Spooooooky, but not too scary... or old... or good
October 19, 2015 2:48 PM Subscribe
Help me find slices of the particular flavor of cheesy Halloween movie that our kid likes.
Our six ("and a half!") year-old has hit that particular sweet spot where Disney Channel and Nickelodeon's Halloween movies are the ideal level of scary. I'm a) forty years old and b) a not-kidding-around horror aficionado (I founded MeFi Horror Club) so this is outside of my wheelhouse.
So far he has enjoyed the Halloweentown movies, the Mostly Ghostly series, Invisible Sister, etc. This is a particular strain of cheeseball scare I am not well-versed in. Can you help me find more examples of this genre to entertain my kid?
What I am not looking for:
-classic or beloved movies from a generation or more before my kids' that can withstand the test of time or bridge the gap with their appeal... The recent-ness of these movies seems to be a key selling point. He wants to like stuff that will make him feel current/cool, relatively speaking.
-terrific movies that will bridge that gap between him and me. This is a particular strain of overly-lit, cliche-driven kid-friendly schlock he's feeling right now. The unconvincing nature of the effects and the obviously-everything-is-going-to-turn-out-okay nature of the plots is a selling point and a comfort to him. I don't care if it works for me. I just want him to have more of what he likes. FWIW, he is home sick right now. He deserves to see what he wants, not what I think he should want, or what might be a compromise between his tastes and mine.
-stuff that defies expectations or bravely attempts disturbing and/or unexpected endings. At this point, he still definitely wants the good guys to emerge victorious and almost entirely unscathed. We tried to watch the original Goosebumps show and it's Twilight Zone-esque endings were emphatically NOT COOL. A goofy, "The bad guy might have gotten away!" coda is fine. The heroes being trapped/cursed/doomed forever is NOT OKAY.
Can you recommend brightly-colored, not especially scary spooky kids stuff within this particular strain of made-for-cable/straight-to-video comfortably predictable schlock?
Basically what the ideal answer would be is some variation on "My kid is [number <5] years older than yours and this is the silly Halloween garbage they and their friends enjoyed."
Our six ("and a half!") year-old has hit that particular sweet spot where Disney Channel and Nickelodeon's Halloween movies are the ideal level of scary. I'm a) forty years old and b) a not-kidding-around horror aficionado (I founded MeFi Horror Club) so this is outside of my wheelhouse.
So far he has enjoyed the Halloweentown movies, the Mostly Ghostly series, Invisible Sister, etc. This is a particular strain of cheeseball scare I am not well-versed in. Can you help me find more examples of this genre to entertain my kid?
What I am not looking for:
-classic or beloved movies from a generation or more before my kids' that can withstand the test of time or bridge the gap with their appeal... The recent-ness of these movies seems to be a key selling point. He wants to like stuff that will make him feel current/cool, relatively speaking.
-terrific movies that will bridge that gap between him and me. This is a particular strain of overly-lit, cliche-driven kid-friendly schlock he's feeling right now. The unconvincing nature of the effects and the obviously-everything-is-going-to-turn-out-okay nature of the plots is a selling point and a comfort to him. I don't care if it works for me. I just want him to have more of what he likes. FWIW, he is home sick right now. He deserves to see what he wants, not what I think he should want, or what might be a compromise between his tastes and mine.
-stuff that defies expectations or bravely attempts disturbing and/or unexpected endings. At this point, he still definitely wants the good guys to emerge victorious and almost entirely unscathed. We tried to watch the original Goosebumps show and it's Twilight Zone-esque endings were emphatically NOT COOL. A goofy, "The bad guy might have gotten away!" coda is fine. The heroes being trapped/cursed/doomed forever is NOT OKAY.
Can you recommend brightly-colored, not especially scary spooky kids stuff within this particular strain of made-for-cable/straight-to-video comfortably predictable schlock?
Basically what the ideal answer would be is some variation on "My kid is [number <5] years older than yours and this is the silly Halloween garbage they and their friends enjoyed."
Response by poster: He sees pretty much every animated thing as a matter of course. Unlike a lot of kids, ours hates seeing things more than once (with rare exceptions) so once he establishes an interest in a genre, that thing tends to get wiped out. I'm specifically looking for the cable/DTV level live action sphere of stuff as this is a new thing in our house and is not something we know well.
Surely there's a MeFite whose kid is a bit older than mine and already went through Disney/Nick/the DVD shelf with a fine toothed comb finding this stuff?
posted by DirtyOldTown at 3:01 PM on October 19, 2015
Surely there's a MeFite whose kid is a bit older than mine and already went through Disney/Nick/the DVD shelf with a fine toothed comb finding this stuff?
posted by DirtyOldTown at 3:01 PM on October 19, 2015
What about Spooksville? The series is currently streaming on Netflix, based on a series of definitely-not-super-scary Christopher Pike books. The books themselves are from the 80's or 90's, but the show is firmly modern-day. There are ghosts and witches and aliens and evil-ish plots, but everything resolves nicely at the end. It's just scary enough that my 8-year-old will sometimes hide her eyes (more out of excitement than fear, I really think), but goofy enough that both my kids end up laughing at all the jokes.
(As a bonus, one of the main characters is played by Nick Purcha, whom we all know as Liv's brother on iZombie!)
posted by mittens at 3:12 PM on October 19, 2015 [1 favorite]
(As a bonus, one of the main characters is played by Nick Purcha, whom we all know as Liv's brother on iZombie!)
posted by mittens at 3:12 PM on October 19, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: He loooooved Spooksville. Anger and resentment at that being canceled.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 3:15 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by DirtyOldTown at 3:15 PM on October 19, 2015
Jill Thompson's Scary Godmother Halloween Spooktacular?
posted by infinitewindow at 3:16 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by infinitewindow at 3:16 PM on October 19, 2015
Making Fiends? I loved the web series especially.
posted by mmmbacon at 3:25 PM on October 19, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by mmmbacon at 3:25 PM on October 19, 2015 [1 favorite]
What about non-spooky kids shows that have Halloween specials?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Halloween_television_specials
Other than that...this Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen movie may fit the bill.
posted by ethorson at 3:30 PM on October 19, 2015
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Halloween_television_specials
Other than that...this Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen movie may fit the bill.
posted by ethorson at 3:30 PM on October 19, 2015
Not current, but the Eerie, Indiana series might appeal?
posted by metasarah at 3:41 PM on October 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by metasarah at 3:41 PM on October 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
Not Halloween-themed, and not movie-length, but if the two of you haven't seen the (relatively) recent Scooby Doo! Mystery, Incorporated series you're missing out on a pretty good thing. Previously on Metafilter.
posted by Nerd of the North at 3:56 PM on October 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Nerd of the North at 3:56 PM on October 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
Yeah, my kids loved some of the animated Scoobie Doo movies. The ones with the Hex Girls were particular favorites.
posted by instamatic at 4:41 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by instamatic at 4:41 PM on October 19, 2015
This terrible thing? I haven't seen it since I was a kid, and don't remember much, but maybe someone else can say whether Transylvania 6-5000 is really as child friendly as I remember or if it's another example of my mother's curious parenting.
posted by fiercekitten at 6:04 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by fiercekitten at 6:04 PM on October 19, 2015
Response by poster: I'm doing a terrible job explaining what I am looking for.
He likes live action tv-movies and direct-to-video things mostly from the last five to ten years in which photogenic tweens and teens face spooky but not actually that scary supernatural peril of a Halloween bent. This definitely seems to be a subgenre. Think of it as movies not unlike the aforementioned Hocus Pocus, only newer, lower rent, and aimed at the kids who watch High School Musical or Disney's cavalcade of terrible kiddie sitcoms.
Maybe we just skew too far away from that age group (and things that are awful). Though I have to believe someone here has kids in this bracket who like this stuff. It seems to be a thing.
Spooksville was the exact right kind of thing, but he's already seen that.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:07 PM on October 19, 2015
He likes live action tv-movies and direct-to-video things mostly from the last five to ten years in which photogenic tweens and teens face spooky but not actually that scary supernatural peril of a Halloween bent. This definitely seems to be a subgenre. Think of it as movies not unlike the aforementioned Hocus Pocus, only newer, lower rent, and aimed at the kids who watch High School Musical or Disney's cavalcade of terrible kiddie sitcoms.
Maybe we just skew too far away from that age group (and things that are awful). Though I have to believe someone here has kids in this bracket who like this stuff. It seems to be a thing.
Spooksville was the exact right kind of thing, but he's already seen that.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:07 PM on October 19, 2015
Not too recent, but really vivid - The Witches. 1990. Definitely has that straight-to-video vibe. Based on a lovely book by Roald Dahl. Also, the witches are truly hideous when the 'reveal' comes.
There was this movie - Tower of Terror - on the Disney Channel when I was much younger. An elevator, ghosts, campy, but I remember liking it. Intrigue and a tiny Kirsten Dunst.
Underwraps was one of those Disney Channel original movies.
So Weird - a television show I remember enjoying whenever I saw it on.
They made a movie of this young adult horror book - Cirque Du Freak. I've never watched to movie, but John C Reilly is in it, I think.
Big Wolf on campus - another television show featuring a heart-of-gold jock turned werewolf.
Hmmm...I don't know if any of this fits the bill. These all might exhibit a generational gap.
posted by Rams at 9:02 PM on October 19, 2015
There was this movie - Tower of Terror - on the Disney Channel when I was much younger. An elevator, ghosts, campy, but I remember liking it. Intrigue and a tiny Kirsten Dunst.
Underwraps was one of those Disney Channel original movies.
So Weird - a television show I remember enjoying whenever I saw it on.
They made a movie of this young adult horror book - Cirque Du Freak. I've never watched to movie, but John C Reilly is in it, I think.
Big Wolf on campus - another television show featuring a heart-of-gold jock turned werewolf.
Hmmm...I don't know if any of this fits the bill. These all might exhibit a generational gap.
posted by Rams at 9:02 PM on October 19, 2015
Ghost Dad
posted by Juliet Banana at 9:27 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by Juliet Banana at 9:27 PM on October 19, 2015
Sorry, I was actually thinking of "I downloaded a ghost."
posted by Juliet Banana at 9:29 PM on October 19, 2015
posted by Juliet Banana at 9:29 PM on October 19, 2015
I know you said not old, but otherwise I think The Goonies fits the bill. Not super-scary but just scary enough. My then 8-and 6-year olds loved it once we got past the rather slow beginning.
posted by widdershins at 10:17 AM on October 20, 2015
posted by widdershins at 10:17 AM on October 20, 2015
May be too old, but Mr Boogedy (and I think there was a sequel) fits the direct-to-video-vibe and scary-but-not-super-scary, and has a trio of young beautiful children in it; plus it was made by Disney.
posted by AzraelBrown at 11:23 AM on October 20, 2015
posted by AzraelBrown at 11:23 AM on October 20, 2015
My Babysitter's a Vampire?
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (mentioned above)
posted by incountrysleep at 1:43 PM on October 20, 2015
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (mentioned above)
posted by incountrysleep at 1:43 PM on October 20, 2015
It is animated, but my kids and I just discovered "Over the Garden Wall" on Hulu and my three youngest (9, 5, and 4) love it. It is kind of spooky and weird, but also not.
posted by tacodave at 4:22 PM on October 20, 2015
posted by tacodave at 4:22 PM on October 20, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by zizzle at 2:54 PM on October 19, 2015 [1 favorite]