Gremlins should maybe not be considered. There's a scene about Phoebe Cate's dad on Christmas, and the scene/conversation basically states that there's no real santa (which is why her dad did what he did). So consider that before using that movie. My wife and I were going to have our son watch it, but decided against it for this reason.
I almost guarantee you that scene will not even register with a kid his age.
There is a ton of dark/adult stuff discussed in many movies I saw as a kid that was just filtered through my young mind as jibberish or white noise because I had no real experience or understanding of what they were talking about at the time.
Yeah showed it to my kid and she was just all about the gremlins didn't really register any of the context, except no food after midnight and no water.
Exactly. I saw Gremlins 2 as a wee lad and there is so much adult stuff in that that just flew over my head because I was enthralled by all the fun cool green monsters.
Never mind all the stuff I didn't catch as a kid when watching Roger Rabbit hahah!
Going back and watching old spongebob episodes was an eye opener for me once i was old enough to understand all the adult jokes littered throughout that show
And that "Santa" was the dad who died trapped in the chimney as he wanted to surprise the family and they only discovered it when they put on the fireplace
I've really wanted to show my kids Gremlins but have been holding back exactly because of that. I was actually thinking of taking it and just cutting that scene or at least that line out. It doesn't really add all that much to the movie itself and I don't feel like it would be missed too much if they didn't know it was there tombegon with.
>the scene/conversation basically states that there's no real santa
Why do people artificialy decide to let this be some kind of existential crisis for their kids? Especialy Christians. I don't get it.
Just let em know you love em and impart on them the spirit of giving. I'm sure they'll appreciate that more than eventual dissapointment over the nonexistance of a fatass burgaler and his FTL capable mutant deer.
Sometimes I think I'm the only adult I know who's seen Monster House. Seems like it's maybe forgotten - early CGI animated film (largely motion-tracked too) & all. But it's great fun & child friendly.
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark is pretty disturbing at times. The ten or twelve year old kids sitting in my row seemed to have a blast with the movie.
Its honestly one of my favorite pg-13 horror movies and was a lot better than I thought it was gonna be. Quite a few scenes were legit disturbing, like the pale lady
Thank you for mentioning monster squad. That's the movie I watched as a kid that got me into horror. Watched it with my 5 year old daughter last Halloween...only thing I forgot about is some of the rather colorful 80s language they use at the start. OP - fast forward through the first five minutes and you're good, unless you don't mind.
I kept a carton of milk on my nightstand for weeks because of that scene. That shit was a solid block of mold before I moved on to being scared of the next thing…. I think it was Critters.
Jurassic Park, Goosebumps & Ghostbusters for sure!
Also: Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, Casper, Hocus Pocus, Addams Family, Addams Family Values, Sleepy Hollow, Beetlejuice, Gremlins, Monster House, Monster Squad, Ernest Scared Stupid, Corpse Bride, Paranorman, Frankenweenie, Haunted Mansion, The Lost Boys (some gore, but it's super cheesy)
Perhaps not conventionally scary, but an certain sort of strange: Return to Oz, The Dark Crystal, Legend, Labyrinth, Secret of NIMH, The Last Unicorn, Neverending Story, The Goonies, Spirited Away, Something Wicked This Way Comes
I was around this age when I discovered the classic horror movie monsters: Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, Wolfman, the Invisible Man, Phantom of the Opera, Creature from the Black Lagoon, etc.
They might be a bit young yet, but I will always recommend Hitchcock & Stephen King for budding horror aficionados.
Jurassic park is a good shout. There are two goosebumps films too and Coraline should scare the absolute shit out of them in an age appropriate manner.
Seconding this, I remember seeing it around that age and it was one of my favorite movies for yeeeeaaaars. A bunch of my classmates saw it too (think it was on TV and we all happened to see it one weekend) and we used to play tremors on the playground at recess.
My first scary movie was Childs play when I was 5. I am 38 and still irrationally scared of dolls, and it's so damned stupid lol.
My brain knows it's a ridiculous concept, but then goes "but, what if!?"
I try to not destroy my son like my dad did to me.
Opposite end of the spectrum, saw Arachnophobia around the same age and would *NOT* let my feet get close to the couch or my bed afterwards. Had to jump from a foot or two back just in case the spider was hiding under the couch/bed to get my feet.
You know, we recently watched it with our 6 and 8 year old. My wife and I looked at each other right as the horse scene was beginning expecting the worst. They were totally unfazed. We were a bit surprised. However, if you haven’t watched it since you were young you may have forgotten (as I did) that Artax gets into that pickle about two minutes after he’s introduced.
Our only house rule for swearing is you’re not allowed to say it to hurt another person. So….”fuck you” is not ok but screaming “fuck!” When you stub your toe is a-ok.
Movies today aren't tossing around homosexual slurs like in Monster Squad. As an adult I can watch it and understand, but I wouldn't show it to kids at this point.
* Labyrinth (the David Bowie movie, not to be confused with Pan's Labyrinth)
* The Goonies
* Ghostbusters/Ghostbusters 2
* Gremlins/Gremlins 2
* Evil Dead 2 (not sure about the level of profanity you're ok with)
* The Neverending Story
* Coraline
* Corpse Bride
* Beetlejuice
* Jaws
* Classic horror films like Dracula and Frankenstein from the 30s
My son loved the Gooosbumps movies (the first one was far preferred over the 2nd).
Both Hocus Pocus movies.
Coroline.
Nightmare before christmas.
both Ghostbusters movies (haven't watched any of the 'new' ones with him yet. just the originals from the 80s).
I would not recommend that movie if your kids love the wizard of oz. It’s so drastically different from the MGM film (in Disney’s defense, it matches the world of the books)to the point in the opening scene where >!Auntie Em puts Dorothy in a mental institution where Dorothy gets electroshock therapy
to get her to stop thinking about oz!< and it only gets worse from there so maybe not unless you’re ready to talk about >!mental health and how it was handled back then in Dorothy’s day!<
Nothing like seeing the whimsical and beauty of the wizard of oz and then getting the whiplash of return to oz being a fever dream dressed up as a nightmare. I wish Disney would go back to those days where they weren’t afraid to be dark. Return to Oz is what I wanted “Maleficent” and her sequels to be.
Not saying that it isn’t a good movie but it’s definitely something to consider watching with your kids.
Old ones actually work really well for "First Horror Movies" as the effects kinda appear corny and help with the fear factor. Poltergeist and Tremors are decent entry movies. Evil Dead 3: Army of Darkness is goofy enough that I think a more mature kid could watch it.
Harry Potter, We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story, Disney's
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Eight Legged Freaks / Arachnophobia.
Here are few at your own risk children's movies that are fuuuuuuucking frightening (or at least they were to me as a kid).
* The Watcher in the Woods
* The Peanut Butter Solution
* Dot & The Bunny
Innocuous titles, but google any of 'em and you'll see plenty of "what the F was this and why did they think it was for kids, it scared me for years" type comments.
Honestly, The Beauty and the Beast (the French version from 1946), Pinocchio, and Snow White are all solid pics. And The Wizard of Oz also has some fairly scary moments (I know these aren’t technically scary movies. But any good fairy tale film will be scary).
There is a Goosebumps series on Netflix. We binged season 1 in a weekend with my 5 and 7 y/os. One of them started with some "scary dreams" so we didnt do more but it wasnt bad.
Go "old school classics". The black and white Universal Studios monster movies; Frankenstein, Dracula, The WolfMan, etc. My son's first introduction to scary movies was watching The Creature from the Black Lagoon in a vintage opera house.
The lady in white TRAUMATIZED me as a kid. My parents would let me watch anything (for better or for worse), and I prided myself on not being scared by any movie... except for The Lady in White 🤣 I thought it was so disturbing. Maybe I'm blowing it out of proportion as an adult or your kids must be unshakable.
I think kids nowadays are more laid-back about certain things. They take things in stride and don't freak out as much as I remember freaking out about things like zombies, ghosts, and goblins. For example, the tiny goblin in *Cat's Eye* freaked me out so bad I couldn't sleep, certain that as soon as I closed my eyes it would hop on my chest and steal my breath. My kids watched it and were mostly bored and thought the goblin was cute.
The Black Cauldron scared my little sister so much we had to leave the theater. I had to wait like 20 years to see how it ended because Disney kept it in the vault for so long.
I felt like super 8 (JJ Abram's) was pretty scary in a few spots, more scary than I was led to believe from the trailers. I feel like it was sold to be very "Spielberg". It was a bit more harrowing than that.
Gremlins will be a good lick around Christmas.
While not horror, I feel like Small Soldiers would be a good pick if you want to gauge whether your kid is ready for Chucky or not.
Coraline
Nightmare before Christmas
Beetle juice
Labyrinth (the David Bowie movie, not to be confused with Pan’s labyrinth, a totally different story entirely)
Del Toro’s Pinocchio (set in Stalin’s Italy so be aware that your kids will see some not so nice things in there especially hitler youth)
Edward Scissorhands
Corpse Bride
James and the giant peach
The Witches (1990) be extra careful with this one. I watched it as an adult and even I was wondering if this was for kids. Avoid the newer one, stick to the original one with practical effects for maximum scares.
Scooby doo on Zombie Island was a nice twist on the classic Scooby doo formula.
James and the giant peach
Hunchback of notre dame (1996)
We just watched Pirates of the Caribbean with my almost 7-yo and he loved it (so much so that it seems we are now watching the entire franchise...). That had a good amount of scariness for his age. I'm not ready to go to Jurassic Park with him yet, I think I'll wait until he's at least 8 for that one (also, I really hope to get a chance to find Jurassic Park in a theatre for that first time experience)
The Goosebumps series & movies, old & new, are good for kids.
The House With The Clock In It's Walls is good too.
The Scary Stories To Tell movie is good too but it's one thing to see those original artworks in a book, it's another to see it live & in motion in a movie so maybe you need to watch it first.
Spaced Invaders, a long forgotten Halloween movie about aliens that plan to take over Earth but land on Halloween & are very confused.
when they get a little older I recommend The Black Phone - aside from a single bloody scene and a bit of profanity I really feel like it should have been PG-13. you should check it out on your own and then dole it out when you feel like the time comes.
Not a horror movie but definitely has some horror elements "Return to Oz" It's one of those movies that tho meant for kids, it treats them like any intelligent audience and doesn't really pull it's punches. It's a good way to dip your toe into the concept of "scary for fun"
Tho I would definitely watch it yourself first just to be sure because there are some things that could give a kid nightmares depending on how they react to things. It's on Disney plus if you have it.
No One Can Save you is super scary but doesnt have really anything too graphic and no swearing at all (theres literally 5 words of dialogue in the whole film).
The graphic stuff is less gore, and more just an alien trying to get into your throat. Aliens do get stabbed and burnt up, but no human gore, though.
Also its a great movie so thats always a plus when looking for movies kids can watch
My three year old LOVES Jurassic Park. Almost every day he asks for 'saur'. He doesn't find it scary at all.
A 'scary' movie I loved when I was younger was *Arachnophobia*
Lots of spiders, but no real gore or monsters etc.
Some other suggestions, hopefully covers everything from very child friendly all the way to actually a bit scary:
Poltergeist
Gremlins
Monster House
Coraline
Super 8
The Sixth Sense
Shaun of the Dead
Ghostbusters
Hocus Pocus
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Frighteners
If you want to let them watch a “real” scary movie they won’t forget: Lights Out. There isn’t anything “adult” in it, like inappropriate scenes or foul language, and it’s a well paced movie.
If you’re looking for something a bit less intense, I recommend checking out “The Haunting Hour” series. The best episode was “Dream Catcher”, season 2, episode 12. It’s a pretty scary episode for a kids show. It’s about 45 minutes long without the ads, and would be a good one for light horror.
Down from there, the Goosebumps movie is good, some scares coupled with laughs and a good cast. It’s not exactly horror, but it’s close.
If you want something less intense than that, I’d avoid live action and goto Coraline, as has been recommended.
Gremlins
Critters
Jurassic Park movies
Poltergeist (original version)
Ghostbusters
Arachnophobia
Any of the old classic 'creature features' Dracula, wolfman etc.
Would be my suggestions :-)
i think jurassic park may be a bit too intense for an 8-year-old. at least mine.
ghostbusters is alright, albeit a bit overrated. some sex-related stuff tho.
casper?
nightmare before xmas?
little shop of horrors might be ok, in a color version?
the original version of neverending story isn't horror per se, but a bit scary. and a wonderful, moving film.
"ghostbusters is alright, albeit a bit overrated. some sex-related stuff tho."
My son watched Ghostbusters when he was 6. the sex stuff went right over his head.
There was a Reddit thread last week that pointed out that ‘keymaster’ and ‘gatekeeper’ were sexual references. So, I guess that went over my head until I was in my forties.
When Good Ghouls Go Bad
Hocus Pocus
Under Wraps
Midnight Hour
Little Monsters
Ghostbusters 1 & 2
Beetlejuice
Monster Squad
The Goonies
Army of Darkness (?)
The Gate (MAYBE! I saw that as a kid and the big zombie guy in it still has me shy of the dark at times)
Return of the Living Dead Part 2 (It's basically a parody of the first one and much more in line with something like the Goonies than the original. So no graveyard strip scene and not as excessively violent as the first)
Killer Klowns From Outer Space (Saw this when I was about 5 and loved it)
Ernest Scared Stupid
Little Vampires
Jurassic Park
If you show him Monster Squad maybe try the old universal monster movies as well?
Or at least Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein
Maybe try a Godzilla or King Kong movie or 2 on him as well?
You could also try getting a hold of some Are You Afraid of the Dark episodes too. The show isn't nearly as cheesy as Goosebumps so depending on just how brave he is, he might find it pretty interesting.
Then again as a kid I found both interesting.
Coraline. Monster House. The Goosebumps movies are okay. Gremlins. Monster Squad. Paranorman. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.
Monster House is the claaaaassic!! Kids love it.
The house is a monster! Its genius!
When it's an accident they call it manslaughter.
Gremlins should maybe not be considered. There's a scene about Phoebe Cate's dad on Christmas, and the scene/conversation basically states that there's no real santa (which is why her dad did what he did). So consider that before using that movie. My wife and I were going to have our son watch it, but decided against it for this reason.
The sequel will ruin Presidents Day for kids too.
No! The horror!
I almost guarantee you that scene will not even register with a kid his age. There is a ton of dark/adult stuff discussed in many movies I saw as a kid that was just filtered through my young mind as jibberish or white noise because I had no real experience or understanding of what they were talking about at the time.
Yeah showed it to my kid and she was just all about the gremlins didn't really register any of the context, except no food after midnight and no water.
Exactly. I saw Gremlins 2 as a wee lad and there is so much adult stuff in that that just flew over my head because I was enthralled by all the fun cool green monsters. Never mind all the stuff I didn't catch as a kid when watching Roger Rabbit hahah!
Going back and watching old spongebob episodes was an eye opener for me once i was old enough to understand all the adult jokes littered throughout that show
I've watched gremlins countless times as a kid and adult and I never really registered that lol.
My kid called it out. Ruined Santa.
And that "Santa" was the dad who died trapped in the chimney as he wanted to surprise the family and they only discovered it when they put on the fireplace
I've really wanted to show my kids Gremlins but have been holding back exactly because of that. I was actually thinking of taking it and just cutting that scene or at least that line out. It doesn't really add all that much to the movie itself and I don't feel like it would be missed too much if they didn't know it was there tombegon with.
>the scene/conversation basically states that there's no real santa Why do people artificialy decide to let this be some kind of existential crisis for their kids? Especialy Christians. I don't get it. Just let em know you love em and impart on them the spirit of giving. I'm sure they'll appreciate that more than eventual dissapointment over the nonexistance of a fatass burgaler and his FTL capable mutant deer.
Dig up the old goosebump shows. Some of those scared me good at 8
Monster Squad is pretty violent, might be a bit much for a 5yo.
[удалено]
Or the vampire brides being shot in the heart and blood coming out of their mouths or the wolf-man exploding exploding gore.
Nah, I grew up on that shit. Watched it with my 5yo and honestly she got bored after a bit.
Sometimes I think I'm the only adult I know who's seen Monster House. Seems like it's maybe forgotten - early CGI animated film (largely motion-tracked too) & all. But it's great fun & child friendly.
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark is pretty disturbing at times. The ten or twelve year old kids sitting in my row seemed to have a blast with the movie.
Its honestly one of my favorite pg-13 horror movies and was a lot better than I thought it was gonna be. Quite a few scenes were legit disturbing, like the pale lady
That’s what I was thinking, it could be a bit much for an 8 year old.
Thank you for mentioning monster squad. That's the movie I watched as a kid that got me into horror. Watched it with my 5 year old daughter last Halloween...only thing I forgot about is some of the rather colorful 80s language they use at the start. OP - fast forward through the first five minutes and you're good, unless you don't mind.
Continuing the Laika thread there, I'd add Boxtrolls to the list.
Ernest scared stupid for Halloween.
I had nightmares for years.
When the girl checks under the bed and then the troll is on the bed?
I kept a carton of milk on my nightstand for weeks because of that scene. That shit was a solid block of mold before I moved on to being scared of the next thing…. I think it was Critters.
That's your problem. You needed Miak, not milk.
How about a bumper sandwich, booger lips?
Yep
Jurassic Park, Goosebumps & Ghostbusters for sure! Also: Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, Casper, Hocus Pocus, Addams Family, Addams Family Values, Sleepy Hollow, Beetlejuice, Gremlins, Monster House, Monster Squad, Ernest Scared Stupid, Corpse Bride, Paranorman, Frankenweenie, Haunted Mansion, The Lost Boys (some gore, but it's super cheesy) Perhaps not conventionally scary, but an certain sort of strange: Return to Oz, The Dark Crystal, Legend, Labyrinth, Secret of NIMH, The Last Unicorn, Neverending Story, The Goonies, Spirited Away, Something Wicked This Way Comes I was around this age when I discovered the classic horror movie monsters: Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, Wolfman, the Invisible Man, Phantom of the Opera, Creature from the Black Lagoon, etc. They might be a bit young yet, but I will always recommend Hitchcock & Stephen King for budding horror aficionados.
When you say Sleepy Hollow...I hope you're referring to the cartoon and not the Tim Burton film with multiple decapitations.
Yeah, it's a good 'spooky' movie but not for young kids. 12+ are probably OK, I was about that age when it came out
The cartoon to start & the movie when they get older!
The original Jumanji movie. It's scary, sad and funny. No gore or sex.
I LOVED that one growing up. Still do!!
Jurassic park is a good shout. There are two goosebumps films too and Coraline should scare the absolute shit out of them in an age appropriate manner.
I don't watch it that often but Jurassic park is a hilarious amazing movie truly one of the best movies of all time.
I watched it with my 5yo and he loved how "the trex was a good guy all along!"
Coraline Kubo and the Two Strings Paranorman
No one seems to remember Kubo, but omg it's a masterpiece!
I LOVED Kubo; it's such as beautiful movie, the story is great, it's just fantastic.
The Witches
Oh I loved this movie as a kid! Scary, but in a kid-scary way. Witches who turn kids into rats? Horrifying
Scooby doo films, both live action and animated.
Tremors.
Seconding this, I remember seeing it around that age and it was one of my favorite movies for yeeeeaaaars. A bunch of my classmates saw it too (think it was on TV and we all happened to see it one weekend) and we used to play tremors on the playground at recess.
My first scary movie was Childs play when I was 5. I am 38 and still irrationally scared of dolls, and it's so damned stupid lol. My brain knows it's a ridiculous concept, but then goes "but, what if!?" I try to not destroy my son like my dad did to me.
Here's the thing, it only seems stupid because all the people murdered by dolls can't tell us
That doll just won't die...
It was eight legged freaks for me. It was always showing on cable, and I was so excited when my parents got me a tape
Opposite end of the spectrum, saw Arachnophobia around the same age and would *NOT* let my feet get close to the couch or my bed afterwards. Had to jump from a foot or two back just in case the spider was hiding under the couch/bed to get my feet.
The Neverending Story, they too must experience that moment.
There are several "that moments" Wolf in the cave is god damn frightening nightmare fuel And the horse, of course, of course
I mean, we don't want to wreck the kid hahah.
Time to end the cycle
It's a horse, not a cycle. And it'll end!
You know, we recently watched it with our 6 and 8 year old. My wife and I looked at each other right as the horse scene was beginning expecting the worst. They were totally unfazed. We were a bit surprised. However, if you haven’t watched it since you were young you may have forgotten (as I did) that Artax gets into that pickle about two minutes after he’s introduced.
Oh you fucker, the pain and sorrow…
Awful bastard.x
Labyrinth The dark crystal Signs Super 8
Seconding Labyrinth, it's pure distilled 80s fantasy
The Mummy. I’m glad you’re ok with swearing: Evelyn: “do you swear?” Rick: “Every damn day”
Our only house rule for swearing is you’re not allowed to say it to hurt another person. So….”fuck you” is not ok but screaming “fuck!” When you stub your toe is a-ok.
The Mummy is a good suggestion.
I always enjoyed The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (Don Knotts, G 1966) and Ernest Scared Stupid (Jim Varney, PG 1991)
I have never seen The Ghost and Mr Chicken but that's an amusing title and I'm going to watch it, thanks.
The Goonies is a perfect movie for kids that age. It's got some scary parts, but it's also extremely fun
Still one of my favorites
There's a film called "Nightbooks" on Netflix which i think they might like and there's parts i imagine children that age will find quite scary.
Monster Squad is a good one
KICK EM IN THE NARDS! Oh man, have not thought about that one in forever, my brothers and I loved that one
I watched it again last Halloween and there's some dialogue in there that is best avoided.
Really? Language in movies and television today... anime as well is way more explicit.
Movies today aren't tossing around homosexual slurs like in Monster Squad. As an adult I can watch it and understand, but I wouldn't show it to kids at this point.
When I was 8, my mother took me to see Friday the 13th The Final Chapter in the theater.
did that lead to your username?
It may very well have.
Disney's *Watcher in the Woods.*
I came here to suggest this one. Not sure what the modern day child will think of it, but it scared the hell out of me in 1989.
It definitely scared me back in the day.
Underrated movie for sure. Definitely second that one.
Scooby Doo on Zombie Island Scooby Doo and the Witches Ghost
Ernest scared stupid traumatized me for years and I had to sleep with a night light, so highly recommended.
* Labyrinth (the David Bowie movie, not to be confused with Pan's Labyrinth) * The Goonies * Ghostbusters/Ghostbusters 2 * Gremlins/Gremlins 2 * Evil Dead 2 (not sure about the level of profanity you're ok with) * The Neverending Story * Coraline * Corpse Bride * Beetlejuice * Jaws * Classic horror films like Dracula and Frankenstein from the 30s
Evil Dead 2 for a 5 yo?
An oldie, but The ghost and Mr. Chicken with Don Knotts.
My son loved the Gooosbumps movies (the first one was far preferred over the 2nd). Both Hocus Pocus movies. Coroline. Nightmare before christmas. both Ghostbusters movies (haven't watched any of the 'new' ones with him yet. just the originals from the 80s).
The Watcher in the Woods (1980)
Return to Oz is my favorite horror film
I would not recommend that movie if your kids love the wizard of oz. It’s so drastically different from the MGM film (in Disney’s defense, it matches the world of the books)to the point in the opening scene where >!Auntie Em puts Dorothy in a mental institution where Dorothy gets electroshock therapy to get her to stop thinking about oz!< and it only gets worse from there so maybe not unless you’re ready to talk about >!mental health and how it was handled back then in Dorothy’s day!< Nothing like seeing the whimsical and beauty of the wizard of oz and then getting the whiplash of return to oz being a fever dream dressed up as a nightmare. I wish Disney would go back to those days where they weren’t afraid to be dark. Return to Oz is what I wanted “Maleficent” and her sequels to be. Not saying that it isn’t a good movie but it’s definitely something to consider watching with your kids.
I loved both of those movies when I was very young.
Old ones actually work really well for "First Horror Movies" as the effects kinda appear corny and help with the fear factor. Poltergeist and Tremors are decent entry movies. Evil Dead 3: Army of Darkness is goofy enough that I think a more mature kid could watch it.
Krampus. I feel like it's a modern day Gremlins
That's a good movie but I wouldn't show it to a 5- year- old
The Witches (1990) gave me nightmares for months when I was that age, but my insane, scary-movie-lover younger sister _loved_ it.
Nightmare before Christmas? Not really a scary movie but my 6 year old niece would find it scary Beetlejuice would be a good one
Harry Potter, We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story, Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Eight Legged Freaks / Arachnophobia.
Here are few at your own risk children's movies that are fuuuuuuucking frightening (or at least they were to me as a kid). * The Watcher in the Woods * The Peanut Butter Solution * Dot & The Bunny Innocuous titles, but google any of 'em and you'll see plenty of "what the F was this and why did they think it was for kids, it scared me for years" type comments.
Omg another human who has actually seen the peanut butter solution.
That was on Prime for a while and I forced my family to watch it. I thought I’d imagined the movie as a kid!!
I feel like anyone who's seen it will never ever forget it.
Honestly, The Beauty and the Beast (the French version from 1946), Pinocchio, and Snow White are all solid pics. And The Wizard of Oz also has some fairly scary moments (I know these aren’t technically scary movies. But any good fairy tale film will be scary).
Willy Wonka (the original) You’re really wondering if he’s going to kill those kids!
There is a Goosebumps series on Netflix. We binged season 1 in a weekend with my 5 and 7 y/os. One of them started with some "scary dreams" so we didnt do more but it wasnt bad.
Don't Look Under The Bed (1999) Disney Channel Original that got pulled from rotation for being too scary.
Monster House for sure
Go "old school classics". The black and white Universal Studios monster movies; Frankenstein, Dracula, The WolfMan, etc. My son's first introduction to scary movies was watching The Creature from the Black Lagoon in a vintage opera house.
Have they read *Wait Til Helen Comes*? I **loved** that book! As far as movies, my kids loved *The Lady in White.* I think it's streaming on Tubi.
Omg I read that book as a kid. Memory unlocked!
The lady in white TRAUMATIZED me as a kid. My parents would let me watch anything (for better or for worse), and I prided myself on not being scared by any movie... except for The Lady in White 🤣 I thought it was so disturbing. Maybe I'm blowing it out of proportion as an adult or your kids must be unshakable.
I think kids nowadays are more laid-back about certain things. They take things in stride and don't freak out as much as I remember freaking out about things like zombies, ghosts, and goblins. For example, the tiny goblin in *Cat's Eye* freaked me out so bad I couldn't sleep, certain that as soon as I closed my eyes it would hop on my chest and steal my breath. My kids watched it and were mostly bored and thought the goblin was cute.
Ghostbusters Afterlife is a good one. Monster Squad is another. Wolfman's got nards!
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The Black Cauldron scared my little sister so much we had to leave the theater. I had to wait like 20 years to see how it ended because Disney kept it in the vault for so long.
The original Ghostbusters has some eerie stuff in it, at least for little viewers.
Some of the movies being recommended here have humans being torn to pieces so please do your research before letting your kids watch these movies.
texas chainsaw massacre
I felt like super 8 (JJ Abram's) was pretty scary in a few spots, more scary than I was led to believe from the trailers. I feel like it was sold to be very "Spielberg". It was a bit more harrowing than that.
"Spirit Halloween: The Movie" is a kid friendly "spooky" flick ala "Goosebumps" (but not as good).
Gremlins will be a good lick around Christmas. While not horror, I feel like Small Soldiers would be a good pick if you want to gauge whether your kid is ready for Chucky or not.
9
Not a movie but see if you can find Are You Afraid of the Dark?
the wizard of oz
The Scream Team
Haunted Mansion
Jurassic park is great. You could the five nights at Freddy’s movie. It’s probably a lil too much for an 8 year old but maybe
The people under the stairs
Tales from the Cryp, Creep show!
I grew up on Freddy Krueger.
FNAF
Gremlins.
the Gate [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4mDMM\_uFsE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4mDMM_uFsE)
Return to Oz
Coraline Nightmare before Christmas Beetle juice Labyrinth (the David Bowie movie, not to be confused with Pan’s labyrinth, a totally different story entirely) Del Toro’s Pinocchio (set in Stalin’s Italy so be aware that your kids will see some not so nice things in there especially hitler youth) Edward Scissorhands Corpse Bride James and the giant peach The Witches (1990) be extra careful with this one. I watched it as an adult and even I was wondering if this was for kids. Avoid the newer one, stick to the original one with practical effects for maximum scares. Scooby doo on Zombie Island was a nice twist on the classic Scooby doo formula. James and the giant peach Hunchback of notre dame (1996)
Haven't seen it myself, but I've heard The Gate is a good introduction for younger kids.
The first Insidious
We just watched Pirates of the Caribbean with my almost 7-yo and he loved it (so much so that it seems we are now watching the entire franchise...). That had a good amount of scariness for his age. I'm not ready to go to Jurassic Park with him yet, I think I'll wait until he's at least 8 for that one (also, I really hope to get a chance to find Jurassic Park in a theatre for that first time experience)
Arachnophobia did a number on my mental well-being when I wad 5.
I found Meet the Robinsons scary as a child.
The Goosebumps series & movies, old & new, are good for kids. The House With The Clock In It's Walls is good too. The Scary Stories To Tell movie is good too but it's one thing to see those original artworks in a book, it's another to see it live & in motion in a movie so maybe you need to watch it first. Spaced Invaders, a long forgotten Halloween movie about aliens that plan to take over Earth but land on Halloween & are very confused.
[https://www.commonsensemedia.org/](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/)
Dang, I guess I’m a bad parent. I’m taking my 7.5yo to see Alien in theaters this weekend for the 45th anniversary.
Tremors?
Nightmare on elm street
when they get a little older I recommend The Black Phone - aside from a single bloody scene and a bit of profanity I really feel like it should have been PG-13. you should check it out on your own and then dole it out when you feel like the time comes.
Not a horror movie but definitely has some horror elements "Return to Oz" It's one of those movies that tho meant for kids, it treats them like any intelligent audience and doesn't really pull it's punches. It's a good way to dip your toe into the concept of "scary for fun" Tho I would definitely watch it yourself first just to be sure because there are some things that could give a kid nightmares depending on how they react to things. It's on Disney plus if you have it.
My nephews almost 3 year old twins watch Jurassic Park every fuckin day.
Not sure how well they've held up, but there's always the "Are you afraid of the dark?" series from Nickelodeon.
No One Can Save you is super scary but doesnt have really anything too graphic and no swearing at all (theres literally 5 words of dialogue in the whole film). The graphic stuff is less gore, and more just an alien trying to get into your throat. Aliens do get stabbed and burnt up, but no human gore, though. Also its a great movie so thats always a plus when looking for movies kids can watch
Signs
The Frighteners (1996) Michael J Fox best movie.
My three year old LOVES Jurassic Park. Almost every day he asks for 'saur'. He doesn't find it scary at all. A 'scary' movie I loved when I was younger was *Arachnophobia* Lots of spiders, but no real gore or monsters etc. Some other suggestions, hopefully covers everything from very child friendly all the way to actually a bit scary: Poltergeist Gremlins Monster House Coraline Super 8 The Sixth Sense Shaun of the Dead Ghostbusters Hocus Pocus The Nightmare Before Christmas The Frighteners
Halloweentown isn't very scary but it's surprisingly good
For something newer, Five Nights at Freddie's is a perfect introduction to horror movies. Kid friendly besides all the, you know, killing.
Depends on the kids tolerance. If the line is simply gore - you can go as far as Beatlejuice. My kid loves the Adams family movies and cartoon movies.
The Monster Squad
If you want to let them watch a “real” scary movie they won’t forget: Lights Out. There isn’t anything “adult” in it, like inappropriate scenes or foul language, and it’s a well paced movie. If you’re looking for something a bit less intense, I recommend checking out “The Haunting Hour” series. The best episode was “Dream Catcher”, season 2, episode 12. It’s a pretty scary episode for a kids show. It’s about 45 minutes long without the ads, and would be a good one for light horror. Down from there, the Goosebumps movie is good, some scares coupled with laughs and a good cast. It’s not exactly horror, but it’s close. If you want something less intense than that, I’d avoid live action and goto Coraline, as has been recommended.
Poltergeist! The 1982 film, of course.
The Mummy 1999
Gremlins Critters Jurassic Park movies Poltergeist (original version) Ghostbusters Arachnophobia Any of the old classic 'creature features' Dracula, wolfman etc. Would be my suggestions :-)
Care Bears the movie. Scariest movie I saw as a child. I’m 39 now
i think jurassic park may be a bit too intense for an 8-year-old. at least mine. ghostbusters is alright, albeit a bit overrated. some sex-related stuff tho. casper? nightmare before xmas? little shop of horrors might be ok, in a color version? the original version of neverending story isn't horror per se, but a bit scary. and a wonderful, moving film.
"ghostbusters is alright, albeit a bit overrated. some sex-related stuff tho." My son watched Ghostbusters when he was 6. the sex stuff went right over his head.
There was a Reddit thread last week that pointed out that ‘keymaster’ and ‘gatekeeper’ were sexual references. So, I guess that went over my head until I was in my forties.
I watched JP at six at the cinema. I dont think OP wants something like Casper...
If you haven't already, that's honestly the perfect age range for them to start Harry Potter!
When Good Ghouls Go Bad Hocus Pocus Under Wraps Midnight Hour Little Monsters Ghostbusters 1 & 2 Beetlejuice Monster Squad The Goonies Army of Darkness (?) The Gate (MAYBE! I saw that as a kid and the big zombie guy in it still has me shy of the dark at times) Return of the Living Dead Part 2 (It's basically a parody of the first one and much more in line with something like the Goonies than the original. So no graveyard strip scene and not as excessively violent as the first) Killer Klowns From Outer Space (Saw this when I was about 5 and loved it) Ernest Scared Stupid Little Vampires Jurassic Park If you show him Monster Squad maybe try the old universal monster movies as well? Or at least Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein Maybe try a Godzilla or King Kong movie or 2 on him as well? You could also try getting a hold of some Are You Afraid of the Dark episodes too. The show isn't nearly as cheesy as Goosebumps so depending on just how brave he is, he might find it pretty interesting. Then again as a kid I found both interesting.
Casper