Movies
Mr. Disgusting’s Must-See Family Horror Films
As much as it appears that Halloween is just for children, many adults refuse to grow up and relish in the opportunity to play “dress up” on that one special day of the year. But what I find interesting is that while children are the mass behind Halloween, horror movies are mostly made for late-teen/adults. And while Halloween can be for every person under the full moon, not every horror movie is made for the majority. My goal this holiday was to find a handful of horror movies that both parents and their children could watch – together. So go put on your costume, grab your pumpkin filled with candy and pop on one of the following movies.
Dont forget to also check out:
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The first Tim Burton film on this list wasn’t a huge success when it hit theaters Halloween weekend of 1993. In fact, it wasn’t until years later that the film gained cult status among the horror community. Now, 15 years later, the children who grew up watching the movie on VHS, DVD and now Blu-ray are all grown up and having kids of their own. Filled with colorful characters (Jack Skellington, Zero, Dr. Finkelstein and more), catchy music by the legendary Danny Elfman, beautiful stop-motion animation and a plot that combines two of the year’s best holidays (Halloween and Christmas), this is a guarantee hit for the entire family to enjoy – from October all the way through the New Year.
The first film in this list from the great Robert Zemeckis is MONSTER HOUSE, a first of its kind, motion-capture extravaganza that combines new animation techniques with revolutionary 3-D technology in HD. In theaters, this film was one of the most visually stunning films ever created. And while we’re still waiting for true 3-D release for Blu-ray, MONSTER HOUSE is still a fantastic family movie that’s fun, scary and bold. While the film makes its aim towards children, the dialogue is daring enough to involve adults as well.
Another film from Robert Zemeckis that’s often forgotten is the hilariously delightful DEATH BECOMES HER. The film is a quasi-zombie movie that follows two women desperately seeking to become young again. After killing each other, they become beautiful zombies fighting over one man. And how can you go wrong with a cast featuring Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn and Bruce Willis at the pinnacle of their careers? While this might be one of the most edgy of the films, children will still enjoy because of the colorful scenery and over-the-top antics of Streep and Hawn.
One of the Tim Burton’s most popular movies is the Michael Keaton starrer BEETLEJUICE, which, alongside EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, clearly defined the works of the artistic director. Keaton as Beetlejuice is like having a cartoon come to life, and any pre-teen could find themselves obsessing over the fun he brings to the screen. Even though Beetlejuice is a fun dude, he’s still pretty scary and so is the plot, which is where the adults will find the entertainment. And the second Harry Belafonte’s song “Day-O” (The Banana Boat Song) blasts out, and the dinner table scene ensues, everyone in the family will be immersed in the bizarre world created by Burton.
Joe Dante, who also directed the incredibly family film THE BURBS (starring Tom Hanks), take what could have been a pure horror film and turns it into a Christmas tale filled with laughs, thrills and plenty of scares. All based around the cute and fluffy Gizmo, the movie takes a dark turn when the rules are broken leaving a trio of Gremlins running amok around town.
This Robert Zemeckis film was directed by new filmmaker Peter Jackson, who would go on to win an Academy Award directing the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy. Starring Michael J. Fox near the end of his prime, the film follows a man who can talk to ghosts and unravels a ghostly conspiracy only he can fight. The movie has comedic ghosts, loads of thrills and some incredibly creepy atmospheric locations. FRIGHTENERS is a simple good time that’s perfect for all ages.
A no-brainer is this feature film based on the `60s horror-comedy TV show, which brings Moritica, Gomez, Uncle Fester, Thing, Lurch, Pugsley and Wednesday to the big screen for the first time ever. While the movie is bleak and features a disturbing plot, the only real reason to watch this movie are for the characters brought to life by such great performers as Angelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd, Christina Ricci and more.
In one of Johnny Depps’ break-out film roles, Depp returns to the horror genre after Freddy Krueger took him out in the 1994 classic A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Directed by Tim Burton (only the first of many collaborations), this Christmas tale is perfect for all ages. Children will find solace in the colorful town that Edward is brought to, while also enjoying Endward’s styling techniques (trees, bushes and hair!). Teens and adults will enjoy the darker side of the film such as the castle Edward was created in. Horror enthusiasts also shouldn’t miss what was Vincent Price’s last physical role in a film before passing away in 1993.
GHOST BUSTERS (or GHOSTBUSTERS) is the definitive family horror film that has set the bar so high that it’s bound to never be beaten. Featuring legendary comedians Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, alongside the massive cast of Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rock Moranis, Ernie Hudson and more, the film is a wet dream for nearly anyone walking on this planet. Children might be a tad frightened by the opening “library ghost”, but after shielding their eyes will be delighted when they see “Slimer” and the “Stay Puff Marshmallow Man” hit the screen. In addition, kids will love the Ecto-1 car, abandoned fire station location and proton packs used to catch the ghosts. There is a little bit of something for every different type of person in the film. From start to finish this one is filled with laughs, scares, chills and awe-striking visuals that will have you hitting play again immediately following the credits.
There’s been a lot of talk about how Christopher Nolan snuck in some horror elements into his epic adaptation of The Odyssey. However, even before the Cyclops began to eat Ithican soldiers and Circe subjected them to magical body-horror, cinemagoers were already witnessing supernatural terror through a certain trailer that was attached to most IMAX screenings of Nolan’s film.
It turns out that this trailer was for Rob Savage’s Other Mommy, an adaptation of Bird Box author Josh Malerman’s horror novel, Incidents Around the House. With the teaser now available online and revealing that the award-winning Jessica Chastain is playing the titular antagonist (as well as her ill-fated human counterpart), not to mention the fact that the picture is being helmed by the director of hits like Host and The Boogeyman, genre fans are understandably hyped for this upcoming thriller.
That’s why I’ve decided to take a closer look at the trailer and share four things we learned from this sneak peek at Other Mommy!
4. Rob Savage is Going Back to His Supernatural Horror Roots
I know I’m in the minority when I admit that Dashcam is my favorite Rob Savage movie, but even I understand why the filmmakers’ fans have been waiting a while for the director to get back to telling more grounded paranormal stories as he did with 2020’s Host.
Other Mommy obviously isn’t a found footage movie, but moments like the poltergeist activity on the kitchen table combined with the nature of the source material, which actually features a full-on exorcism, indicate that this adaptation is more than a simple creature feature. That’s why I think Savage is once again going to borrow from the same ghostly narratives that made his debut film such a viral hit.
3. Other Mommy is a More Convincing Doppelganger in the Adaptation
Part of the horror from Malerman’s original novel came from the fact that the entity taking on the form of Bela’s (Arabella Olivia Clark) mother wasn’t very good at passing itself off as human. This resulted in several uncanny moments where other characters began to notice that there was something visibly wrong with the family and decided to keep their distance.
Savage’s film appears to be taking a different route, with the trailer showing a version of the entity that can, at least physically, imitate Chastain’s character perfectly. This change is likely the result of the filmmakers wanting to incorporate more paranoid scenes where Bela and her father, played by Jay Duplass, are confused about which Mommy is safe to interact with.
2. The Family is Also Better Off This Time Around
Incidents Around the House featured some interesting subtext about how poverty can negatively affect American family dynamics. After all, the main characters were already feeling scared and isolated before the entity emerged from Bela’s closet and began scratching at their emotional wounds. The trailer for the movie, however, depicts the family as being relatively well off before these incidents begin to occur.
I can only imagine that this part of the story was changed so that the family’s fall from grace can be even more dramatic as the mom and dad’s pasts are revealed and Bela falls further into the clutches of the demonic antagonist.
1. Jessica Chastain is Embodying Evil Dead Rise’s Alyssa Sutherland
Mothers turning against their children is one of the most disturbing horror tropes out there (just check out classics like Hereditary and Carrie if you need proof), but it takes a remarkably skilled actress to pull off such a monstrous transformation. This is especially true when both a regular, loving mother and the Other share the screen in the same film.
That’s why I appreciate how Chastain appears to be channeling another evil redhead mother that recently traumatized audiences with her performance. It’s too early to be sure, but I’m fairly confident that Chastain’s character has at least some amount of Ellie in her cinematic DNA – Ellie being the iconic deadite brought to life by Australian actress Alyssa Sutherland in 2023’s Evil Dead Rise.
Let us know in the comments if you think we missed any important details from the trailer, and don’t forget to check out Other Mommy when it hits theaters on October 9!
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