Good news; if you’re still sorting out your October watchlists, there are a lot of new options that are arriving on Digital HD from Lakeshore Entertainment. Notable cult classics, cherished horror comedies, horror gems, and genre-bending or adjacent movies that offer up Halloween viewing alternatives you might not have previously considered. Or simply just nostalgic titles from the ‘80s worth revisiting.

Here’s the Lakeshore lineup from RLJE Films…

Elvira: Mistress of the Dark

The hostess with the mostest made her feature debut in this comedy-horror movie. Cassandra Peterson plays the eponymous Elvira, a Los Angeles TV Horror host with dreams of having her own act in Las Vegas. She doesn’t have the funds to make that dream a reality, but luckily, she’s just received an inheritance from a distant relative that includes a mansion, pet poodle, and a mysterious recipe book. That inheritance just so happens to put her at odds with close-minded townsfolk and an evil uncle, one who longs to see her burn at the stake. Monsters, love spells, and more. Wacky hijinks ensue!

Apprentice to Murder

Set in 1920 Pennsylvania, this underseen horror-thriller stars Donald Sutherland as an overzealous preacher, or rather more like a spiritual “doctor,” who sees sin in everything. He takes a teen boy under his wing as an apprentice, but the boy is caught between his loyalty toward the doctor and his new lady love (Mia Sara). Of course, when a mysterious man inhabits traits the preacher deems as work of the devil, it causes a cataclysmic chain of events. Touted as based on a true story, the narrative never quite goes where you’d expect. Think folk horror that revels in ambiguity.

Jake Speed

For fans of ‘80s nostalgia or adventure films like Indiana Jones or Romancing the Stone, Jake Speed (Wayne Crawford) is a pulp novel hero brought to life. The basic setup is that plucky hero Speed agrees to help a woman rescue her sister from an evil slaver named Sid (John Hurt), out of Africa. A tongue in cheek parody of the genre, Jake Speed is full of one-liners, wit, and affable camp. With all of the fun action, explosions, and set pieces to keep the plot barreling forward, too. No, it’s not horror, but it sits close enough on the video rental shelf.

House

Author Roger Cobb (William Katt) has a lot on his plate. He’s dealing with a pushy publisher, a separation from his wife, the disappearance of his young son, PTSD from his tour of duty in the Vietnam war, and the suicide of his beloved aunt. It’s the latter that provides the most trouble, as she’s left him her extremely haunted house. Haunted houses have never been like this before; this horror comedy plays more like a creature feature than your typical supernatural tale. All of which makes for one unpredictable journey.

House II: The Second Story

Look for things to get even weirder than before in this sequel-in-name-only to House. Featuring a new set of unrelated characters and a totally different house, creatures across time collide under one roof all thanks to a mystical crystal skull. From mummy grandpas, baby pterodactyls, caterpillar-puppies, Aztec warriors, and a menacing undead evil, House II is a kitchen sink creature feature that goes for broke in light-hearted humor.

Dead End Drive-In

This one is an Ozploitation post-apocalyptic sci-fi/horror thriller that sees a teenage couple trapped in a drive-in, which is really just a concentration camp for social rejects. The inmates are fed a consistent diet of new wave music, violent films, junk food, and drugs. Its outcasts run amok, with car chases, explosions, violence, and sex all with a very distinctly ‘80s aesthetic. Underneath it all is social commentary on conformity. Anything goes at this Drive-in.

Hell Comes to Frogtown

This cult classic stars Roddy Piper as Sam Hell, one of the last fertile men after nuclear war has left the world a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Save for Hell, the survivors of that war have been divided mostly into two camps; mutated frog people and fertile women who run the government and are desperate to repopulate the Earth. The women have captured Hell, slapped a chastity belt on him, and have tasked him with infiltrating Frogtown to rescue captives. It’s every bit as insane as it sounds, and the creature effects are fantastic. In other words, if you want a cheesy fun time, this is it.

The Initiation

If you thought Chopping Mall was the only mall set slasher, you’d be wrong. As part of a sorority initiation, Kelly (Daphne Zuniga) has been tasked with breaking into her dad’s (Clu Galager) mall department store after hours, along with other pledges. What they don’t know, though, is that someone else happens to be lurking in the mall with them, and they’re out for blood. It’s not so easy to predict who will die and in what order in this slasher, and the dark after hours mall setting is very atmospheric. Look for outlandish twists and an action-packed second half.

Night Patrol

Between mutant creature feature The Being and horror comedy Blood Diner, director Jackie Kong helmed this comedy that sees a hapless cop trying to juggle his night shift duties with his stand-up comedy aspirations. It also happens to star Linda Blair (The Exorcist). In other words, this is an over the top comedy with puerile, often tasteless humor, and it boasts horror royalty.

Reform School Girls

What if you took a women-in-prison exploitation film and gave it an ‘80s comedy makeover? That’s what you get with Reform School Girls, an anarchic satire with all the exploitative elements firmly in place. The plot sees Jenny and a new group of inmates arriving at an all-girls reform school under the ruthless control of warden Sutter (Howling II’s Sybil Danning) and henchmen Edna. Plenty of nudity, violence, death, and much more in this raucous movie.

Slugs

Toxic waste turns garden variety slugs into man-eaters on a rampage in this 1988 horror movie helmed by Juan Picquer Simon. Simon previously captured the hearts of genre fans with ultra-gory and bonkers slasher Pieces; look for him to bring that same level of gore and fun here, as well. Anything goes in this killer slug induced massacre, including some insanely gruesome death scenes. Even better? Slugs is set over the Halloween season, making it perfect for October viewing.

The Stuff

A new mysterious yogurt-like dessert is taking the country by storm as the latest sensation, but it happens to turn its consumers into zombie-like husks. It’s up to industrial saboteur Mo Rutherford (Michael Moriarty), advertising designer Nicole (Andrea Marcovicci), and a boy named Jason (Scott Bloom) to get to the bottom of the Stuff, before it’s too late. This horror comedy is the brainchild of the late, great Larry Cohen.

Under the Boardwalk

Romeo and Juliet get an ‘80s surfer twist. Nick and Allie come from very different walks of life in their Southern California town. Comedy and romance follow, much to the chagrin of their respective friends and families. Under the Boardwalk is your standard ‘80s charmer, but do look for a lot of supporting actors who have appeared in horror properties, like Stuart Fratkin (Teen Wolf Too), Steve Monarque (Friday the 13th: The Series), and Hunter von Leer (Halloween II). A cameo by Dick Miller is a highlight, as usual.

Wanted: Dead or Alive

Rutger Hauer, we miss you. Wanted: Dead or Alive proved he should’ve been a much bigger action star, as he plays bounty hunter Nick Randall. Nick has been hired by the CIA to nab the terrorist behind a theater bombing in L.A., but trust is a huge issue. That terrorist is played by none other than Kiss frontman Gene Simmons. Directed by Gary Sherman (Dead & Buried, Death Line, Poltergeist III), this movie is for those nostalgic for ‘80s action movies with macho leads and memorable one-liners.

Transylvania 6-5000

Jack (Jeff Goldblum) and Gil (Ed Begley Jr)- ha, get it?- are two skeptical reporters sent on assignment to Transylvania to track down Frankenstein’s monster. Upon arrival, they soon discover a lot more than they bargained for with mummies, werewolves, and vampires on the prowl. A slapstick, screwball comedy-horror through and through, Transylvania 6-500 is the type of movie you watch in October with cereal on a Saturday morning. Look for notable comedic actors like Carol Kane, Jeffrey Jones, and even Geena Davis as a nymphomaniac vampire.

Tuff Turf

Released only a week before James Spader played the big bad in horror-thriller The New Kids in 1985, he played the reformed protagonist Morgan in a similar movie also about vicious teen gangs. Think Rebel Without a Cause. Here, Morgan is a troubled teen and the new kid in town, and he finds himself directly at odds with the resident gang when he inadvertently steals the psychotic gang leader’s girl. Robert Downey Jr. plays Morgan’s best friend, Jimmy. Tuff Turf has a little bit of everything; drama, comedy, and violence.