The term “B-movie” gets thrown around, but the actual history of B-movies is fascinating, and the definition has evolved. Originally, a film was a B-movie because it was the lesser-known pairing of a more well-known film in a double feature. Think of it like the B-side of an album. As films evolved and budgets blossomed, B-movies tended to be the lower-budget companion on a double feature. Lower budgets often meant campy performances by “B-list actors”.
With that in mind, B-movies now encompass low-budget films or films without major distribution or production costs, but that doesn’t mean that all B-movies have B-level performances. Some B-movies boast fantastic performances, which is often the very reason why these movies stand the test of time. Good acting can sell nearly any movie and this list of B-movies proves that. Here are B-movies with surprisingly good acting, ranked.
10 ‘Pink Flamingos’ (1972)
Directed by John Waters
John Water’s Pink Flamingos is the film that brought the Baltimore filmmaker and proud purveyor of trash to Hollywood’s attention. The outrageous film was shot on a $12,000 budget and went on to inspire generations of low-budget filmmakers. The film was purposefully shocking, which allowed for word to spread at secretive midnight showings across the country for years. It became a cult classic and was even selected by the Library of Congress to be preserved in the National Film Registry. That’s high praise for the filthy B-movie!
The film stars Waters’ stable of misfits such as Edith Massey and Mink Stole, but it is most notable for drag queen Divine. While the acting is campy, Divine’s star power is undeniable on camera. For that reason, her performance is worthy of praise (even if Roger Ebert refused to give the movie a star). She sells everything in Pink Flamingos, especially the notable final scene where Divine’s character eats dog poop. It was done in one take because it was 100% real. That’s B-movie magic!
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9 ‘Death Proof’ (2007)
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Director Quentin Tarantino is known for loving films of all kinds, even (and especially) campy B-movies. He has famously said that one of his favorite films is Manos: Hands of Fate, which B-movie heads know to be a strong contender for one of the worst films ever made. This is all to say that Tarantino attempted not just to pay homage to gory slasher flicks of yore, but he legitimately made one.
2007’s Death Proof stars Kurt Russell as an aging stuntman who has been getting away with killing women. That comes to an end when he trails three women who are a lot tougher than he thought. He meets his match with them, namely Zoë Bell (a real stuntwoman who was Uma Thurman‘s stuntwoman in Kill Bill). What ensues are bloody, action-filled fights by fantastic performers! Kurt Russell is hypnotic as the film’s villain, but Zoë Bell shines as an action star who fights back. She’s believable as a tough chick who could strike fear in Kurt Russell.
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8 ‘The Blob’ (1958)
Directed by Irvine S. Yeaworth Jr. and Russell S. Doughten Jr.
The 1950s were the heyday B-movies featuring monsters and mayhem playing at drive-in movie theaters across the country. The Blob is synonymous with this period as one of the most famous B-movies to come out of that period. Following an alien blob that crashes to Earth inside a meteorite, small American towns are attacked as the blob grows larger and kills people in its wake.
The film was originally a double feature played with the movie I Married a Monster from Outer Space, a spacey B-movie that hasn’t stood the test of time in the same way that The Blob has. That could be because The Blob has legitimately great acting. The legendary Steven McQueen is the star of the film and has to do some grade-A acting to sell the film’s premise: fearing a giant amoeba-like blob. He was known for playing cowboys and anti-heroes, so this was a departure from McQueen’s usual work at the time and it paid off. The Blob remains a classic and was even remade in the 80s.
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7 ‘Army of Darkness’ (1992)
Directed by Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi’s 1992 darkly comedic horror film Army of Darkness was the third in the Evil Dead trilogy. Army of Darkness has a slightly different vibe than the other films. In the third installment of his trilogy, Ash is transported back to the Middle Ages where he kills Deadites in King Arthur’s kingdom. That’s just the beginning! It goes crazy from there with tons of action, special effects, and plot twists. It’s star Bruce Campbell who gives his all to this outlandish sequel. He is an incredibly magnetic star who appears both strong and vulnerable in all three films.
But how is this a B-movie? Special effects and wild storytelling aside, the film is fairly low budget considering its scope. The original budget was $8 million, but that was not going to be enough, so Raimi, producer Robert Tapert, and star Bruce Campbell each put up an additional $1 million of their own money. It was finally shot with a $11 million budget and raked in $21.5 million at the box office worldwide. It was not a huge box office hit in the U.S., but it gained a cult following after it was released on video.
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6 ‘House on Haunted Hill’ (1959)
Directed by William Castle
William Castle was a B-movie king. The producer and director churned out several B-movies in the 50s, but he sold tickets to his films with antics. His gimmicks included claiming that his films were filmed with special “experiences” in mind. For example, his movie The Tingler was filmed in “Percepto” and the seats shook in the theaters to tingle the audiences. House on Haunted Hill didn’t need tricks to lure people in…but it still used some. It was filmed in “Emergo” and a skeleton with glowing eyes floated over the audience in the theater.
Whether or not the film is viewed in “Emergo” with a glowing skeleton overhead, House on Haunted Hill has the best acting of Castle’s other films. The entire cast is stellar, but House on Haunted Hill stars Vincent Price at his most Vincent Price. This is the film to see to get the full Vincent Price experience. Not only that, but House on Haunted Hill uses carnival haunted house tricks and cheap props without showing any actual ghosts to create its scares on a budget. It is perhaps the ultimate 1950s B-movie, topped with a spot in the public domain.
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5 ‘Dead Alive!’ (1992)
Directed by Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson is best known for his blockbuster Lord of the Rings adaptations, but true fans appreciate his B-movie beginnings. 1992’s bloody zombie flick Dead Alive!, is one of Peter Jackson’s most fun films from his pre-Lord of the Rings days. The plot follows a woman bit by a rat monkey. She dies from the illness contracted from the bite, but she comes back to life in a zombie-like fashion.
Dead Alive! was made for $3 million which was Jackson’s biggest budget yet – wild considering the films that he would later make (Lord of the Rings). Jackson specifically wanted to try his hand at a zombie movie and shot the film on 16mm to create the special effects that he wanted on a budget. Like most cheap horror flicks, Dead Alive! features blood – a lot of blood. Allegedly, 79.2 gallons of fake blood were used to make this movie. The film may not be as famous as Lord of the Rings, but it is a very influential horror-comedy and is cited as a direct inspiration for Shaun of the Dead.
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4 ‘Carnival of Souls’ (1962)
Directed by Herk Harvey
Herk Harvey‘s psychological horror film Carnival of Souls is a cult classic with a simple premise that is sold almost entirely by the performance of its lead actress.
Carnival of Souls follows wide-eyed actress Candace Hilligoss as she moves from Kansas to Utah to take a new job as a church organist. On her drive, she gets into an accident and survives. She wakes up on a riverbank hours later with no memory of how she got there. She resumes her journey, but she’s now followed by a mysterious ghoul. Hilligoss sells her fear and confusion throughout the film, drawing audiences into this woman’s journey every step of the way with her.
In true B-movie fashion, Carnival of Souls was shot for $33,000 and used a lot of guerrilla filmmaking to finish the project. They shot the movie in Kansas and Salt Lake City and based it loosely on An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. This was Herk Harvey’s only feature film, which could be because it took several years before critics and audiences found their way to the indie movie. It is now a celebrated cult classic.
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3 ‘Tremors’ (1990)
Directed by Ron Underwood
With a budget of $11 million and stars like Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward in the movie, it may be difficult to confidently label Tremors as a B-movie. Tremors is considered a B-movie because of the way that it pays homage to monster movies of the 1950s. If the cast was not as good as it is, that might be a lot more apparent. The plot takes place in a small town in Nevada where monsters loom in the sand. They are “graboids” who learn about their human prey to best capture and kill them. It’s a classic man vs. monster movie!
The cast of Tremors is incredible. Bacon and Ward are likable heroes and are rounded out by notable performances from Finn Carter, Charlotte Stewart, and Reba McEntire. The ensemble sells every aspect of this horror-comedy, walking the tight ropes required between comic timing and fear. The film was fairly well-reviewed at the time, with critics pointing out how well-cast the movie was.Several sequels were made, but they faltered without the core cast of the first film.
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2 ‘Foxy Brown’ (1974)
Directed by Jack Hill
Pam Grier was the queen of blaxploitation films, which were one of the few genres to showcase female action stars when no one else was doing it. Foxy Brown was originally supposed to be a sequel to another Pam Grier film, Coffy. Those plans were changed, but they didn’t have time to change the script, which adds to the B-movie feel of the film. There are admittedly some issues with the script, but those issues are covered up with guns and high kicks in typical 70s action movie fashion.
Foxy Brown is a high-octane ass-kicking helmed by one of the best action stars to grace Hollywood: Pam Grier. Pam’s charisma shines on the screen. She is so captivating that she made Foxy Brown make sense and that’s not just an opinion. Considering its budget of only $500,000, Foxy Brown was a hit, grossing over $2 million. Foxy Brown made money and went on to influence Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown, which also starred Grier.
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1 ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ (1975)
Directed by Jim Sharman
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a B movie ode to B movies and that’s on purpose. Richard O’Brien – who also plays Riff Raff in the movie – wrote the original musical that the film is based on as a tribute to old-fashioned B movies that he loved. Featuring science fiction and horror influences, the plot follows a young couple whose car breaks down outside the Frank-N-Furter Mansion. The average, white-bread couple is out of their league when they are greeted by a scientist in fishnets named Dr. Frank-N-Furter celebrating his latest creation: a strongman named Rocky.
Tim Curry‘s portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter is larger-than-life, but he is not a caricature. Curry’s portrayal of the horny cross-dressing alien is filled with heart. When he creates a man to be his lover and the man rejects him, his anger and hurt are felt. When he sings “Don’t Dream It. Believe It”, the audience feels his longing. Curry makes that so palatable that the audience relates to This Sweet Transvestite. The Rocky Horror Picture Show holds the record for being the longest-running theatrical release as it has been playing in theaters ever since its 1975 limited release when word-of-mouth brought people to see the midnight movie and formed a community out of the experience of seeing the film in theaters.
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