8 Awesome Lovecraft Based Flicks You Should Check Out

1)Re-animator-1985-Stuart Gordon

Based on the story : Herbert West Re-Animator

This is not only the finest of the Lovecraft flicks it's also on par with greats like the Evil dead trilogy. The story focuses on Dr. Herbert West (Jeffery Combs) A disgraced scientist uses experiments with the dead and a serum injection that bring them back to life. Dan Cain (Bruce Abbot) a medical students life slowly begins to fall apart when he rents a room to West where he once again begins to run his experiments with the serum. Stewart Gordon directs a movie that has a great sense of Gory 80's humor like Evil Dead, Dead Alive, and Evil Ed. It also spawned a sequel and a third both directed by Brain Yuzna.Bride of Re-Animator being the second is just as fun as the first. Beyond Re-Animator being the third is still fun and gory but lacks something the first two do.

2)From Beyond-1986-Stuart Gordon

Based on the story : From Beyond

This the lesser known but still just as great Stuart Gordon Lovecraft adaptation. It delves more into science fiction then horror although Don t think Gordon skimps on the gore. Various monsters with Lovecraft written all over them devour people In the slimiest and just plain disgusting kinds of ways.

Crawford Tillinghast (Jeffery Combs) And Edward Pretorius (Ed Sorel) build a machine called the Resonator which expands glands in the human brain and allows us to see into another dimension filled with almost aquatic nightmare creatures and that’s where the fun begins. An accident Leaving everyone to think that Edward Pretorius is dead and Crawford Tillinghast in a mental asylum for his murder.

It's there Crawford in introduced to Dr Katherine Mcmichaels A therapist of some sort who with an ex football player turned cop Named Bubba take Crawford back to the house where the resonator is to basically prove his innocence by fixing the machine and showing them it works.

3)The Call Of Cthulhu-2005-Andrew Leman

Based on the story : The Call of Cthulhu

This is an indieish Lovecraft film that surprised me cause I went into it with low expectations. It turned out to not only be one of the best Lovecraft films but one of the most original indies I've seen in a while. Shot in the style of a silent film from the 20's the film tells the story of The Call of Cthulhu. Cthulhu is probably one of the widely known Lovecraft creatures. The film tells three stories one of a young man organizing the affairs of his deceased uncle. What he finds is vast conspiracy all pointing to an ancient evil power from the depths of the ocean said to one day return. The second is an account from a police officer who encounter cult activities in the swamp devoted to the dark lord Cthulhu. The third story tells an account of a group of sailors who end up on a uncharted island. There they find dark and ancient evil and the beast Cthulhu itself. I can't recommend this movie enough towards the end its art design almost takes on a Tim Burton style.  

4)Castle Freak-1995-Stuart Gordon

Based on the story : The Outsider

A family trying to recoup from an accident that left there son dead and daughter blind try to get away from it all on a vacation to Italy at a 16^th century castle in Italy. But all is not right when the family hears strange noises and other disturbances late at night. When people start going missing and then are found  dead in the Castle the father of the family John Reilly must uncover the whatever it is that hides in in the darkness of the old estate to prove his own innocence. I’m also a fan of Castle freak I feel it is more atmospheric horror creepy figures and bumps in the night although it still has some blood and gore to show just not as much as the other Stewart Gordon Lovecraft flicks.

 5)Necronomicon Book of the Dead-1993-Christope Gans/Shusuke Kaneko/Brain Yuzna

Based on the stories:The Necronomicon  ,Rats in the Walls,Cold Air,The Whisperer in the Darkness

Necronomicon Book of the Dead is an anthology movie similar to Creep Show and Tales from the Dark Side. The wrap around segment titled The Library has Jeffery Combs playing Lovecraft himself who's come to a monk guarded library to read from the Necronomicon. This is one of my favorite parts as they portray Lovecraft as some kinda of Indiana Jones character. The first segment The Drowned A man seeks to use the Necronomicon to bring back his wide back to life. He travels to an inherited hotel where the book is hidden. He then reads accounts he finds of a man in a similar situation and how the results of using the book are never quite what you asked for. The second segment Cold Air focuses on a young woman who rents a room in an extremely cold house. She's helped by an ill older gentlemen who lives upstairs named Dr. Madden who hides strange experiments and a even sinister secret. The third segment called Whispers follows a pretty shitty female cop who is chasing a serial killer called The Butcher. Unfortunately for her what she finds is actually worse then a serial killer. This one is particularly gory at the end and maybe a little offensive with its pro life message which is completely lost and in fact kinda mocked with its gallons of blood slime and body parts.

6)Dagon-2001-Stuart Gordon

Based on the story : Dagon & Shadow Over Innsmouth

Dagon is the story of Paul Marsh Who has just struck it big and goes on a boating vacation with his wife and two friends. Paul finds out at sea he has strange nightmares of a woman and strange creatures from the depths of the ocean. After a storm crashes the boat and leaves there friends injured Paul and his wife Barbra run to a near by village for help. Only things are not as they seem and they slowly learn that the village belongs to a strange and ancient cult who have plans for Paul and Barbra. This is one of the better evil cult movies that I've seen simply because the cult doesn't worship the devil but some ancient sinister god Dagon. This film doesn't have that fun sense of 80's gore but instead and some gnarly torture scenes and some very cool creature effects. The only down side is the unperfected CGI Although the film does keep it at a minimum and most of the movie is practical effects which makes it still quite entertaining.

7)The Resurrected-1992-Dan O' Bannon

Based on the story : The Case of Charles Dexter Ward

The wife(Jane Sibbettt) of chemical engineer Charles Dexter Ward (Chris Sarandon)hires a private detective to find out what her husband has been doing in a decrepit old cabin owned by his ancestors. The detective (John Terry)finds out that Dr. Ward's experiments are anything but normal and delve into alchemy. Strange smells come from the cabin as Ward tries to deter the detective from further pursuing the mystery of his experiments and the cabin. Although this film isn’t the most graphic Lovecraft film there are some particularly cool creatures effects as well as some really creepy scenes. Most of this film is build up to the big reveals towards the end of the movie.

8)The Unnameable-1988-Jean Paul Ouellette

Based on the story : The Unnamble & The Statment of Randolph Carter

An 18^th Centry House holds a Dark Force That for Years had been contained.Fast forward to present day (1988) and A couple college kids are at Arkham Miskatonic University telling ghost stories. Randolph tells The story of Joshua Winthorp and his demon daughter named Alyda Winthorp.

Randolphs buddy Joel concocts the idea to stay the night in the old Winthorp place and well at this point I bet you can how bad that that turns out. Some cool good old fashioned 1980's monster make up in this one.