The Most Underrated Infection Horrors of the 1980s, Ranked

10. The Stuff (1985)
A weird, white, gooey substance bubbles up from the ground. Tempting, right? Some corporate suits decide, "Hey, let's market this!" And so, "The Stuff" becomes the latest dessert fad. But surprise, surprise—people start acting odd. That tasty treat? It's alive and wants control.

A kid named Jason and an ex-FBI agent join forces to uncover the truth and halt The Stuff's creamy conquest. Moral of the story? Maybe don't eat mysterious ground goop.

9. Dead & Buried (1981)
Small towns. They can be eerily charming, right? Potter's Bluff, for instance, seems peaceful—until tourists start vanishing. Then, they mysteriously pop up as townsfolk!

The sheriff investigates, only to discover a series of sinister snuff films and some witchy reincarnation business. What's a guy gotta do to enjoy a quiet town life? Definitely avoid places where the dead get a second act.

8. Slugs (1988)
Garden pests? Nah, meet man-eating monsters. When a small town faces a series of grotesque deaths, one man discovers the culprits: mutant slugs.

That's right, these slimy critters have a taste for human flesh. Sewers become battlegrounds, gardens turn into death pits, and every moist corner hides a threat. Just one question: How fast can you run from something that, well, slugs along?

7. Street Trash (1987)
Hobos and a toxic drink—what could go wrong? In a forgotten part of New York, bums find a stash of old wine bottles. What they don't know is that this booze melts people.

Literal meltdowns ensue, causing chaos. Between dodging a crazed Vietnam vet and avoiding a melting demise, the streets have never been more treacherous.

6. Warning Sign (1985)
Biohazards, anyone? A lab accident in a small town releases a deadly virus, transforming the infected into homicidal maniacs. Joanie, the security officer's wife, finds herself trapped inside, desperately seeking an antidote.

As military quarantines tighten and infected scientists grow increasingly violent, time runs thin. It's science versus survival, with high stakes and no safety goggles.

5. Night of the Creeps (1986)
You want aliens? You got 'em. Zombies? Check. Flamethrowers and killer slugs? Oh yeah.

At Corman University, it all begins when a cryogenically-frozen college student from the '50s gets thawed, releasing brain-infesting space slugs into the world. These parasites make their way into unsuspecting students, turning them into the undead.

As the night unfolds, it's up to our unlikely heroes, Chris and J.C., with the help of a grizzled cop, to stop the creeping menace. With cheesy one-liners, B-movie charm, and a plethora of horror tropes, it's the epitome of the 80s.

4. Contamination (1980)
Mysterious crates of coffee arrive in New York, hiding the pulsating eggs of an alien species. Exposure? Causes human combustion! Top that off with a Martian conspiracy and government agents out of their depth.

Follow Lieutenant Tony Aris and Colonel Stella Holmes as they trace these deadly eggs back to their source. From tropical plantations to the cavernous lairs of an alien queen, it's an explosive trail.

3. Rabid (1977)

Technically, a bit of a cheat since it's a late 70s film, but who's counting? After a motorcycle accident, Rose undergoes experimental surgery, resulting in a little... addition. She grows a new orifice that thirsts for blood.

Each victim becomes rabid, spreading the infection further. As Montreal descends into chaos, her boyfriend Hart races against time, hunting the patient zero he still loves.

2. Brain Damage (1988)
Brian's got a new friend: Ailmer, a centuries-old parasitic creature who injects its host with a potent, hallucinogenic blue fluid.

But there's a catch. In return for the addictive high, Ailmer feeds off human brains. As Brian gets more addicted, the body count rises. Will Brian break free, or is the next fix worth the deadly cost?

1. The Video Dead (1987)
Ever received an unsolicited TV delivery? The Jordans did, and boy, was it a killer. This particular TV set has only one channel, playing a black-and-white zombie movie on a loop.

The twist? The undead step out of the screen and into our world! As the family and a couple of other unlikely allies grapple with the TV's dark secret, they face an onslaught of vintage zombies.