The Massacre Movie Title Massacre
Tonight I sit down with my old friend and contributor to this site, Moe Porne to talk Microwave Massacre, which Arrow Video is releasing soon on a remastered Blu Ray. We will be covering it on the podcast.
Firstly the film and it's cover delighted me because it got me thinking about all those 80s VHS covers for films with fun and bizarre titles. It always makes me want to own them all, no matter the quality, in a warehouse so I can just marvel at the cover art, the concept of the film, the weird stories behind the making ofs etc.
Many people might wonder why the death of VHS players (Japan’s Funai Electric announced the last VHS Recorder was made in July of this year) was such a big deal but for the VHS lover or collector it is. Imagine the outcry if they stopped making record players tomorrow. Yes, while you can argue, that vinyl still exists because it can produce a better audio quality for certain records, the other reason (and possibly the real reason) is the same as why people still love VHS (or the IDEA of VHS): the nostalgia, the better cover art, the fact that the rare, beautiful and strange films still only had life on VHS and never made the leap to newer formats, the feel of them, the smell of them and the look of them. Older technology will always be a more pleasurable, tactile and some how more human experience.
I also said to my girlfriend, last night while watching Microwave Massacre, that "the film was from that glorious time where you could stick the word massacre to the end of any title and it would sell". I found out later that this is still very much the case (keep reading...)
I started thinking about all the films that have massacre in the title. As a big fan of slasher films I could think of quite a few from the 70s and 80s. I have also guested on the Bloodbaths & Boomsticks podcast which is co-hosted by the wonderful Tim Gross of Gross Movie Reviews and he's a huge fan of movies with the word massacre in the title. He even made one of his own, Jagoff Massacre, the local Pittsburgh based horror comedy!
So today I thought I would google some stuff and see if there was a comprehensive list anywhere. Well, it turns out there wasn't, until now. There was a list, someone made on IMDB, of the top 20 films about genocide, massacre and holocaust, you know, if you ever want a cheery night in front of the TV, there were a couple of Top 10 horror lists and the like and there was a list of slasher films someone had been watching and reviewing that featured quite a few massacre titled films but not a complete list.
So I compiled one.
I didn't go out of my way to spend a huge amount of time on the list. Using a few google searches, image searches and IMDB I quickly compiled the list you can see below. It's a lot of films with the word massacre in the title. They're not all slasher horrors, the only requirement was that they had massacre in the title.
The list brought up some fascinating things, not least of which is that the word massacre being used in titles is way more prevalent now than ever before. The 2000s are rife with the trend. It also shows just how inventive people have got with the concept but also how many more 'massacres' we could have.
I don't know what I'll do with the list. Work my way through each film perhaps? review as many as possible? try and source poster art for each one? or use it to make a massacre titled film of my own. Only time will tell. For now I leave it here because it's fun to read through and it might provide a useful reference guide for a similarly like-minded, massacre title fan such as myself.
Some massacre titles of note:
- One of the more bizarre titles is Sandy Hook Lingerie Party Massacre featuring Debbie Rochon from 2000 which, obviously, takes on a weird, morbid connotation post the tragedy at Sandy Hook school in 2012.
- Big Tits Massacre - no comment.
- Mime Massacre, which is only a short but definitely needs to be made as a feature.
So below then, the list in full. If you know of any others then comment below and I'll add to the list! Also let me know your favourites!!
- 4/20 Massacre (2017) (New addition)
- 10,000 Dollars for a Massacre (1967)
- After Party Massacre (2011)
- After School Massacre (2014)
- Axe Massacre (2008) (Short)
- Baby Bath Massacre (1994)
- Babysitter Massacre (2013)
- Bachelor Party Massacre (2006)
- Backwoods Massacre (1982) - originally called Midnight
- Big Tits Massacre (2010)
- Bikini Party Massacre (2002)
- Bikini Swamp Girl Massacre (2014)
- Blood Massacre (1991)
- Blood Slaughter Massacre (2013)
- Brutal Massacre: A Comedy (2007)
- Burlesque Massacre (2011)
- California Axe Massacre (1974) - originally called Lisa, Lisa and then Axe
- Camp Massacre (2014)
- Campsite Massacre (1981)
- Cheerleader Massacre (2003)
- Cheerleader Massacre 2 (2011)
- Class Reunion Massacre (1977)
- College Town Massacre (2016)
- Corporate Cutthroat Massacre (2009) (New addition)
- Dead End Massacre (2004)
- Death Metal Massacre
- Demented Death Farm Massacre (1971) - AKA Honey Britches (New addition)
- Ditch Day Massacre (2016)
- Dragoon Wells Massacre (1957)
- Drive In Massacre (1976)
- Dude Bro Party Massacre III (2015)
- Fat Camp Massacre (2016)
- Fort Massacre (1958)
- Frankenpimp's Revenge: The Romeo and Juliet Massacre (2015)
- Frat House Massacre (2008)
- Garden Party Massacre
- Grand Canyon Massacre (1964)
- General Massacre (1973)
- Heavy Metal Massacre (1989)
- Hipster Massacre (2016)
- Hitchhiker Massacre (2016)
- Hospital Massacre (1981)
- Jagoff Massacre
- Jersey Shore Massacre (2014)
- Klown Kamp Massacre (2010)
- Leaf Blower Massacre (2013) (Short)
- Leaf Blower Massacre 2
- Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
- Long Island Cannibal Massacre (1980)
- Maidan Massacre (2014)
- Manhunt: Backwoods Massacre (2008) - AKA Rovdyr & Predator (Norway)
- Mardi Gras Massacre (1978)
- Massacre (1934)
- Massacre (1956)
- Massacre (1989)
- Massacre at Central High (1976)
- Massacre at Rocky Ridge (2003)
- Massacre County (2015)
- Massacre Files (1994)
- Massacre Hill (1949)
- Massacre in Dinosaur Valley (1985)
- Massacre in Rome (1973)
- Massacre in the Black Forest (1967)
- Massacre Mafia Style (1974) - AKA Like Father, Like Son and The Executioner
- Massacre Mania (1967)
- Massacre on Aisle 12
- Massacre Time (1966)
- Massacre Up North
- Meatcleaver Massacre (1977)
- Meathook Massacre
- Meat Pie Massacre (2015) (Short)
- Memorial Valley Massacre (1989)
- Microwave Massacre (1983)
- Midnight Massacre (2016)
- Midnight Movie Massacre (1988)
- Mime Massacre (2006) (Short)
- Miner’s Massacre (2003)
- Mortuary Massacre (2016)
- Mother's Day Massacre (2007)
- Motor Home Massacre (2005)
- Mountaintop Motel Massacre (1983)
- Movie House Massacre (1984)
- Movie Machine Massacre (2014)
- Mummy Sleepover Massacre (2013) (short) (Tim Gross addition)
- Music Store Massacre (2013)
- Nail Gun Massacre (1984)
- Naked Massacre (1976)
- New York Centrefold Massacre (1984)
- Ninja Demon's Massacre (1988)
- PDA Massacre (2004) (Short)
- Pitchfork Massacre (1981) AKA The Prowler (U.S. Reissue title) (New addition)
- Pizza Girl Massacre (2014)
- Pool Party Massacre (2016)
- Porn Shoot Massacre (2009)
- Power Drill Massacre (Tim Gross addition)
- Quad X: The Porn Movie Massacre (2014)
- Requiem to Massacre (1960)
- Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre (2009)
- Roadside Massacre (2012)
- Sandy Hook Lingerie Party Massacre (2000)
- School Night Massacre (2005)
- Sewer City Massacre (2014)
- Sharkansas Women's Prison Massacre (2015)
- Sheborg Massacre (2016)
- Slaughter Massacre (2011)
- Sleepover Massacre (1989)
- Slime City Massacre (2010)
- Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
- Slumber Party Massacre II (1987)
- Slumber Party Massacre III (1990)
- Small Town Massacre (1981)
- Sorority House Massacre (1986)
- Sorority House Massacre II (1990)
- Sorority House Massacre III (1990) - AKA Hard To Die
- Sorority Party Massacre (2012)
- Spring Break Massacre (2008)
- Street Team Massacre (2007)
- Strip Club Massacre (2016)
- Swingers Massacre (1975)
- Teen Massacre (2004) (Short)
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)
- The Allentown Massacre (2016) (TV Movie)
- The Bucks County Massacre (2010)
- The Bunnyman Massacre (2014)
- The Christmas Season Massacre (2001)
- The Funhouse Massacre (2015)
- The Great Sioux Massacre (1965)
- The Puppet Monster Massacre (2010)
- The Redwood Massacre (2014)
- The Sand Creek Massacre (2006)
- The Slaughterhouse Massacre (2005)
- The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967)
- The Summer of Massacre (2012)
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
- The Victorville Massacre (2011)
- The Windmill Massacre
- Urban Cannibal Massacre (2013)
- Urban Massacre (2002)
- VHS Massacre: Cult Films and the Decline of Physical Media (2015)
- Viking Massacre (1966)
- Woodchipper Massacre (1988)
- Women's Prison Massacre (1983)
- Zombie Cult Massacre (1998)
- Zombie Island Massacre (1982)
- Zombie Island Massacre (1984)
- Zombie Massacre (2002)
- Zombie Massacre 2: Reich of the Dead (2015)