Family Scares – A Kid Friendly Halloween
Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Directors: Charles Barton
Writers: Robert Lees, Frederic I. Rinaldo
Stars: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Lon Chaney Jr., Bela Lugosi
Story: Two hapless freight handlers find themselves encountering Dracula, the Frankenstein Monster and the Wolf Man.
Other Films In Series: Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951), Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
Directors: Bill Melendez
Writers: Charles M. Schulz
Stars: Peter Robbins, Christopher Shea, Sally Dryer
Story: The Peanuts gang celebrates Halloween while Linus waits for the Great Pumpkin.
Other Films In Series: None.
Note: Though technically a short-film, this Halloween Special counts toward your film tally. It is too much of a classic to pass up.
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The Watcher in the Woods (1980)
Directors: John Hough, Vincent McEveety
Writers: Brian Clemens (screenplay), Florence Engel Randall (novel)
Stars: Bette Davis, Lynn-Holly Johnson, Kyle Richards
Story: When a family moves to a country home, the young girls experience strange happenings that have a link to an occult event years past.
Other Films In Series: The Watcher in the Woods (2017)
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E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Directors: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Melissa Mathison
Stars: Henry Thomas, Drew Barrymore, Peter Coyote
Story: A troubled child summons the courage to help a friendly alien escape Earth and return to his home world.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Ghostbusters (1984)
Directors: Ivan Reitman
Writers: Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis
Stars: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver
Story: Three former parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service.
Other Films In Series: Ghostbusters II (1989), Ghostbusters: Answer the Call (2016), Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021), Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024)
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Gremlins (1984)
Directors: Joe Dante
Writers: Chris Columbus
Stars: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton
Story: A boy inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet and unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on a small town.
Other Films In Series: Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
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Teen Wolf (1985)
Directors: Rod Daniel
Writers: Jeph Loeb, Matthew Weisman
Stars: Michael J. Fox, James Hampton, Susan Ursitti
Story: A struggling high school student discovers that his family has an unusual pedigree when he finds himself turning into a werewolf.
Other Films In Series: Teen Wolf Too (1988)
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Mr. Boogedy (1986)
Directors: Oz Scott
Writers: Michael Janover
Stars: Richard Masur, Mimi Kennedy, Benji Gregory
Story: A novelty-salesman moves his family into a new house. Initially dismissing incidents as more of their father's practical jokes, the family soon learns that the house is haunted by people who lived in the house 300 years previously.
Other Films In Series: Bride of Boogedy (1987)
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Labyrinth (1986)
Directors: Jim Henson
Writers: Dennis Lee, Jim Henson
Stars: David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly, Toby Froud
Story: A 16-year old girl is given 13 hours to solve a labyrinth and rescue her baby brother when her wish for him to be taken away is granted by the Goblin King.
Other Films In Series: None.
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The Monster Squad (1987)
Directors: Fred Dekker
Writers: Shane Black, Fred Dekker
Stars: Andre Gower, Robby Kiger, Stephen Macht
Story: A young group of monster fanatics attempt to save their hometown from Count Dracula and his monsters.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Little Monsters (1989)
Directors: Richard Greenberg
Writers: Terry Rossio, Ted Elliott
Stars: Fred Savage, Howie Mandel, Daniel Stern
Story: A boy discovers an incredible and gruesome world of monsters under his bed.
Other Films In Series: None.
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The Witches (1990)
Directors: Nicolas Roeg
Writers: Roald Dahl (book), Allan Scott (screenplay)
Stars: Anjelica Huston, Mai Zetterling, Jasen Fisher
Story: A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.
Other Films In Series: The Witches (2020)
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Ernest Scared Stupid (1991)
Directors: John R. Cherry III
Writers: John R. Cherry III, Coke Sams
Stars: Jim Varney, Eartha Kitt, Austin Nagler
Story: Ernest unleashes an ugly troll that plots to transform children into wooden dolls in the town of Briarville, Missouri.
Other Films In Series: None that are horror/Halloween related.
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The Addams Family (1991)
Directors: Barry Sonnenfeld
Writers: Charles Addams (creator) Caroline Thompson & Larry Wilson (screenplay)
Stars: Anjelica Huston, Raul Julia, Christopher Lloyd
Story: Con artists plan to fleece the eccentric family using an accomplice who claims to be their long lost Uncle Fester.
Other Films In Series: Addams Family Values (1993), Addams Family Reunion (1998), The Addams Family (2019), The Addams Family 2 (2021)
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Hocus Pocus (1993)
Directors: Kenny Ortega
Writers: David Kirschner, Mick Garris
Stars: Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy
Story: After three centuries, three witch sisters are resurrected in Salem, Massachusetts on Halloween night, and it is up to two teenagers, a young girl and an immortal cat to put an end to the witches' reign of terror once and for all.
Other Films In Series: Hocus Pocus 2 (2022)
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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Directors: Henry Selick
Writers: Tim Burton (story and characters), Michael McDowell (adaptation)
Stars: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara
Story: Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home cause confusion.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Casper (1995)
Directors: Brad Silberling
Writers: Joseph Oriolo (characters), Sherri Stoner (screenplay)
Stars: Bill Pullman, Christina Ricci, Cathy Moriarty
Story: A paranormal expert and his daughter bunk in an abandoned house populated by three mischievous ghosts and one friendly one.
Other Films In Series: Casper: A Spirited Beginning (1997), Casper Meets Wendy (1998)
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Halloweentown (1998)
Directors: Duwayne Dunham
Writers: Paul Bernbaum (story), Paul Bernbaum (teleplay)
Stars: Debbie Reynolds, Kimberly J. Brown, Judith Hoag
Story: After learning she is a witch, a girl helps save a town full of other supernatural creatures.
Other Films In Series: Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge (2001), Halloweentown High (2004). Return to Halloweentown (2006)
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The Little Vampire (2000)
Directors: Uli Edel
Writers: Angela Sommer-Bodenburg (novel), Karey Kirkpatrick (screenplay)
Stars: Jonathan Lipnicki, Rollo Weeks, Richard E. Grant
Story: A lonely boy becomes best friends with a vampire.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Monsters, Inc. (2001)
Directors: Pete Docter, David Silverman
Writers: Pete Docter, Jill Culton
Stars: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Mary Gibbs
Story: In order to power the city, monsters have to scare children so that they scream. However, the children are toxic to the monsters, and after a child gets through, 2 monsters realize things may not be what they think.
Other Films In Series: Monsters University (2013)
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Scooby-Doo (2002)
Directors: Raja Gosnell
Writers: James Gunn, Craig Titley
Stars: Matthew Lillard, Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar
Story: After an acrimonious break up, the Mystery Inc. gang are individually brought to an island resort to investigate strange goings on.
Other Films In Series: Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004), Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins (2009), Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster (2010), Daphne & Velma (2018)
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The Haunted Mansion (2003)
Directors: Rob Minkoff
Writers: David Berenbaum
Stars: Eddie Murphy, Marsha Thomason, Jennifer Tilly
Story: A realtor and his wife and children are summoned to a mansion, which they soon discover is haunted.
Other Films In Series: Haunted Mansion (2023)
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Corpse Bride (2005)
Directors: Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Writers: Tim Burton, Carlos Grangel
Stars: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Emily Watson
Story: When a shy groom practices his wedding vows in the inadvertent presence of a deceased young woman, she rises from the grave assuming he has married her.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Monster House (2006)
Directors: Gil Kenan
Writers: Dan Harmon, Rob Schrab
Stars: Mitchel Musso, Sam Lerner, Spencer Locke
Story: Three teens discover that their neighbor's house is really a living, breathing, scary monster.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Coraline (2009)
Directors: Henry Selick
Writers: Neil Gaiman (book), Henry Selick (screenplay)
Stars: Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman
Story: An adventurous girl finds another world that is a strangely idealized version of her frustrating home, but it has sinister secrets.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)
Directors: Rob Letterman, Conrad Vernon
Writers: Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky
Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Rainn Wilson, Stephen Colbert
Story: A woman transformed into a giant after she is struck by a meteorite on her wedding day becomes part of a team of monsters sent in by the U.S. government to defeat an alien mastermind trying to take over Earth.
Other Films In Series: Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (2009)
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Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009)
Directors: Paul Weitz
Writers: Paul Weitz, Brian Helgeland
Stars: Chris Massoglia, John C. Reilly, Salma Hayek
Story: Teenager Darren Shan meets a mysterious man at a freak show who turns out to be a vampire. After a series of events Darren must leave his normal life and go on the road with the Cirque du Freak and become a vampire.
Other Films In Series: None.
Frankenweenie (2012)
Directors: Tim Burton
Writers: Leonard Ripps, Tim Burton
Stars: Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short
Story: Young Victor conducts a science experiment to bring his beloved dog Sparky back to life, only to face unintended, sometimes monstrous, consequences.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Directors: Genndy Tartakovsky
Writers: Peter Baynham, Robert Smigel
Stars: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Andy Samberg
Story: Dracula, who operates a high-end resort away from the human world, goes into overprotective mode when a boy discovers the resort and falls for the count's teen-aged daughter.
Other Films In Series: Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015), Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018), Hotel Transylvania 4: Transformania (2022)
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ParaNorman (2012)
Directors: Chris Butler, Sam Fell
Writers: Chris Butler
Stars: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Story: A misunderstood boy takes on ghosts, zombies and grown-ups to save his town from a centuries-old curse.
Other Films In Series: None.
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Goosebumps (2015)
Directors: Rob Letterman
Writers: Darren Lemke, Scott Alexander
Stars: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush
Story:A teenager teams up with the daughter of young adult horror author R. L. Stine after the writer's imaginary demons are set free on the town of Madison, Delaware.
Other Films In Series: Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween (2018)
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