When you make a sequel to a horror movie you have a choice. You can just slap a number on it, like it’s the latest issue of a comic book, or you can get creative.
Horror movie subtitles, the titles that come after the franchise’s main title (usually preceded by a colon), are a great way to keep the original franchise title alive while declaring that the new installment has its own personality. When done right, they’re witty, exciting or even just laugh-out-loud hilarious.
With the announcement of the awesomely-titled The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, we thought it would be a good idea to look back at the delightful history of horror movie subtitles and highlight the best of the best. These are the subtitles that were genuinely great, or were so damned silly you gotta love ‘em… whether the movie was any good or not!
Honorable Mention: Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn
There has long been a controversy amongst fans of the Evil Dead movies as to whether “Dead By Dawn” is an official subtitle for the movie Evil Dead, or just a tagline on the poster that sounds like a really great subtitle. (See also: The X-Files: Fight the Future.) The words “Dead By Dawn” never actually appear on screen in Sam Raimi’s splatstick masterpiece, but to many of us they are as deeply ingrained in the film’s identity as any of the subtitles that made the official list. So we have to give it credit either way.
11. Hellraiser: Deader
What’s worse than being dead? Being deader, of course! The seventh film in the Hellraiser series (which, like many Hellraiser sequels, has almost nothing to do with the original) is about a reporter investigating a modern day death cult, whose members call themselves “Deaders.” So although the subtitle sounds ludicrous, it actually does make sense in context.
10. Critters 2: The Main Course
The second Critters movie has a subtitle that works on multiple levels. The series is about a species of aliens which lands on Earth and starts eating everybody, and so the food-centric phrase “The Main Course” perfectly applies. But also, Critters 2 is superior to the original in arguably every way, from the great ensemble to the witty script to the bizarre and wholly original set pieces. The first Critters really was just an appetizer. This is the real deal.
9. Amityville: It’s About Time
The Amityville Horror series got pretty silly pretty quickly – don’t get me started on the one about an evil lamp – but you gotta admire whenever a horror franchise says “screw it” and just does a time travel installment, especially when it’s the sequel to an allegedly true story. “It’s About Time” is a great subtitle because… well, yeah, this one is about time. They’re not being clever about it, they’re just announcing that they basically gave up and are committing to the franchise’s total weirdness.
8. The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie
Say what you will about Troma, but the little horror studio that could is not afraid to self-aggrandize. The third film in the monster/superhero/horror/comedy Toxic Avenger series is no mere sequel, it’s a story about the Toxic Avenger selling out by selling his soul. Of course it’s utterly absurd, but evoking the controversial but acclaimed Martin Scorsese classic The Last Temptation of Christ – thus comparing not just Toxie to Christ, but the filmmakers to Scorsese himself – is a power play if ever I’ve heard one. Bonus points for confidence!
7. Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid
The sequel to the surprisingly entertaining and successful Anaconda could have just been called Anacondas, since in the follow-up there’s a whole bunch of them. But no, oh no, they didn’t put a bunch of blood orchids in this movie just to let the snakes steal the spotlight. People need to know about those blood orchids, otherwise they might not be interested in the film. You know how much people love blood orchids, right? They’re so popular right now. Anyway, that’s probably why the sequel to a giant snake movie has a title that’s more about flowers than snakes. I assume. Probably.
6. Tremors 3: Back to Perfection
The Tremors movies have consistently been producing quality straight to video sequels for decades now, and the subtitles are mostly just fine. You gotta respect “Back to Perfection,” though. It sounds like a huge boast but it’s actually totally banal. The original Tremors took place in Perfection, Nevada, and the third film takes place there too. But also it’s fair to say that the third film in the series ably captures the ensemble charms and monsteriffic humor of the original, so yeah, it kinda actually is “back to the perfection.” In addition to being “Back to Perfection,” of course.
5. Hello, Mary Lou: Prom Night II
Sometimes a subtitle is so good it’s better than the actual title. Such is the case with Hello, Mary Lou: Prom Night II, in which the title of the movie gets demoted to subtitle status, and with good cause. The absolutely insane sequel to Prom Night has almost nothing to do with the original, to the point that calling it a sequel at all is practically a joke. The supra title “Hello, Mary Lou” puts this cult classic’s wonderful villain front and center; and as a welcome bonus, it rhymes!
4. Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood
This was a tough call between Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood and Leprechaun 4: In Space, two titles which both sound more like fake movies than real ones. But you have to give the edge to Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood. It’s the sixth film in the series, but instead of admitting that, they’re calling it the first sequel to Leprechaun in tha Hood, as though putting a Leprechaun in “tha hood” was the original blockbuster idea that gave birth to the franchise in the first place. It’s not just a catchy, funny title, it’s actively rewriting history to elevate Leprechaun in tha Hood to classic status. Kudos for moxie.
3. The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia
It’s a “Haunting in Connecticut.” And it’s set in “Georgia.”
I repeat.
It’s a “Haunting in Connecticut.” And it’s set in “Georgia.”
This title is a masterpiece of misplaced marketing bravado, as the follow up to the successful supernatural thriller The Haunting in Connecticut was originally going to be called “The Haunting in Georgia.” But because the franchise’s branding took priority over what words actually mean, they renamed it The Haunting in Connecticut 2 and gave it a laugh-out-loud subtitle to announce that it’s actually set in Georgia.
Dang, that’s funny.
2. The Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf
The Howling II is our number two pick for a variety of reasons. First off, it’s called “Your Sister is a Werewolf.” That’s just funny on its surface. Not many films are bold enough to use second-person in the title, and fewer still are bold enough to announce that you, the audience member, has a werewolf for a sister. It’s like they’re trying to start a bar fight with you or something.
But this particular sequel has had multiple subtitles over the years, and one of them is yet another prime contender. The Howling II: Stirba – Werewolf Bitch is almost if more more eye-catching than the one accusing your sister of lycanthropy. They’re both classic horror subtitles.
1. The “Final” Anything
There’s one cardinal rule of horror sequel subtitles, and that is if you call your film the “final” installment, it won’t be. And it’ll get a laugh out of horror fans forever. Puppet Master 5: The Final Chapter, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, Lake Placid: The Final Chapter, Saw 3D: The Final Chapter, Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare and Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice all continued after their allegedly “final” installments, in many cases for a very, very long time. It’s extremely ironic that if you call your sequel the “final chapter” as a marketing ploy to sell tickets, and it works, then the sequel will be so successful that the studio demands another one.
So far there’s one exception to this rule, and that’s Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, which has yet to either produce another sequel or reboot itself.
But they’re working on it, so it’s only a matter of time…
