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Movies that feel like The Return of the Living Dead (1985)

If you loved The Return of the Living Dead, the closest films we have are Re-Animator (1985), Dawn of the Dead (1978) and The Day of the Beast (1995). All three share The Return of the Living Dead's dread and unsettling feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 10 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium and Shudder and others, checked against today's data.

Two employees at a medical supply warehouse accidentally release a toxic gas from a misplaced top-secret U.S. Army shipment, causing the dead to rise from a nearby cemetery with an insatiable hunger for human brains.

πŸ… 71% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.3 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Dan O'Bannonwittyplayfuldreadunsettlingcerebraldarkly funny
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If The Return of the Living Dead hit the spot, these will too

Re-Animator poster
Re-Animator
1985 Β· dir. Stuart Gordon
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.1science fiction Β· comedy Β· horror

The same preoccupation in both: zombie

The difference: Without the same dark humor

Conducting clandestine experiments within the morgue at Miskatonic University, scientist Herbert West reveals to a fellow graduate student his groundbreaking work concerning the re-animation of fresh corpses.

Dawn of the Dead poster
Dawn of the Dead
1978 Β· dir. George A. Romero
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.8horror Β· science fiction

Common ground: dark comedy

During an ever-growing epidemic of zombies that have risen from the dead, two Philadelphia SWAT team members, a traffic reporter, and his television-executive girlfriend seek refuge in a secluded shopping mall.

The Day of the Beast poster
The Day of the Beast
1995 · dir. Álex de la Iglesia
πŸ… 77%β˜… 7.3horror Β· comedy Β· action

Both keep coming back to the same thing: dark comedy

The difference: Played as action first

When a rogue priest discovers the exact date the Antichrist will be born, he enlists a Death Metal record store clerk and a cheesy TV psychic for an urban spree of gore, sacrilege and twisted humor to prevent the Apocalypse.

Tremors poster
Tremors
1990 Β· dir. Ron Underwood
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.2comedy Β· horror Β· science fiction

Both land wit and play at once

Val McKee and Earl Bassett are in a fight for their lives when they discover that their desolate town has been infested with gigantic, man-eating creatures that live below the ground.

Shaun of the Dead poster
Shaun of the Dead
2004 Β· dir. Edgar Wright
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.8horror Β· comedy

Both are built on the same subject: zombie

Shaun lives a supremely uneventful life, which revolves around his girlfriend, his mother, and, above all, his local pub. This gentle routine is threatened when the dead return to life and make strenuous attempts to snack on ordinary Londoners.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show poster
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
1975 Β· dir. Jim Sharman
πŸ… 81%β˜… 7.4comedy Β· science fiction Β· horror

Dread-soaked and unsettling in the same breath

After getting a flat tire in the middle of nowhere, newly engaged couple Brad and Janet encounter the eerie mansion of the flamboyant, seductive Dr Frank-N-Furter and a variety of eccentric characters. Through elaborate dance and rock music, the mad scientist unveils his latest creation: a perfect, muscular man.

Repo Man poster
Repo Man
1984 Β· dir. Alex Cox
πŸ… 93%β˜… 6.8comedy Β· science fiction

One thread runs through both: punk rock

A down and out young punk gets a job working with a seasoned repo man, but what awaits him in his new career is a series of outlandish adventures revolving around aliens, the CIA, and a most wanted '64 Chevy.

Phantasm poster
Phantasm
1979 Β· dir. Don Coscarelli
πŸ… 72%β˜… 6.6horror Β· science fiction

Common ground: cemetery

A teenage boy and his friends face off against a mysterious grave robber, known only as the Tall Man, who employs a lethal arsenal of unearthly weapons.

Fright Night poster
Fright Night
1985 Β· dir. Tom Holland
πŸ… 83%β˜… 7.1comedy Β· horror

Witty comedy, and it commits to that

Charley Brewster, a high school student, accidentally discovers the true and creepy nature of Jerry Dandrige, his dashing and enigmatic new neighbor; but no one seems willing to believe him.

The Bed Sitting Room poster
The Bed Sitting Room
1969 Β· dir. Richard Lester
πŸ… 64%β˜… 6.1comedy Β· science fiction

The same mix in both: ideas, then dark humor

In the hazy aftermath of World War III, the fallout from a 'nuclear misunderstanding' is producing strange mutations amongst the survivors, and the noble Lord Fortnum finds himself transforming into a bed sitting room.

Sightseers poster
Sightseers
2012 Β· dir. Ben Wheatley
πŸ… 86%β˜… 6.5comedy Β· crime Β· romance

Playful horror in both cases

The difference: Leans further into crime

Chris wants to show girlfriend Tina his world, but events soon conspire against the couple and their dream caravan holiday takes a very wrong turn.

Dawn of the Dead poster
Dawn of the Dead
2004 Β· dir. Zack Snyder
πŸ… 77%β˜… 7.2horror Β· science fiction Β· action

Science fiction built on dread, twice over

A group of survivors take refuge in a shopping mall after the world is taken over by aggressive, flesh-eating zombies.

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