October Movie Fest – Our Full Halloween List

Who doesn’t love a good Family movie night? Come October, our weeks turn into a full blown movie fest with all things Halloweeny!

Granted, nothing too spooky – none of us in this house are fans of it, especially if that means kiddy nightmares and waking mom and dad up at 3am. But the fun, adventurous movies, with just enough…err, bite ?…is what we enjoy!

So after a few years of sifting through the movies, and then watching far too many Netflix trailers, or stopping part way into the movie, only to have to go back again to find a less scary one, I figured Id share my list of family Halloween movies that have stood the test of peaceful sleep coupled with solid entertainment.

So the next time you’re hunting for Halloween movies, and want to cut down on the decision time it takes for “what should we watch”, I’ve put together,what I hope is, a helpful list for us all to reference over and over.

And since I have an array of ages in my family, I’ve put together different categories of movies so you can choose depending the appropriateness for your kids.

I’ve given it “ONE SPOOK” as its not scary, is fun and perfect for even very young viewers.

1. Charlie Brown: The Great Pumpkin
2. Room on the Broom
3. The Gruffalo
4. Poohs Heffalump Movie
5. Spookley the Square Pumpkin
6. Monsters and Aliens
7. Monsters Inc.

These are “TWO SPOOKS” because there’s certainly a scary undertone – like I previously would put off these movies before while first viewing it with my kids, as back then I felt it was going to give them nightmares. (Not all but ones like Hotel Transylvannia) It was only as the kids became older and I tested it out with them, and watched with them that I felt it would be ok for them. Your kids may be fine, but best to maybe first preview it if not sure. Otherwise, really fun, wonderful story, with a real scary undertone:

These got a “THREE SPOOK” rating as these are rated PG, and may contain more advanced content, definite scare factor but my kids still found entertaining )

1. The Witches (I remember being absolutely scared as a kid about this movie.
2. Maleficent (such a great movie, but a few scenes make it dark at times, but still enjoyable, even Yuriko-Mae was fine with it.)
3. Goosebumps (I wasn’t so sure about this, but my girls assured me they found this entertaining, not scary. Best to preview for yourself)
4. Corpse Bride (dark like Nightmare before Christmas, but is still meant for family)
5. Hocus Pocus (Coco found some scenes scary, so definitely not for her age group. My girls found it a nice balance of slightly spooky but just enough to still be fun and entertaining.)
6. The Addams Family (original) (Also some scenes may be slightly disturbing, so your guidance needed)
7. The adventures of Ichabod and Mr Toad ( I was so scared as a kid watching this, but fully entertain. I suggest its more for the older kids. Not something that Yuriko-Mae would be keen on)
8. Ghostbusters ( a few scenes like the possessed scenes we didn’t let our kids watch, so be aware if that’s not what you’d want for your kids. But mostly still a great family movie.)
9. House with the clock inside the walls
10. Monster house (It took the girls 2 tries to be ready for this one, until they realized it wasn’t too scary)
11. Harry Potter (I’d recommend only 1 to 3 at this as it gets darker from 3 onwards)
12. Spirited Away (Definitely requires guidance and your previewing as their adult)

These get a “FOUR SPOOK” rating as these may be family, but for sure are scary according to my kids, contain advanced content, and depending on your kids may have nightmare a factor. But there’s a classic in there that needs to be mentioned, as well as some proper Halloween non-gore ones that make the list too.

1. Beetle Juice ( I was never able to watch this completely as a kid LOL, and will still give guidance with this one)
2. Baby sitters guide to monster hunting (I found this entertaining, but Mike felt it was just too much nightmare material. So you’ll have to decide.)
3. Nightbooks (This one will definitely need your presence. Definitely for older kids)
4. Coraline (my kids were freaked the heezerz out by this one, so be cautious with this one)
5. The Dark Crystal (This is 10- 12 PG, and a new addition for us, and girls have said it feels too scary for them and that it’s a series not movie. )

And thats it! Hope it helps. And if I’ve left anything off that you feel NEEDS to be on here, please let me know in the comments, and I’ll be sure to add it.

We are half way through the month already, folks – CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? So we are going to go into hyper movie watching mode from this point onwards, as its been chock a block of with school tests, talent shows, science expos, and of course…MASSIVE life/career changes!! 🙂 Although there are a few classics we like watching over and over. Also lets not forget that we do the Potter Night to kick off our Potter movie marathons. (see our previous Potter nights 2020 here and 2018 here, and the butter beer recipe two ways over here.)

Happy watching!xxx

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