.
Shaun Of The Dead (2004)
In the day and age that is modern Hollywood, zombies should go back to being dead. Time and time again, zombies have been overused and done to death, to the point of once classic moments becoming cliched. Fortunately, there are still a few outliers.
Kicking off the "Cornetto Trilogy", Shaun Of The Dead is an actually scary zombie flick that's packed to the brim with fantastic jokes and comedy. The film leaves audiences screaming one moment, then laughing at Shaun beating zombies in time to Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now".
What We Do in The Shadows (2014)
Over the past few years, director, actor, and writer Taika Waititi has made quite a mark on the film world. From making comic-book films to coming of age stories set in New Zealand and 1940's Germany, many forget that Taika got his start with a film about vampires.
What We Do In The Shadows is a new look at vampires in a mockumentary style. Despite there being many bloody, gory, and spooky scenes, the movie never fails to make one laugh with what has become known as Taika brand humor. The film even inspired a spinoff TV series that has taken on a life on its own while retaining some of the original's charm.
Beetlejuice (1988)
Whenever someone thinks of horror or creepy imagery, their mind goes to the man who has become the king of creepiness: Tim Burton. Tim Burton's always had a knack for making things go bump in the night in an interesting way, and Beetlejuice is without a doubt his crowning achievement.
Full of fantastic makeup and effects, with an original story about the afterlife and ghosts, making it one of the greatest films on the subject— not to mention Michael Keaton's now-iconic portrayal of the "ghost with the most"— and Beetlejuice is one funny yet scary feature.
Army Of Darkness (1992)
Back in 1981, Sam Raimi broke fresh ground with a film that paved the way for a new kind of horror film with The Evil Dead. A terrifying film shot on a minuscule budget followed by a sequel that improved upon the original, fans were eager for the third installment.
When Army of Darkness released, it ended up being an unexpected surprise. The horror feel that Raimi had established was there and yet it had been joined with a level of comedy that hit and made the series even more memorable.
Cabin In The Woods (2011)
The premise has been done to death: a group of promiscuous teens go into the dark spooky woods to party and encounter a dark force that picks all but the virgin off one by one. Every time these stories have been done, it always has the same ending. That is, until Cabin In The Woods.
With Cabin In The Woods, the movie twisted the overdone story, with the dark force and events being done in a new and hilarious manner— with some phenomenal references, truly scary moments, and one of the greatest horror movie endings ever.
Tucker And Dale Vs Evil (2010)
Thoughts on horror and horror films usually take a turn into blood and gore. The two are simply synonymous together, with many assuming that a good horror movie needs a ton of gore. Of course, sometimes this can lead to great comedic moments.
Tucker And Dale Vs Evil could have been a cut and dry horror-comedy, with simple jokes and scares— and yet the movie wasted no time on upping the gory but hilariously over the top deaths in a way that will never be topped.