Summary

The work of American horror writerH.P. Lovecrafthas been adapted for the big cover countless time with various levels of winner . With scads of short news report , as well as novellas and novels , Lovecraft developed an eerie style that was all his own and create the influentialCthulhu Mythos , which give his writing its unequaled characteristics , identity , and lore . Along with term such as Shakespearian and Kafkaesque , the phrase Lovecraftian has issue forth to lay out its own signature style of repugnance that can be seen across his adaptation and within the entire repulsion genre .

From films loosely inspired by Lovecraft floor to more faithful adaptations , thecinematic body of work based on Lovecraftcan vary in quality , but one thing was always ordered and that was the grand ambition of anyone who attempted to adapt one of his stories . Lovecraft ’s work was notoriously difficult to translate into the medium of film as it often dealt with cosmic horror and the unknowable . The work of Lovecraft was an unbelievable reservoir of hideous inspiration andthe good adaptations of Lovecraft ’s oeuvre are often cinematic triumph .

10Bleeders (1997)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Lurking Fear”

A disturbing story of incest , inbreeding , contortion , and depravity , Bleederswas a low - budget repugnance that explored the most distressful aspect of the study of H.P. Lovecraft . An over - the - top spectacle , Bleederswas thelast original handwriting by Dan O’Bannonwho was also responsible for the Lovecraft adaptationThe Resurrected . Bleederskept up the suspense and was relatively fast - paced , but unfortuently was one of the weaker adaptations of a Lovecraft story . A filthy and grotesque extravaganza , Bleederswas interesting enough to keep viewers engage but not about clever enough to truly stand among the great Lovecraft - inspired movies .

9The Dunwich Horror (1970)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Dunwich Horror”

A seventies revulsion spectacle , The Dunwich Horrorbrought H.P Lovecraft ’s supernatural short story of occultNecronomicon - based ritual to the swelled screen , terminated with excessive psychedelic imagery and a foreboding sentience of dread . Animportant entry in Lovecraft ’s on-going Cthulhu Mythos , The Dunwich Horrorwas a good old - fashioned B - horror pic whose special effects may be outdated today but still maintained its eerie atmosphere and over - the - top performances . The Dunwich Horrorwas an early example of a successful Lovecraft version on the grownup screen .

8Dagon (2001)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “Dagon” and novella The Shadow over Innsmouth

Stuart Gordan’sDagonwas an over - the - top horror spectacle that acted as an court to all thing Lovecraftian . With a narrative slackly inspired by both H.P. Lovecraft ’s brusk story “ Dagon ” and his novellaThe Shadow over Innsmouth , Dagonwas a unappeasable obscure story of an ancient ocean god and its grotesque half - human materialization . Dagonwas a must - see for any admirer of Lovecraftian horror and acted as one of the campiness adaptations of his workplace . Dagonwas just one of many Lovecraft - exhort movie made by Gordan .

7The Resurrected (1991)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s novel The Case of Charles Dexter Ward

The Return of the bouncy Dead director Dan O’Bannon be up that movie with his adaption of H.P. Lovecraft ’s forgetful novelThe Case of Charles Dexter WardtitledThe Resurrected . A harrowing story about a piece who conquer decease through necromantical experiments and has been alert for hundreds of years , The Resurrectedsucceeded in bringing the classical tale to the big projection screen . With a healthy dose of mystery and machination , The Resurrectedwas a bloody gore fest that deserved a larger audience among revulsion enthusiasts .

6From Beyond (1986)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “From Beyond”

The monstrous story of scientists who develop a machine that tolerate humanity to see beyond normal human perception with annihilating consequences , From Beyondwas an exploitative gory spectacle of shape - shifting monstersthat managed to accommodate H.P. Lovecraft while defend a unique sentience of mood . Director Stuard Gordan cast Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton , who were in his previous Lovecraft adaptationRe - Animator , in the lead roles and they delivered compelling low - budget revulsion scare . It was works such asFrom Beyondthat cemented Gordan as one of thebest directors to ever tackle a Lovecraft adaption .

5The Call of Cthulhu (2005)

Based on the H.P. Lovecraft short story “The Call of Cthulhu”

Cast

H.P Lovecraft ’s scant story “ The Call of Cthulhu ” was widely believe to be unfilmable before the release of the 2005 tacit motion picture of the same name . However , The Call of Cthulhumanaged to accomplish the impossible and dependably recreated Lovecraft ’s storyusing a blend of vintage and mod filmmaking techniques that made the movie reckon like it was produced in the 1920s , the same geological era the original history was written . secern the tale of a man freeingan ancient unspeakable horror , The Call of Cthulhuwas telling for the eerie grandeur its maker put on covert in a low - budget film .

4The Whisperer in Darkness (2011)

Based on the H.P. Lovecraft short story of the same name

The Whisperer in Darkness was an self-governing filmdistributed by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Societythat used both modern and vintage filming techniques to create an authentic and faithful adaptation to Lovecraft ’s original tale ( viaHPLHS ) . With the purpose of mimicking 1930s horror films likeDracula , Frankenstein , andKing Kong , The Whisperer in Darknesswas a dark - and - white-hot tale of a folklorist investing report of inscrutable puppet . The Whisperer in Darknessachieved its end and capture the essence of Lovecraft ’s story while remaining entertaining and piquant .

3In The Mouth of Madness (1994)

Influenced by H.P. Lovecraft’s novel At the Mountain of Madness

The innovative horror styling ofHalloweenandThe Thingdirector John Carpenter pair well with H.P. Lovecraft ’s supernatural exploration of insanity inIn the Mouth of Madness . The celluloid starred Sam Neil as an policy investor whose sanity crumbled as the line between realness and fiction blur , In the Mouth of Madnesswas wedge full of allusions to the piece of work of Lovecraftand was an challenging slice of eighties repulsion fun . In the Mouth of Madnessstood as one of Carpenter ’s most accomplished films and , due to the debt it owe to Lovecraft , was also one of his most cagey .

2Color Out of Space (2019)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Color Out of Space”

Director Richard Stanley made a exulting paying back to the mankind of feature filmmaking withColor Out of Space , his first moving-picture show in more than 25 old age . An adaption of the H.P. Lovecraft short story “ The Color Out of Space ” , itstarred Nicolas Cage and followed a kinsfolk on a scheduled farm after a strange meteorite wreck - landed at their property . A judgement - bend body repulsion of Lovecraftian proportions , Color Out of Spacewas a slow suntan that expertly walked the fine line between horror and existential dread and stand as one of the best Lovecraft adaptations ever committed to concealment .

1Re-Animator (1985)

Based on H.P. Lovecraft’s novelette Herbert West–Reanimator

The over-the-top tale of a scientist who chance on how to vivify beat bodies , Re - Animatorwas the first of many H.P. Lovecraft adaptations by Stuart Gordan . Re - Animatorwas a hilarious Lovecraft adaptation that deal to deliver humour and horror with adequate measureand kept the scares coming while maintaining its deadpan comedic style . The bookLurker in the Lobby : A Guide to the Cinema of H. P. Lovecraftoutlined that whenRe - Animatorwas released someH.P. Lovecraftreaders took issue with the film ’s comedy fashion . However , Re - Animatorremained true to the original story ’s exploitative nature and was a relatively faithful adaptation .

source : H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society , Lurker in the Lobby : A Guide to the Cinema of H. P. Lovecraft

A collage image of Luke Skywalker in A New Hope

Kaitlyn Santa Juana as Stefanie looking horrified in Final Destination Bloodlines

Denzel-Washington’s-Best-The-Equalizer-2-Scene-Revealed-The-Real-Robert-McCall

Sam-Neill-as-John-Trent-from-The-Mouth-of-Madness-&-Nicolas-Cage-as-Nathan–from-Color-Out-of-Space

A still of a deformed creature in Bleeders 1997 based on H.P. Lovecraft

The-Dunwich-Horror movie

Macarena Gómez as Uxía Cambarro in Dragon 2001

A scene of a monster attacking a man in The Resurrected

A monster attacking in From Beyond

A scene from the 2005 black and white silent film The Call Of Cthulhu

Cast Placeholder Image

A scene from The Whisperer in Darkness

Headshot Of Sam Neill

Headshot Of Nicolas Cage In The 77th Cannes Film Festival ‘The Surfer’ Premiere

Headshot Of Joely Richardson

Headshot Of Elliot Knight In The 2022 Yugo BAFTA Student Awards Finale

Headshot Of Jeffrey Combs