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For decades, stop-motion animation has brought charm to the uncanny valley, allowing for intricate, immersive storytelling that no other medium can quite achieve. By blending physical craftsmanship with meticulous artistry, stop-motion creates a tactile, often eerie quality that feels both real and otherworldly. In the horror genre, this technique is uniquely powerful, lending itself to surreal visuals and unsettling atmospheres that linger long after the credits roll.

From cult classics to modern masterpieces, stop-motion horror movies showcase the boundary-pushing potential of animation. These films combine technical brilliance with chilling narratives, crafting unforgettable cinematic experiences.

Mad Monster Party Is a Cozy Horror Story Released in 1967

Long before stop-motion became a mainstream animation style, Mad Monster Party? paved the way with its quirky charm and Halloween-themed ghoulishness. Created by Rankin/Bass Productions, the same studio behind holiday classics like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, this film brings together a who's who of iconic monsters -- Dracula,...

Gary Cooper movies on TCM: Cooper at his best and at his weakest Gary Cooper is Turner Classic Movies' “Summer Under the Stars” star today, Aug. 30, '15. Unfortunately, TCM isn't showing any Cooper movie premiere – despite the fact that most of his Paramount movies of the '20s and '30s remain unavailable. This evening's features are Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Sergeant York (1941), and Love in the Afternoon (1957). Mr. Deeds Goes to Town solidified Gary Cooper's stardom and helped to make Jean Arthur Columbia's top female star. The film is a tad overlong and, like every Frank Capra movie, it's also highly sentimental. What saves it from the Hell of Good Intentions is the acting of the two leads – Cooper and Arthur are both excellent – and of several supporting players. Directed by Howard Hawks, the jingoistic, pro-war Sergeant York was a huge box office hit, eventually earning Academy Award nominations in several categories,...

Jean Arthur films on TCM include three Frank Capra classics Five Jean Arthur films will be shown this evening, Monday, January 5, 2015, on Turner Classic Movies, including three directed by Frank Capra, the man who helped to turn Arthur into a major Hollywood star. They are the following: Capra's Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, You Can't Take It with You, and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington; George Stevens' The More the Merrier; and Frank Borzage's History Is Made at Night. One the most effective performers of the studio era, Jean Arthur -- whose film career began inauspiciously in 1923 -- was Columbia Pictures' biggest female star from the mid-'30s to the mid-'40s, when Rita Hayworth came to prominence and, coincidentally, Arthur's Columbia contract expired. Today, she's best known for her trio of films directed by Frank Capra, Columbia's top director of the 1930s. Jean Arthur-Frank Capra...

Some of you may be too young to remember The Last Dinosaur. Others of you are old enough to remember seeing it when it first aired in 1977 or the million times it ran in syndication throughout the Eighties. Now everyone can get reacquainted with this cult favorite that has dwelled in obscurity for too long thanks to the Warner Archive.

A joint production between Rankin/Bass (the makers of such classic Christmas specials as "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer") and Tsuburaya Productions (the creators of "Ultraman"), The Last Dinosaur was originally scheduled to be a theatrical release but ended up premiering as an ABC TV movie in 1977. The subsequent repeat airings and limited VHS release have all been of the 90-minute TV cut. The Warner Archive just released 16x9 full frame print contains the never before seen in the Us 106-minute theatrical cut.

“It eats meat! Us!!” "It" is a Tyrannosaurus,...

The older one gets, the more one’s analysis of The Last Unicorn evolves. Children who see it tend to either fall in love with it immediately, or grow restless with its slow pace and interminable folk songs. But only when you’ve grown up can you understand its beautiful subtleties: the pervading sense of sadness intertwined within its fantasy adventure. Animators Arthur Rankin and Jules Bass specialized in exclusively children’s fare – from the stop-motion classic Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer to the decidedly family friendly version of The Hobbit – and it’s tempting to place The Last Unicorn in the same category. Doing so almost misses the point. Hit the jump for my full review of the film on Blu-ray. Certainly, the film lacks any of the intense conflict or brooding darkness that we often associate with adult values. The action stays in the abstract and the set pieces...

Etched forever in my heart is the classic Rankin/Bass effort from 1964: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Burl Ives narrated this gem that heralds the start of all great Christmas programming, like the classic "Grinch," and "Charlie Brown's Christmas". This Christmas tale premiered on NBC back in 1964, and the Rudolph story has become one of the longest running, highest rated television specials ever. Trivia time: TV producer Arthur Rankin had to perform Herculean efforts to get the rights to use the actual "Rudolph" Christmas song. The tale, told by author and TV historian Rick Goldschmidt from "The Enchanted World of Rankin/Bass" goes that Rankin personally swayed "Rudolph" composer Johnny Marks. "He was very protective of the...

By Matt Singer

In honor of the new documentary "We Are Wizards," about people who take Harry Potter way beyond simply reading the books or watching the movies, we take a look this week at obsessive fan culture and the documentaries that chronicle their fandom. Fanaticism in these films takes on many different forms. Some fans only want to take what their idols give them; others want to give back by creating derivative works of their own, like fan fiction or fan songs. Some become unable to distinguish between fantasy and reality. Some -- like a dentist who turned his office into a "Star Trek" tchotchke paradise called "Starfleet Dental" -- willfully reject the distinction altogether. Some love to become lost in escapism; others obsess about it until they are trapped by it. On this list, we'll look at what makes these fans tick and find the exact point when...

Part 1 Part 2 Part 4 101. The Last Unicorn (1982. Jules Bass & Arthur Rankin Jr) It’s surprising how few people have seen this. Wonderful animation, and a great rendition of the story. 1982 was pretty early for big names doing the voices of animated features, at least a whole cast of them. But, Rankin and Bass (and you’ve got to love getting them on your list) had been pulling in some of the biggest names in entertainment for years to do voices for them. 102. Last Year at Marienbad (1961. Alain Resnais. Delphine Seyrig. Giorgio Albertazzi. Sacha Pitoeff. Francoise Bertin) Nominated Best Original Screenplay. Nominated Best Film Any Source - BAFTA. 103. Lawrence of Arabia (1962. David Lean. Peter O’Toole. Alec Guinness. Anthony Quinn. Omar Shariff. Jose Ferrer) Won Best Art Direction, Best Cinematographer Continue reading...