Movies Like The Toolbox Murders (1978)

The Toolbox Murders is a 1978 horror, mystery, thriller film from Dennis Donnelly with a MovieMagicScore of 5.5/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with The Driller Killer and Coffin Baby.

Horror Mystery Thriller

The Driller Killer

1979

An artist slowly goes insane while struggling to pay his bills, work on his paintings, and care for his two female roommates, which leads him taking to the streets of New York after dark and randomly killing derelicts with a power drill.

5.2

MagicScore

Coffin Baby

2013

An attractive young woman is kidnapped, held captive and forced to endure the evils of one of the most violent homicidal maniacs in the city's history. "The Toolbox Killer" aka TBK. It is by her will, strength and her faith that she must survive, the ordeal. Her escape is almost hopeless. Unfortunately her situation only worsens when outside supernatural forces become more difficult to contend with than TBK.

4.7

MagicScore

The Slumber Party Massacre

1982

Trish invites her high school basketball teammates over for a night they'll never forget when an unexpected guest crashes the party: an escaped psychopath with a portable power drill.

5.6

MagicScore

Slumber Party Massacre

2021

Dana, daughter of the only survivor of a massacre in 1993, is going on a weekend trip with her friends. After their car breaks down in the very same town where her mother once fought the Driller Killer, Dana and her friends must come face-to-face with the man who has haunted her mother’s life for the past 30 years.

5.2

MagicScore

The Dorm That Dripped Blood

1982

A crazed killer stalks college students who gave up their vacation to clean a deserted dormitory.

5.2

MagicScore

A Bay of Blood

1971

An elderly heiress is killed by her husband who wants control of her fortunes. What ensues is an all-out murder spree as relatives and friends attempt to reduce the inheritance playing field, complicated by some teenagers who decide to camp out in a dilapidated building on the estate.

6.6

MagicScore

Bloody Moon

1981

After being released from a mental asylum, a disfigured man becomes obsessed with a student at his sister’s boarding school while grappling with his dark past.

4.9

MagicScore

The Burning

1981

A caretaker at a summer camp is burned when a prank goes tragically wrong. After several years of intensive treatment at hospital, he is released back into society, albeit missing some social skills. What follows is a bloody killing spree with the caretaker making his way back to his old stomping ground to confront one of the youths that accidentally burned him.

6.2

MagicScore

Don't Go in the House

1979

As a child, Donald was tormented by his mother who used fire as a punishment. Now a deranged adult, Donald stalks women at clubs, then takes them home where he kills them with a flamethrower.

5.7

MagicScore

#10

Nightmare

1981

A drug-treated schizophrenic plagued by horrible nightmares is released from the hospital and goes on a killing spree.

5.6

MagicScore

#11

Absurd

1981

A priest-doctor chasing a man with supernatural regenerative abilities, who has recently escaped from a medical lab, reaches a small town where the mutant goes on a killing spree.

5.5

MagicScore

#12

The Slayer

1982

Siblings, Eric & his surreal artist sister Kay, her doctor husband David, her sister-in-law Brooke along with pilot Marsh become stranded on a rugged isle face off against a supernatural beast drawn to Kay who dreams of its killings.

5.3

MagicScore

#13

Unhinged

1982

College students Terry, Nancy, and Gloria, on their way to a rock concert, crash their car in a torrential rainstorm, badly injuring one of them. Seeking shelter and aid, they come across a house occupied by a man-hating mother and her daughter...and they soon wish they hadn't.

4.7

MagicScore

#14

Stir of Echoes

1999

After being hypnotized by his sister-in-law, Tom Witzky begins seeing haunting visions of a girl's ghost and a mystery begins to unfold around her.

6.7

MagicScore

#15

Body Double

1984

After losing an acting role and his girlfriend, Jake Scully finally catches a break: he gets offered a gig house-sitting in the Hollywood Hills. While peering through the beautiful home's telescope one night, he spies a gorgeous woman dancing in her window. But when he witnesses the girl's murder, it leads Scully through the netherworld of the adult entertainment industry on a search for answers—with porn actress Holly Body as his guide.

6.8

MagicScore

#16

The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence)

2011

Inspired by the fictional Dr. Heiter, disturbed loner Martin dreams of creating a 12-person centipede and sets out to realize his sick fantasy.

4.8

MagicScore

#17

Night School

1981

A Boston police detective investigates a series of gruesome decapitations of various college coeds, committed by a helmeted, black-leather clad serial killer.

5.7

MagicScore

#18

The Fun House

1977

After being released from prison, a young gangster with a chip on his shoulder decides to punish society by making snuff films.

4.8

MagicScore

#19

Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker

1981

Rejected by her lover, the only man left in Cheryl's life is the orphaned nephew she has raised as her own son. She'll stop at nothing to keep Billy with her. When her plans misfire, she is swept up into an insane frenzy that means death to anyone who comes between her and her obsession. But the investigating detective is convinced that Billy is the real killer - and determined to prove it. Madness and fanaticism work together to drag all concerned into a terrifying vortex of blood-letting that adds a nightmarish twist to the classic Oedipus story.

6.6

MagicScore

#20

The House by the Cemetery

1981

After a doctor kills his mistress and himself while researching the mysterious previous owner of his Boston home, his colleague, Dr. Norman Boyle, takes over his studies and moves his family into the Boston mansion. Soon after, Boyle's young son Bob becomes plagued by visions of a young girl, who warns him of the danger within the house.

6.3

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like The Toolbox Murders?

The top films similar to The Toolbox Murders by MovieMagicScore are The Driller Killer (5.2), Coffin Baby (4.7), The Slumber Party Massacre (5.6). Each shares horror/mystery/thriller themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is The Toolbox Murders worth watching?

The Toolbox Murders holds a MovieMagicScore of 5.5/10 from 116 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is The Toolbox Murders?

The Toolbox Murders (1978) is a horror, mystery, thriller film directed by Dennis Donnelly, starring Cameron Mitchell, Pamelyn Ferdin, Wesley Eure.

Where can I find more recommendations like The Toolbox Murders?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more horror recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like The Driller Killer Movies like Coffin Baby Movies like The Slumber Party Massacre Movies like Slumber Party Massacre Movies like The Dorm That Dripped Blood Movies like A Bay of Blood

About movies like The Toolbox Murders

This ranked list pairs The Toolbox Murders (1978), a horror and mystery and thriller film from Dennis Donnelly, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Cameron Mitchell take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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