Write Off This Cheesy 1980s Horror With 29% On Rotten Tomatoes At Your Peril

May 15, 2025

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Horror movies are perhaps the most subjective genre in all cinema, but there is a 1980s cult classic that actually deserves more praise than it gets. Though horror was always a staple of cinema from the beginning, it exploded in popularity in the 1980s with the rise of home video technology. The film industry was then able to reach a bigger audience, and wasn’t reliant on box office numbers to turn a profit. However, this also meant that many great movies went unseen, and has led to the modern-day trend of declaring every unpopular horror flick a “cult classic”.

While the cult classic label has certainly been overused as of late, there are still plenty of underrepresented horror movies from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, and beyond that deserve the distinction. Accessibility makes cult classics increasingly rarer in the modern day, and a new release has a greater chance of being seen when compared to an obscure movie that premiered during the 1980s horror boom. Even movies that were panned upon initial release can sometimes deserve a modern reassessment, and there is one particular forgotten ’80s gem that is constantly overlooked by horror fans.

Death Ship Is A Tackier Horror Movie, But I Actually Think It’s Kind Of Great

The Obscure Nautical Horror Film Takes Big Swings

1980’s Death Ship isn’t a film that often comes up in conversation when discussing cult classic gems from that decade. However, the high-seas nightmare is actually much better than its original reputation, and is perhaps even better than its modern reassessments as well. Directed by Alvin Rakoff, the movie concerns the surviving crew and passengers of a cruise liner who find themselves aboard the mysterious abandoned vessel that wrecked their ship. The ghost ship carries plenty of chilling secrets, and a dark connection to the past. It is also possessed by a malevolent spirit that wants its newfound passengers dead.

Death Ship takes big swings, and while they may not all pay off, it certainly makes an effort.

Holding a paltry 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film was initially lambasted by critics for being unnecessary and violent, though nearly every horror film from that era got similar treatment from mainstream critics. Modern takes have improved somewhat, but it isn’t typically held in the same esteem as other ’80s cult films. This is something of a surprise, especially considering the obvious efforts that went into making the B-movie something bigger and grander than its contemporaries. Death Ship takes big swings, and while they may not all pay off, it certainly makes an effort.

The film includes a handful of impressive effects, including a unique take on its decaying corpses. Though the plot is overstuffed, that’s actually a benefit because it never feels meandering and pointless. So many horror films from the era feature characters running around the woods (or some other cheap location) evading a masked killer, but Death Ship opts for a supernatural terror that is actually pretty creepy. Big screen legend George Kennedy is also a treat to watch as the grumpy captain who eventually becomes the supernatural villain.

While plenty of movies made a trip to the beach seem scary, only a handful of deep sea horror movies explored the ocean’s dark, unknowable depths.

Death Ship Has Earned Cult Classic Status, Despite Not Being Appreciated At The Time

It Might Not Be Beloved But Death Ship Has Its Fans In The Modern Day

The bow of the boat with a skull face on in from the poster of Death Ship

As is the case with almost every horror film from the 1980s, Death Ship has become a cult classic with some horror hounds, though it still isn’t one of the decade’s most beloved hidden gems. It currently holds a 2.5 average rating on Letterboxd, which equates to about 50%. That is a much more accurate assessment when compared to its 29% Rotten Tomatoes score, and obviously eliminates the puritanical dislike that the movie garnered when it first debuted. It may not have been the only spooky ship movie from that era, but Death Ship has the furthest reach.

The most obvious example of Death Ship‘s legacy is the 2002 release of Ghost Ship, a film that borrows heavily from its predecessor. Though Ghost Ship isn’t a remake, and does change quite a few elements of its plot, the basic concept remains intact. The latter film also directly copied the iconic poster design for Death Ship, which features a frightening face imposed over the bow of the menacing ship. While neither film was particularly well-received, both have become cult classics in their own right.

Ghost Ship grossed $68 million against a $20 million production budget (via Box Office Mojo).

Death Ship is far from a perfect movie, and by many standards it isn’t even a particularly good movie, but it succeeds because it tried to do something different. Horror has always been a low-cost and high-reward genre, and a film like Death Ship is rare because it aspires to be more than a quick cash-grab. Thanks to its cult classic status, the film can be seen by a much larger audience, and might finally get some of the positive attention it so rightly deserves.