Watching movies as a kid is disparate from consuming cinema as an adult. As a child, everything is scarier, even bizarre ideas like a house becoming a monster or a wicked witch commanding a troop of flying monkeys.
Kids can’t tell the difference between CGI and human actors, causing the movie experience to scare them cold. Here are some films that terrified movie buffs as children.
1. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
The classic Steven Spielberg movie about an alien finding a family on Earth traumatized all of my friends as children. I proudly carried an E.T. stuffed animal while my classmates shuddered in fear of the plushie. Several kids claim that E.T.s face and design scared them, which is interesting considering he was molded after a pug, Carl Sandburg, and Albert Einstein.
2. Wizard of Oz (1932)
We’re off to see the wizard and scare a bunch of children. Everyone who said the Wizard of Oz terrified them as children mentioned the same two items that instilled that fear, the wicked witch and her flying monkeys.
3. Monster House (2006)
Monster House scared me as a child due to the anthropomorphic house’s creepy face and the mean older man. However, when I watched the film later, I realized it’s a wondrous metaphor for grief.
4. Gremlins (1984)
Gremlins is a 1984 film about the Mogwai, a species that cannot be fed or given water after midnight and can never soak in bright light. Every rule gets broken, and the mogwais multiply into gremlins, causing quite the Christmas commotion. Kids dislike the violence, gore, and scary appearance of the gremlins.
5. Watership Down (1978)
Based on a novel of the same name, Watership Down tells a tale of a group of rabbits who must migrate to a new home after theirs is demolished. The film is not as graphic as the book, but the film still manages to convey ideas of death, life, and unfair treatment. The animation doesn’t skimp on the gore. Unfortunately, animated doesn’t always mean suitable for kids.
6. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Millions thought The Blair Witch Project was a true story for several years. The found footage film takes place in Maryland and centers around three students yearning to learn more about the Blair Witch.
“The marketing for that film was outstanding for its time. The filmmakers capitalized on the raw power of the early internet to perpetuate the idea that this thing was real. Also, that ending still gives me chills,” a film buff expressed.
7. Poltergeist (1982)
This is my favorite classic horror movie. After Tobe Hooper released Texas Chainsaw Massacre, he debuted Poltergeist, a story about an open line of communication between the ghost world and this world. One of the freakiest parts about Poltergeist is that the actress who played Carol Ann died at a young age of mysterious circumstances.
“Clowns, trees, and half-empty pools were never looked at the same,” someone shared.
8. It (1990)
“The original Tim Curry It. I’m still unsure if I’m scared of murder clowns or Tim Curry, though,” one person wrote. It follows a demonic clown that terrorizes a group of misfits as they try to stop the clown from causing more harm to their town.
9. Return to Oz (1985)
A popular choice is Return to Oz. In the sequel to the aforementioned Wizard of Oz, Dorothy finds her way back to Oz to reunite with her friends and save The Emerald City.
“It gets extra points because it somehow managed to be marketed as a kid’s movie. So unbelievable,” a user confessed. “I’ll never get over the heads … so messed up they played that movie on the DISNEY CHANNEL!”
10. Home Alone 2
Finally, Home Alone 2 is the second leg about a child whose parents forget to bring him on a family vacation.
“Home Alone 2. Specifically when Marv gets electrocuted. The only time I ever recall being genuinely scared from a movie. That high pitch scream and then the switch to the skeleton just freaked me the eff out. Still kind of creeps me out to this day,” a film fan recalled.
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