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H.P. Lovecraft is unarguable one of the most influential horror writers of all - time . His depictions of the frail human psyche and the immeasurable monster that seek to destroy it are so alone and impactful a vision that Lovecraftian horror has become its own genre across all media , from record to films togames .
Like Poe before him and King after him , his body of work was picked through relentlessly by film maker desire to translate some of the scourge . Nearly every piece he pen has been adapted , with some being conform more than once over . Many of the version have been ignored or lambasted for deviating too far , but some have found success in capturing the iconic cosmic dread . Here are the ten best Lovecraft adjustment based on IMDb score .
The Shuttered Room (1967) - 5.9
This short tale by Lovecraft was the rubric account for an anthology al-Qur’an , but it still get down a plastic film adaptation , all the same , less than ten years after its departure . It follows a woman trying to debar her family expletive , only to be quarter back to the family where the supernatural entity that terrorize her presides .
It was a cause - in feature film that has actually gotten more democratic in retrospect than it was upon its release , and it is only slackly base on the tale , taking a series of liberties with the story .
Castle Freak (1995) - 5.9
This schlocky slasher from Stuart Gordon is base loosely on Lovecraft’sThe Outsider . When a family inherits a 12th - century castle , they quickly find they are not the only occupier , and they must seek to escape .
While the surreal psychological revulsion or the wildly grim beasts that most mass think of when they try " Lovecraftian horror " are n’t present here , what is present is a tight splatter film about a deform creature stalking and bolt down its butt in a large gothic castling , which is also good . Good tidings for fans of the cult classic , CastleFreakhas a remaking total this summertime from Fangoria .
Dagon (2001) - 6.2
Director Stuart Gordon was clearly the go - to for Lovecraft adaption , having made five different films establish on the source ’s work . Here , he outdo even himself by adjust two stories at once , bothDagonandThe Shadow Over Innsmouth .
The tale of a small fishing village that is hiding a monstrous secret is one of Lovecraft ’s most well - make love , and Gordon does an excellent job of bringing it to life . The cult of sea - human is visually well - done , and the whole pic ’s populace - construction is on point , giving the impression that there could be hundreds of other creature out there , just wait to be reveal .
Color Out Of Space (2019) - 6.2
This tale of strange things materialize after a meteorite lands in a small town had been adapt before , but never in a direction that mollify writer / director Richard Stanley . He teamed with SpectreVision under the promise that he was going to make the truest Lovecraft adaption that had ever been made .
Whether he come through in such a monumental exploit is up to writers much more informed than this one , but the Nicolas Cage take plastic film is a hazardous ride that captures cosmic horror in a truly unique way . It was a hit at festivals last year , and just found its way to a digital release a few months ago .
The Resurrected (1991) - 6.3
The first of two on this list to adaptThe Case of Charles Dexter Ward , this film come fromReturn of the Living Deaddirector Dan O’Bannon and is ripe with the pragmatic effects and vicious personalities that his films usually boast .
When a woman hires a detective to figure out what her husband is up to at a remote cabin , she determine that there is a horrifying secret , that is going to become a luck worse if it is not block off .
The Whisperer In Darkness (2011) - 6.6
This version come straight from the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society , so it can be assumed the first audience to be angered by deviations from the root cloth would be the film producer themselves . Created with a retro look , this film follows a man as he investigates reports of impossible creature being attend in Vermont .
The film does an impeccable job of recreating a classic style , which fits the source material much better than a modern - go down moving-picture show would . The horror is here , if not a small vague , but the film is nothing if not an precise attempt at adapting Lovecraft .
From Beyond (1987) - 6.7
The second on this list from Stuart Gordon is his try at adapting the undefined cosmic terror that many reckon of as Lovecraftian repulsion ’s best quality . This idea of there being impossibly powerful effect at play that manhood ca n’t fathom is terrific but unmanageable to put to motion picture .
Gordon ’s approach is a wild one that somehow work . He physically attest the terrors as grotesque physical fauna and human distortion . The physical approach makes for a wild splatter film that manages to still catch the feeling of being a minuscule slice of a bigger teaser that is ever - present in much of Lovecraft ’s employment .
The Haunted Palace (1963) - 6.8
A true oddity of B - movie repulsion , this film was made by the king himself , Roger Corman , and is regarded as one of his better films . The movie is titled after Edgar Allen Poe ’s poem of the same name but is actually a on-key version of H.P. Lovecraft’sThe Case of Charles Dexter Ward .
Corman ’s distributor American - International was n’t a fan of the film maker deviating from his popular adaptation of Poe ’s work , so they title it after the verse form , take it was based on it . Despite the title , the film is a great attempt at bringing Lovecraft ’s brand name of haunting terror to spirit , have a bun in the oven in part by an fantabulous performance from Vincent Price .
The Call Of Cthulhu (2005) - 7.2
The most famous beast from Lovecraftian horror is the giant calamary steer ocean beastCthulhu . The creature get along from the famous short story by Lovecraft , that many exact , and still claim , is unadaptable . However , the challenge did not scare the H.P Lovecraft Historical Society out from assay .
The grouping funded this plastic film , film as a silent film inBlack and White , about a man losing his mind as he pick up of the existence of other forces in our world . The motion picture is generally lauded as the most exact Lovecraft adaption of all - time .
Re-Animator (1985) - 7.2
Lovecraft ’s take onFrankensteinexchanges medieval castle with the bright whiteness of infirmary halls . Quirky medical student Herbert West ’s obsessive commitment to his discovery is less evil than the general portrayal of a mad scientist . West is likable in his eccentricity , creating a rare character that is n’t seen much in repugnance .
Stuart Gordon ’s motion picture is a tonal rollercoaster of the good potential motley . It features multiple sequences of gore and dead body mutilation that are done with telling pragmatic effects , jest - out - forte humor that manages to feel rude in such a wild report , and literal horror in its stopping point when the topsy-turvydom make its peak .
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