Scary movies are a staple of the Halloween experience, but what if you’re the kind of person who can’t handle the gore of a Saw movie or the sheer terror in fan favorites like The Conjuring? You don’t have to resort to childhood throwbacks like It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown (not unless you want to). Here’s a list of movies that will provide that oh-so-delicious Halloween thrill, without being so scary or gory that they’ll keep you up at night.
The following movies are rated in order of most scary to least scary (in my humble opinion), so feel free to seek out the part of the list most suited to your comfort level.
Krampus
Image via IMDb
This 2015 hit mixes two of my favorite things: great actors (like Parks and Recreation’s Adam Scott) and Christmastime! Although Krampus does rely on a Christmas myth and setting, this definitely qualifies as a spooky, Halloween-appropriate movie.
While it contains some scarier scenes, it appropriately balances these with some more comedic moments and motifs to help you recover. Do be aware, though, that it contains some blood/gore and frightening moments, such as when the family is forced to fend off evil toys. It can get intense, but it is worth knowing that it’s only been rated PG-13, unlike most other horror films.
Max is a young boy who lives in a family who, like many, fights incessantly over the holidays. Sick of the constant chaos, Max denounces Christmas and decides he’s no longer a believer. Little does Max know that this has triggered an ancient Christmastime demon, Krampus, who will lay siege to the family home until Max and his family put aside their disputes and work together to save themselves.
Creep
Image via Horror Freak News
This 2014 feature clocks in at under an hour and a half, so for anyone who wants the fun, creepy atmosphere of a horror movie without having to endure it for too long, this might be the movie for you.
Creep features no supernatural elements, and the only gore is shown distantly and with extremely little detail. This horror is mostly atmospheric, though there are a couple of jump scares, so if those are a problem for you, be warned.
This movie focuses on the meeting of two men: Josef and Aaron. Aaron is a videographer who has been hired by Josef to make a sort of “day in the life” video. Josef tells Aaron that he has terminal cancer and will never meet his unborn son, so the video Aaron’s filming will serve to introduce the child to his father. The movie, told entirely through the footage on Aaron’s camera, doesn’t start particularly creepy. But the situations evolve from a little weird, but overall sympathetic given what Josef is going through, into full-blown creepiness and a look into the mind of a madman.
The House That Dripped Blood
Image via BigComicPage
Despite the imposing title, this 1971 film provides a slightly more “classic” horror vibe without actually including a single drop of blood. As well as not showing even a hint of gore, this film also lacks any jump scares. Rejoice, my fellow scaredy cats!
In the same vein as Creep, this movie draws its horror from the actions and experiences of people rather than any supernatural entities. It tells the tale of a police officer interviewing previous residents of a house after the current occupant goes missing. Each of those interviewed has a uniquely unsettling story about the time they spent in the house, shedding some light on the darker parts of the human psyche without terrifying viewers.
Ghostbusters
Image via Overthinking It
Ghostbusters, whether you prefer the classic or the all-female reboot, is a perfect Halloween movie. Even if you’ve seen it a hundred times, it never stops being a blast!
If you haven’t seen any iteration of Ghostbusters yet, don’t worry about the fear factor. Ghostbusters includes all of your favorite Halloween tropes from the paranormal to a devious evil plot without getting scary. This movie only has a PG rating in its classic form, and a PG-13 rating in the all-female reboot. It’s also a comedy above all!
Ghostbusters is the story of a group who, you guessed it: is deeply interested in the paranormal. In both versions, the cast gets caught up in a paranormal plot and must unravel the mystery they’ve encountered while confronting a variety of zany villains. Best of all, the character interactions are hilarious, and both casts feature some of Hollywood’s most talented.