10 Great Horror Movies That Are Actually Ripoffs Of Other Films

4) Ghoulies

While Ghoulies is notoriously considered one of the worst horror films ever made, I have a huge soft spot in my heart for it. With an appearance from Jack Nance and some rather lovable puppet designs, there’s a lot to love. Even if it’s just a cheap Gremlins knock-off.

I especially adore the setting, which happens to be an abandoned Hollywood mansion that once belonged to a satanist and his cult. There’s plenty of gothic set pieces spread throughout the house, including a fountain and some rather vicious fish Ghoulies that spawn from it.

The soundtrack is another big reason why I love it, too. While it’s not as perfect as Jerry Goldsmith’s score for Gremlins, it’s certainly just as fun. Richard Band was a great composer and knew exactly what he was doing.

Interestingly, Ghoulies did so well at the box office that it spawned three sequels. The first takes place at a carnival where the Ghoulies inhabit a haunted house attraction. The effects seem to be improved too, with cool uses of stop-motion and endless examples of chaos near the end as the Ghoulies break free of their haunted house and begin invading an entire carnival.

My favorites of the series are Ghoulies 3 and Ghoulies 4, however. The third uses the raunchy comedy subgenre of films like Revenge of the Nerds as a basis for its story, while the fourth is a direct sequel to the original. We get a return from Peter Liapis who played Jonathan in the first film and learn that he now works as a police officer who ultimately has to fight a satanist attempting to resurrect her master. With such a dark plot, the filmmakers threw in a couple of Ghoulies for comedic relief, which altogether makes for one hell of a time.

Unfortunately, the original Ghoulie puppets were switched out with dwarf actors for budgetary reasons in the fourth film, but I truthfully think getting a direct sequel to the original was worth it.