Frankenweenie, even though the theme bums me out.

Maleficent? Is it out on video yet? Not really Halloween, but a great movie.

- If it's a consideration, Beetle Juice has some cursing.

- I found Jaws to be scary when I was a kid.

- Scissor Hands is pretty perfect.

I can't do horror movies - they just leave me on edge and not entertained at all. That being said, Rosemary's Baby is one of my favorite movies.

Hocus Pocus, Gremlins, Poltergeist, Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (original 1950s), Swamp Thing, Hitchcock's The Birds ...

Do they get to eat the candy in the tv room? Haha.

I am not sure I would do Jaws. I still think that parts of that are too scary for me. I have not swum in the ocean at night since I saw it when it first came out. Great film, but it freaked me out when I was 23. Beetlejuice was sort of fun and I love Edward Scissorhands, but don't think of it as scary. How about some old-timey films with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Peter Lorre?

This post was edited by cyn427 on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 20:13

The Others has no gore, violence or adult themes but is very creepy. The scare factor is similar to Poltergeist and The Sixth Sense.

Here is a link that might be useful: Common Sense Media

Love a good scary movie! Good, being the key adjective.
I second The Birds, I had my kids watch it when, I think, they were about 12 and 9. Is that about your children's ages? They thought it was scary and awesome. They still love it and will rewatch it if it is on.
I also love Gaslight, The Uninvited(1944 version)
Oddly my kids will not watch Monster House or Coraline as both give them nightmares........
Rosemary's Baby and many 'satanic' movies are too much for me, eg. all The Omen series are TOO much for me.
There is a scary Bette Davis movie called Burnt Offerings that I saw at a drive-in during my HS years that has stayed with me, though I have never re-watched it.
My oldest loves scary movies and dared me once to give him the name of a movie he wouldn't be able to handle. It was summer vacation so I tempted fate. I provided, "The Shining. He was 14, stopped the film partway through and slept in my bed for a 3 nights....So I would probably not suggest that.
Cape Fear is also a great film and you could watch both versions and then compare/contrast. My kids love to do that!
It could end up being a summer vacation destination too!

"And Really, a bag of candy?"

For peons like those in my neighborhood, that bag of candy and hanging with friends works pretty darned well!

Wait until Dark with Audrey Hepburn. It came out in 1968 or so and though there are some grizzly moments, pretty tame by today's standards....most middle schoolers today have probably seen worse.

The Exorcist. The scariest movie ever. Nothing like Linda Blair with her head spinning in circles while vomiting pea soup. Scared the bejabbers out of me.

Yes, it is one of the scariest movies ever...but definitely not for kids!

When my nieces and nephews were tweens and a little younger, I used to show movies on a blow-up screen in the backyard through the summer. They seemed to really love the "old" movies.. ET, Edward Scissorhands, Goonies .. can't remember if they liked beetlejuice but I imagine so. There's also Corpse Bride and well, anything Tim Burton.

Some other oldies that aren't exactly Halloweeny but dark fun.. Clue, American Werewolf in London (a little gruesome but the special effects are old enough to be silly more than scary), Time Bandits

There are so many great old classic thrillers-- but I wouldn't have shared Rosemary's Baby, Psycho, Lady in White or the Omen or anything with particularly disturbing or adult themes. I love Alfred Hitchcock but even the tamer ones wouldn't have worked well for my crowd.. you'd have to pick from that group based on your kids.

My personal fall fave is Bell, Book and Candle.. I grew up in the wrong era!

Have fun whatever you choose!

I am a Hammer Horror fan -- so I do recommend the classic and original Dracula -- and The Mummy .....

... have they seen Earth to Echo? or perhaps Super 8??? both Spielberg .....

... Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp? fantastic movie at this time of year ......

.... the original The Fog ...... MUCH better than the re-make .....

.....

Bobbing for apples is fun. Or hanging donuts on strings and the kids each stand in front of a donut, then see who eats their donut fastest. "Witch's brew" was spaghetti.

No really good Halloween movies come to mind but my guess is that an oldie is probably where the really good stories are.

How about some of the old scary Vincent Price movies. Black and white. Kind of campy and no gore.

I live in the country so understand the problems of trick or treating there. Parents have to drive the kids from house to house. Not the same vibe as when you can walk from house to house. Halloween was my favorite holiday when I was growing up because of the wandering around the neighborhood with candy sack in hand. The freedom of the wandering and the "What will be in the sack at the end of the night?!" wonder. I hope your kids get to experience that too.

Frankenweenie, even though the theme bums me out.

Frankenweenie, even though the theme bums me out.

My very favorite is Signs with Mel Gibson. Not gruesome. Not bloody. Just flat-out scary! We own it and we'll be watching it.
Lynn

Sorry for those duplicate posts...that's really weird.

This post was edited by coll_123 on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 22:54

Twilight Zone marathon. Bonfire to chase away the evil spirits. Chocolate fondue. Make "misfortune" (only funny) cookies.

Also, Mad Monster Party. Haven't seen it yet but I love Rankin and Bass.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mad Monster Party

OMG! I'm away for the night and look what i come back to. As always, you guys have the best ideas for anything about anything. It's like have my own private council!

Thank you so much, everyone. Great movie ideas. and Twilight Zone! Bobbing for apples, an oldie but a goodie! ANd choc fondue, oh yum...

PS As far as ""And Really, a bag of candy?" That was *my* editorialization. And my meaning is not that my kids would sniff their noses at it --- not at all! My meaning is that I really don't want my kids to collect a BAG of candy. I am the mean mom who gets a twix bar for two to share ...

And, i'm pretty impressed with their schools. No Halloween candy. Homemade baked goods only , but even that they limit portions and offer fruit, too. They do contests and dances and pumpkin carving and charity drives. But no candy.

So I actually hand selected them each 5 normal sized (not fun sized) items and put them in a cute bags with misc other fun junk and gag gifts (like floss) and they can have it on movie night. (but not on the white sofa, that's what intermission is for ... i will have it on the china in the DR) ; )

Poltergeist! Scary, but I don't feel it's one of those movies that freaks kids out. Kids are a big part of the movie itself, so that may alleviate some of the fear factor.The Halloween ones are too scary for ME, but I'm a big baby! How about the old black and white Psycho, although they may never want to take a shower again.

Here is a link that might be useful: trailer

Twilight Zone episodes are a great suggestion.

I hate being terrified, and I avoid much blood and gore.
I love Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, the Addams Family, lighter stuff.
The Birds was very terrifying to me when I was a kid.
It's a great one...
My adult kids still watch The Goonies, for nostalgia and laughs.
(Josh Brolin, Martha Plimpton, Sean Astin...)

To Kill A Mockingbird was always shown on TV near Halloween when I was a kid. The misunderstood Boo Radley...the scene in the woods after the school play.
Heavy themes, of course, but we watched it and loved it.

When my oldest daughter was in college, she used to buy Vincent Price movies for $1 at Big Lots. Creepy and fun!

I'm getting in the "spirit"!

House On The Haunted Hill (original version).
The Blob (original version)
Halloween (original version)

Twilight Zone is a great idea!

The old Frankenstein movies (are there even new ones?) are excellent.

"Jurassic Park" isn't quite Halloween but pretty good if they haven't seen it--kinda like "Jaws-lite".

How about "Death on the Nile"? That was pretty scary when I was a kid.

The Goonies!
And older movie but fun and just scary enough.
Sue
Have fun!

My favorite ghost story movies are:

. The Haunting based on Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House", (the original with Julie Harris, not the remake) but it may be too intense for your purposes.

. The Uninvited with Ray Milland which was perfect when I was a young teen...it has a nice story line, and a wonderful melody...Stella by Starlight

Otherwise I'd go with something campy...though the 3 classics are still pretty good...Dracula with Bela Lugosi, Frankenstein with Boris Karloff and the Wolfman with Lon Chaney Jr.

The Goonies would be fun. The Twilight Zone is creepy and spooky without being gory, but unless your kids are into old movies/TV shows it might not resonate with them. We tried to get our girls into it, but they didn't enjoy the slower pace and dry narrative style, and didn't understand the cultural context of many of the episodes. That said, we did just play random episodes. I'll bet you could do a search for the best episodes and roll with those.

How about episodes from the Goosebumps series? It's a great age-appropriate scare. They have all 5 seasons on Netflix now.

Edit to add: ParaNorman was good. It's a Laika Studios film, and available to rent from Amazon Instant Video

Here is a link that might be useful: ParaNorman trailer

This post was edited by TheRedHouse on Thu, Oct 30, 14 at 14:47

Not exactly Halloween, but DD and I love Despicable Me (1&2). Any of the Percy Jackson or Harry Potter movies (except that the last 2 may be too intense depending on the kid). Or camp it up with Vincent Price, Bela, Lon, like the old "Creature Feature" that used to be on TV back in the 70's.

Homemade treats? Our schools won't allow them - everything has to be prepackaged with nutrition/allergy labels. And while the kids are allowed to wear costumes (not gory or revealing) tomorrow, I haven't heard anything about parties or goody bags. Too bad, I have a bunch of erasers - guess I'll put them out tomorrow night, though we have a 700ft long driveway so people don't tend to come down. Last year a group of teen girls from the neighborhood came, DS was sitting on the porch rocker pretending to be a scarecrow and frightened them so I don't think they'll be back this year.

Spielberg's Pet Cemetery would be another good choice,

I tend to prefer movies that are considered drama, mystery, or thrillers versus straight up horror so my list is skewed more that direction. Also, as I am not sure of your threshhold of what's appropriate for tweens, these may or may not fit the bill. I am so not good at remembering details of movies so there could totally be inappropriate things on this list. Well the first definitely contains material that you may not consider appropriate for their ages but is my all time favorite, and the rest are in no particular order:

The Silence of the Lambs + its sequels if so inclined.
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
Malice
Mystic River
Gone Baby Gone
Seven
Shutter Island
The Sixth Sense
The Uninvited
Double Jeopardy
Changling
Fracture
The Bone Collector
Mr. Brooks
What Lies Beneath
The Perfect Getaway
Doubt
The Fugitive
Secret Window
The Skeleton Key
Kiss The Girls
Delores Claiborne
Misery
Ghost
Along Came a Spider
Taken
The Last House on the Left
The Strangers

Then for pure horror: "The Amityville Horror" (I've only seen the original). Then there is always the classic, "Psycho", or "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", or "A Haunting in Connecticut". With Amityville, Chainsaw Massacre, Haunting in Connecticut, I watched these as they are supposed to based or "loosely" based on real life events.

Like I said on the above list YMMV on what's acceptable. I was just trying to throw as many out there as possible.

Oh yeah, lest I forget a musical: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street!

Once again, so many super ideas.

Our youngest still does get scared and even cry, so we think we still need a light hand this year (darn, I really want to show them The Birds). It was close, but we have decided to showcase one or two of the "best of" Twilight Zone (which we deem to be almost educational due to popular cultural /artistic merit), and then end with a light, funny, and seasonally appropriate "Addams Family". We think that will be fun!

I am keeping these lists for next year!

Yes, "The Birds" is pretty scary! My sister claims I scarred her for life by forcing her to watch it with me when we were little. (We weren't supervised very well)!

I saw "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte" when I was little on TV. There is a dead body wrapped in a Persian rug that rolls down a staircase. I am still afraid of the dark after that.

The Bad Seed is a scary classic.

Beetlejuice is more fun and contemporary.

Signs is a great Halloween movie!!!!!

Also:

Ernest Scared Stupid (a classic!)
Nightmare Before Christmas (personal fave)
Hocus Pocus (fun!)
The Village (I think that's the name, another M Night Shamaylan movie with Bryce Howard)
Beetlejuice

At 9 I still couldn't watch Wizard of Oz all the way through, the witch and those monkeys! I know exactly where your daughter is at lol!

We just picked up Nightmare Before Christmas for Friday night.

How about Young Frankenstein? Not so scary except for I-gor's hump (what hump?), but pretty funny.

I was so anxious to contribute our favorites that I missed the decision for Twilight Zones and ,Addams Family. Have a good time celebrating! We will be at an outdoor performance of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow on Saturday night, but tonight will find me watching Ernest....there's a scene in the movie that cycles through all his many characters, including the Miami matron, that I look forward to every year, and Eartha Kitt is at her scariest in this one :-). Happy Halloween, everyone! ðÂÂÂð»

Frankenweenie, even though the theme bums me out.

Frankenweenie, even though the theme bums me out.

Coll, you've now convinced me to watch frankenweenie!

I still can't watch The Shining--it terrorized me when it came out.

My 8 year old was scared of Ghostbusters. I couldn't believe it. He didn't seem fazed by Beetlejuice though. He doesn't like the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz or the forest scene in Snow White. It's odd what different people find to be scary.