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  1. Entertainment
  2. Movies

50 Weirdest VHS Covers

Features
By Joshua Winning published 15 January 2013

To celebrate the release of horror anthology V/H/S

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Trilogy Of Terror (1975)

Trilogy Of Terror (1975)

The Cover: A swirly blue oddity with some of the best teeth-bearing we’ve ever seen.

Weirdest Detail: Blonde Karen Black looks on happily as Brunette Karen Black screams right in her face.

Meanwhile, Caveman Karen Black is also screaming, but nobody seems to notice.

Page 1 of 50
Page 1 of 50
XTRO (1983)

XTRO (1983)

The Cover: A young Marlon Brando (probably) gives us the evils as a giant alien considers chowing down on his skull.

Weirdest Detail: The odd back-handed compliment of a review: “XTRO may well make xenophobes of us all.” Great!

Page 2 of 50
Page 2 of 50
Destroyer (1988)

Destroyer (1988)

The Cover: Arnold Schwarzenegger’s lesser known little brother wields a power drill. Or something.

Weirdest Detail: Massive body. Tiny head. No amount of gym work will ever fix that.

Page 3 of 50
Page 3 of 50
Death Dream (1972)

Death Dream (1972)

The Cover: A fish in army fatigues has had a horrible prank played on him – somebody put jam in his helmet again.

Weirdest Detail: “A boy went away to war,” says the tagline.

Aren’t child soldiers illegal?

Page 4 of 50
Page 4 of 50
Cruise Missile (1978)

Cruise Missile (1978)

The Cover: A phallic missile has been placed rather unfortunately right in front of Peter Graves’ crotch…

Weirdest Detail: Weirder still are the giant floating heads, which seem to be part of a massive, mutant marshmallow.

Page 5 of 50
Page 5 of 50
The Castle Of Fu Manchu (1969)

The Castle Of Fu Manchu (1969)

The Cover: An fairly dodgy sleeve that transforms Christopher Lee’s titular Fu Manchu into an unrecognisable marionette.

Weirdest Detail: The scary moustachioed marionette. He’s looking right at us. RIGHT AT US.

We haven't been this worried since Puppet Master.

Page 6 of 50
Page 6 of 50
Bay Of Blood (1971)

Bay Of Blood (1971)

The Cover: Muscular bare arms bury a sizeable blade in some poor guy’s noggin. Understandably, he responds by screaming.

Weirdest Detail: The octopus cameo in the bottom right corner – and the fact that the guy’s head appears to have been ingested by the tentacled limelight-stealer.

Page 7 of 50
Page 7 of 50
The Mad Butcher (1971)

The Mad Butcher (1971)

The Cover: A – yes – mad butcher swings his cleaver at his next victim.

Weirdest Detail: That victim appears to be a tiny naked woman who’s caught in some kind of meat grinder. Eh?

Page 8 of 50
Page 8 of 50
Terror On Tour (1980)

Terror On Tour (1980)

The Cover: Clowns who appear to be wearing Bride of Frankenstein’s wig play their instruments while a weird red ooze conjoins them.

Weirdest Detail: Clowns! With guitars! We’re losing our minds!

Page 9 of 50
Page 9 of 50
Wendigo (1978)

Wendigo (1978)

The Cover: A tiny man crashes out of a skull, while something bright shines out of the right eyehole.

Weirdest Detail: What on earth has that got to do with the monstrous wendigo?

Page 10 of 50
Page 10 of 50
Ninja: American Warrior (1987)

Ninja: American Warrior (1987)

The Cover: Metal things shimmer and muscles bulge as a ninja teams up with a giant woman with an icepick.

Weirdest Detail:
The guy in the bottom left seems to have forgotten to take off his shirt while on the sunbed. Just look at that lovely tanned face.

Page 11 of 50
Page 11 of 50
Humongous (1982)

Humongous (1982)

The Cover: A baby cradle is given a sinister makeover – not least in the form of a skull-and-bones mobile.

Weirdest Detail: There appears to be a leprechaun in the cradle.

Page 12 of 50
Page 12 of 50
Dead Girls (1990)

Dead Girls (1990)

The Cover: A sinister skull mask hovers behind a really bad ‘90s girl group.

Have they never heard of a hairdresser?

Weirdest Detail: What are those girls actually sitting on?

Page 13 of 50
Page 13 of 50
Invasion Of The Bee Girls (1973)

Invasion Of The Bee Girls (1973)

The Cover: A gang of dominatrix descend on some men in suits, who are terrified by their bare navels.

Weirdest Detail:
That tagline, “They’ll love the very life out of your body!”

Er, what?

Page 14 of 50
Page 14 of 50
Hands Of Steel (1986)

Hands Of Steel (1986)

The Cover: A very angry Gillette ad man attempts to change a light bulb WITH HIS BARE HANDS.

Weirdest Detail: No wonder this guy looks angry – his hand’s twice the size of the rest of him.

How will he ever find a glove that fits?

Page 15 of 50
Page 15 of 50
Alice Sweet Alice (1976)

Alice Sweet Alice (1976)

The Cover: A strange masked poodle raises a bloodied knife behind who we can only assume is Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Weirdest Detail: The rather large man cooling himself off with a teeny, tiny fan.

This is what John McClane would look like if he ate too many doughnuts.

Page 16 of 50
Page 16 of 50
Fat Guy Goes Nutzoid!! (1986)

Fat Guy Goes Nutzoid!! (1986)

The Cover: Strange haircuts everywhere as a fat guy in a suit accosts a bikini babe.

Meanwhile, a policeman crouches by his car.

Weirdest Detail: The title, obviously. Is ‘nutzoid’ even a real word?

Page 17 of 50
Page 17 of 50
Bog (1983)

Bog (1983)

The Cover: A lily pond appears to be home to a giant-pincer-owning monster that has a predilection for sleeved arms.

Weirdest Detail:
That’s meant to be a bog? Looks rather lovely to us.

Page 18 of 50
Page 18 of 50
Magic Of The Ninja (1972)

Magic Of The Ninja (1972)

The Cover: Smile for the camera! A ninja with an animal head prepares to stab us.

Weirdest Detail: What kind of animal is that meant to be? An albino lion? An albino wolf? A pigeon?

Page 19 of 50
Page 19 of 50
The Asphyx (1972)

The Asphyx (1972)

The Cover: Blue light shines behind a strange silver artefact.

Weirdest Detail: Is it a headdress? Or some kind of dinosaur totem?

We just can’t decide…

Page 20 of 50
Page 20 of 50
Sledge Hammer (1986)

Sledge Hammer (1986)

The Cover: Frost covers the film’s logo and drips off the bottom.

Meanwhile, there is an actual sledgehammer…

Weirdest Detail: …which seems to have smashed through somebody’s mask. Or something.

Honestly, we have no idea what’s going on here.

Page 21 of 50
Page 21 of 50
Stuff Stephanie In The Incinerator (1989)

Stuff Stephanie In The Incinerator (1989)

The Cover: Stephanie throws her booty in the air like she just don’t care.

Then notices a boot coming her way.

Weirdest Detail: Just what is Stephanie shovelling?

Some kind of blue kryptonite?

Page 22 of 50
Page 22 of 50
Blood Shack (1971)

Blood Shack (1971)

The Cover: A giant, mask-wearing slasher raises a ridiculously large blade and prepares to do damage to a quaint little shack.

Weirdest Detail: What’s Daredevil doing with a knife that big?

Page 23 of 50
Page 23 of 50
Space Mutiny (1988)

Space Mutiny (1988)

The Cover: Two blondes arm themselves and strike a Charlie’s Angels pose, presumably in preparation for that eponymous space mutiny.

Weirdest Detail: It looks like it was shot in somebody’s garage.

Page 24 of 50
Page 24 of 50
Planet Of Blood (1966)

Planet Of Blood (1966)

The Cover: Interspecies love reigns supreme as an impressively-quiffed spaceman has a close encounter with a green magician.

Weirdest Detail: Is the red man’s head the planet of blood?

Page 25 of 50
Page 25 of 50
Alien Dead (1980)

Alien Dead (1980)

The Cover: A rather jaundice-looking Alanis Morissette stares into our souls while Vin Diesel peers off into the middle distance.

Weirdest Detail: Morisette doesn’t appear to have a body – her head’s sprouting straight out of the ground.

Page 26 of 50
Page 26 of 50
Bronx Warriors 2 (1983)

Bronx Warriors 2 (1983)

The Cover: Sort of a war-time spin on the Star Wars posters, with masses of background action and a crazy rocker with a giant laser gun.

Weirdest Detail: Is that Ozzy Osbourne?

Page 27 of 50
Page 27 of 50
They Came From Within (1975)

They Came From Within (1975)

The Cover: A guy (we think) with glowing eyes stares intently at something, or someone.

Weirdest Detail: Considering this is a David Cronenberg film, shouldn’t this really be playing up the body horror angle a little more? Possibly using the film's other title - Shivers - might have been an idea.

Page 28 of 50
Page 28 of 50
Roller Blade Warriors: Taken By Force (1989)

Roller Blade Warriors: Taken By Force (1989)

The Cover: A skating dominatrix threatens a heavy metal dude with her katana while shamelessly flashing her inner thighs.

Weirdest Detail: One slip and those pants have the potential for eye-watering wedgies.

Page 29 of 50
Page 29 of 50
Shock Waves (1977)

Shock Waves (1977)

The Cover: Peter Cushing looks on, unimpressed, as Baywatch Girl has her lab jacket (eh?) torn off by a swamp thing.

Weirdest Detail: Aside from the fact that Cushing’s head is massive, Baywatch Girl still has the presence of mind to strike a thigh-exposing pose despite impending death.

Page 30 of 50
Page 30 of 50
Moonchild (1974)

Moonchild (1974)

The Cover: A monster clambers over a city skyline.

Meanwhile, a woman serves up her neck as dessert.

Weirdest Detail: Horrible image manipulation aside, why is the monster a cartoon, while the woman’s flesh and blood?

Page 31 of 50
Page 31 of 50
All Gods Children (1980)

All Gods Children (1980)

The Cover: An old man sucks sternly on his pipe. Meanwhile, on the back cover, a young man consoles another man who’s upset he doesn’t have a gold jumper, too.

Weirdest Detail: “Richard Widmark fights for Justice and Equality for All God’s Children,” says the tagline.

Even though it appears he’s just set a school bus on fire with his pipe.

Page 32 of 50
Page 32 of 50
American Tiger (1990)

American Tiger (1990)

The Cover: Thighs! Explosions! Purple skies!

Weirdest Detail: That young man looks somewhat unnerved by the woman slinking up behind him – or maybe he just remembered his name is Mitch Gaylord…

Page 33 of 50
Page 33 of 50
Land Of The Minotaur (1976)

Land Of The Minotaur (1976)

The Cover: A colourful cover for what we hear is actually meant to be a scary Greek horror film.

Weirdest Detail: Just. All of it.

That minotaur has the campest wave we’ve ever seen.

Page 34 of 50
Page 34 of 50
Master Blaster (1974)

Master Blaster (1974)

The Cover: A soldier has strapped a tiny woman to his gun, and he’s damned proud of it.

Weirdest Detail: The tiny woman actually looks like a tiny man in drag.

The soldier’s in for a surprise.

Page 35 of 50
Page 35 of 50
The Alternative (1976)

The Alternative (1976)

The Cover: A man and a woman fight over a chess piece that’s fashioned into the shape of a very creepy naked child.

Weirdest Detail: Why does the man have two right hands?

Page 36 of 50
Page 36 of 50
The Best Of Sex And Violence (1981)

The Best Of Sex And Violence (1981)

The Cover: A terrifyingly scrawny woman in a bikini is man-handled by a terrifyingly bearded army cadet.

Meanwhile, spooky mists devour their feet.

Weirdest Detail: Is it just us, or is the terrifyingly scrawny woman asking to have that machete buried somewhere the sun don’t shine?

Page 37 of 50
Page 37 of 50
Crazy Fat Ethel II (1987)

Crazy Fat Ethel II (1987)

The Cover: A bodiless wench with five chins wields a bloody butcher’s knife.

Meanwhile, her hair has a life of its own.

Weirdest Detail: Is Fat Ethel crazy because she’s in desperate need of a haircut?

Seems that way.

Page 38 of 50
Page 38 of 50
Battle Of The Bullies

Battle Of The Bullies

The Cover: Sort of like a rejected Famous Five book sleeve.

Shockingly, costs a whopping $19.95.

Even most Blu-rays aren’t that pricey these days.

Weirdest Detail: It appears the bullies of the title are a preppy nerd couple.

What bizarro world is this?

Page 39 of 50
Page 39 of 50
The Curse Of Big Foot (1976)

The Curse Of Big Foot (1976)

The Cover: A flattering view of a gorilla’s backside.

Does he know this picture was being taken?

Weirdest Detail:
It appears the real curse of Bigfoot is that he’s never given enough time to strike a decent pose.

Poor Bigfoot.

Page 40 of 50
Page 40 of 50
Dreamaniac (1986)

Dreamaniac (1986)

The Cover: Freddy Krueger this ain’t – a crazy, giant bald woman crashes through a wall with a shiny knife.

Weirdest Detail: The couple in the bed don’t seem to have noticed their night-time intruder.

Page 41 of 50
Page 41 of 50
Introduction To Muzzle Loading

Introduction To Muzzle Loading

The Cover: A fox attempts to eat a bearded man’s head.

Weirdest Detail: The man doesn’t seem to mind, instead striking an action man pose with a muzzle.

Page 42 of 50
Page 42 of 50
The Great Skycopter Rescue (1980)

The Great Skycopter Rescue (1980)

The Cover: A massive, great explosion narrowly misses an air balloon and a plane.

Weirdest Detail: That pasted-on young lady seems to be having far too much fun in a moment of such obvious peril.

Page 43 of 50
Page 43 of 50
Frozen Terror (1980)

Frozen Terror (1980)

The Cover: A snapshot of a fridge, which contains all the bare essentials.

Weirdest Detail: Why is there a beetroot on a plate next to two tomatoes?

Stop the madness!

Page 44 of 50
Page 44 of 50
The Manipulator (1980)

The Manipulator (1980)

The Cover: Santa Claus watches on and laughs as a dead woman’s corpse is used as a puppet.

Weirdest Detail: What’s Santa doing in this movie?

Page 45 of 50
Page 45 of 50
The Tomb (1986)

The Tomb (1986)

The Cover: Indiana Jones (in a trilby) and a permed Melanie Griffith look scared as a bright luminescence gives them the perfect backlighting.

Weirdest Detail: Why is Indiana Jones wearing a trilby?

Page 46 of 50
Page 46 of 50
White Fury (1990)

White Fury (1990)

The Cover: A guy snowboards while carrying a firearm.

That’s going to end in tears.

Weirdest Detail: The gun-toting snowboarder is using the giant man’s nose to steady himself.

Clever.

Page 47 of 50
Page 47 of 50
Think Big (1989)

Think Big (1989)

The Cover: Two muscular guys stand over a truck that’s been taken over by a posse of screaming, posing goons.

Weirdest Detail: The copy-paste job on the duo’s faces looks like it was done by a three year old.

Page 48 of 50
Page 48 of 50
Nukie (1988)

Nukie (1988)

The Cover: Rip-off alert! The cover for this low-budget sci-fi just reuses imagery from Mac & Me .

Weirdest Detail: Poor old Mac has had his antennae lopped off in an attempt to conceal the crime.

Page 49 of 50
Page 49 of 50
Robo Vampire (1988)

Robo Vampire (1988)

The Cover: Just. Mind-boggling.

RoboCop perfects his Mona Lisa smile as a vampire gives somebody a devil’s glare.

Weirdest Detail: RoboCop isn’t even in the film, so God knows why he’s been pasted onto the VHS cover.

Page 50 of 50
Page 50 of 50
Joshua Winning
Social Links Navigation

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.  

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