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The Films That Terrified You as A Child



We all have those initial experiences in which we foolishly convince ourselves we’re prepared to leap into the world of horror, and sneak in as The Exorcist rolls by frame after frame on our parent’s televion. Most of us aren’t born with the moxy to ealy shrug that harsh impact with ease, so we tend to feast on it, allowing it to leave in our dreams, taunt in the illuons we see. That’s what good horror is really all about: scaring the living shit out of young naïve kids

eager for a taste of the macabre.



For me, I faced some issues watching Tobe Hooper’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The unreliable animalistic nature of the pictures antagonists always punched a whole in my courage tank, because, as crazy as it sounds, I could imagine a family as ck and twisted as the notorious TCSM family. It’s not that I didn’t realize the film was a fictional piece of work, I most certainly did… it was just the posbility of it all. It shook me to the bones.

Ridley Scott’s Alien proved to leave a milar mark on my young mind. Prior to Alien, I’d never seen a film of milar content that treats the viewer with complete respect, while investing amazing care in their overall product. The result is a tenon that cannot be spoken of: it must be experienced. Still one of the most frightening films in existence, Alien scared the living shit out of me twenty plus years ago, and it still does.

What films terrified you as a child?
Matt_Molgaard Sunday 1/15/2012 at 09:06 AM | 89487
Stephen King's It, while not as scary as the book, I watched the mini series first, I was about nine at the time. Me

and my friend got to the part where the photo album blinks and then bleeds, and I couldn't do it anymore, turned the film off, stayed up all night afraid to sleep, then tried again when the sun was out. I couldn't make it through without looking away every other scene.

Ghost In The Machine, while not an overly great film, I caught half of it with my dad on tv one day, which lead to him renting it a year or two later. tting down to watch the full movie, two scene stuck with me, and terrified me for years afterwards. The kitchen scene in which the microwave heats up, causes a man to pass out, hits his head on the table, and then the blood from the wound starts to bubble. I ran through my kitchen for weeks, too afraid to spend any amount of time in it. Then there's the scene in which the air drying that's in washrooms the world over spits out fire instead of heated air, and burns a man to death. I only started ung those things a few months ago, never ever as a kid.
HorrorDaily Sunday 1/15/2012 at 12:02 PM | 89490
Tremors was my poison. I remember my neighbors watching it and I would be scared to crap that something would come get me when I was on the grass lol.
BloodyAdored Sunday 1/15/2012 at 03:41 PM | 89495
I watched The Exorcist, Nightmare on Elm Street, Leprechaun, Friday the 13th, even I spit on your grave at a pretty young age. Nothing scared me more than Dragonslayer for some reason. That dragon and me didn't get along at all.
zombieoween Sunday 1/15/2012 at 03:44 PM | 89496
Pet Sematary. Creepy Zelda still does it to this day.
Boisv Sunday 1/15/2012 at 04:16 PM | 89498
I saw a lot of horror films at a young age. Im only 16 now, but as a kid I knew the films were old. My mother hated for me to watch horror films. Meanwhile, my grandmothers thought it was odd that I was interested in the films, so they bombarded me with them in attempts to scare me away from them. I didn't have time to be scared, I spent every viewing absorbing as much of the films as posble. I now have a great respect for horror films as a science and art. One evening my mother bought me the first 3 scream films, I have to admit that I was caught off guard by scream, and it scared the shit out of me. But that was a while back. Nowadays I just wait for a truly terrifying film, and I

haven't found one yet.
creephouse Sunday 1/15/2012 at 04:26 PM | 89499
I have to say when I was really young that no doubt The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Exorcist were the most effective fright movies I had ever seen. Of course I could barely watch Friday the 13th and Halloween back then but we are talking about a 7 year old BooMan, lol. It would be interesting to hear much like Creephouse stated above what really scared the current generation? I have to think The Blair Witch Project would probably be up there along with the original Scream as far as getting it right in the opening scene with Drew Berrymore. Great topic Matt as always!
Horror Domain - Cursed Evil Overlord Sunday 1/15/2012 at 05:15 PM | 89500
I'm 19 now..... so that kind of says alot. But in 2007, my parent's took me to see 'the strangers.' It shook me so bad I couldn't sleep for days. I think the reality of it all was what scared me. The idea that all of the things that happened could in fact happen.
TheyCallMeGhostface Sunday 1/15/2012 at 05:40 PM | 89503
im 17 so I began watching them in the late 90s early 2000's and the ones that scared me most were the orginal texas chainsaw,elm street and Halloween,

the evil dead and I cant remember which one but either scarecrows (1988) or dark night of the scare crow

it was one of those two,also the abbot hayes zombie in children of the living dead always creeped me out as a kidand although not a horror film when I was about five shang tsung in the mortal kombat movie used to scare me when he said 'your brothers soul is mine...you will be next' :P
darkbladeclan Sunday 1/15/2012 at 07:23 PM | 89506
IT & Candyman Lol
halloweensince78 Sunday 1/15/2012 at 08:26 PM | 89507
My grandpa used to let me watch horror movies when I was really young, like 6. Some of the scariest for me then would have to be The Fly, especially the part where he is pulling his fingernails off... Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Evil Dead, IT, Alligator, The Exorcist... Wish they made movies like this today...
R-Awesome85 Sunday 1/15/2012 at 11:26 PM | 89514
IT screwed with my head pretty good as a child. I was around 8 when i first saw

IT and needless to say for months i avoided storm drains

like the plague. I was convinced if i got near one Pennywise would be waiting to rip me apart.

However, The Entity is one movie that to this day still terrifies me.

I've always been a believer in the paranormal, and the thought of not only fighting for your life as an unseen force ravages you but the isolation and utter helplessness

of the tuation the main character finds herself in plays to many of my own personal fears . Who do you turn to for help? who will even believe you? how do you stop what you have no control over?

I'm talking serious mental scars here people... I don't watch this one when i'm alone! No r.
pokadotdaisy2 Sunday 1/15/2012 at 11:38 PM | 89515
I loved the Universal monsters (and still do) and that was about all I watched for horror... then I saw Halloween 3 on TV when I was about 8, and it completely mindf***ed me...I'm 15 now..... so that kind of says alot. But in 2007, my parent's took me to see 'the strangers.' It shook me so bad I couldn't sleep for days. I think the reality of it all was what scared me. The idea that all of the things that happened could in fact happen. I only saw Strangers recently, and was somewhat disappointed because back when it came out I was 9 and the commercial freaked me out to the point I could barely sleep...
Kidtut Monday 1/16/2012 at 12:05 AM | 89520
Nightmare, AMityville 2
jswaffxxx Monday 1/16/2012 at 12:48 AM | 89523
There was only one film that truly scared me as a kid and sadly to this day I do not know the name of it and have never seen it on TV again.

If any of you can help me figure it out, that would be awesome!

In the movie, this guy was asleep in his bed with ear plugs in and his computer started sparking and somehow this monster came out of the electricity but it wasn't shown. The only part of the monster shown was it's green tail in this scene, then it crept up under his sheets and he woke up just before it killed him.

When they showed his body, he had a bunch of holes in him as if the creature had a bunch of teeth.

In another scene this kid is with his grandpa and the monster appears are the window looking green and scary.

The grandpa then shoots through the glass with a rifle and the monster takes off.

That's all I can remember.
Sephit Monday 1/16/2012 at 01:58 AM | 89526
Sleepaway Camp did it for me. The ending is the most shocking thing that really caught me off guard.

lent Rage was another good one. Brian Libby played that part very well.
aceofspades70 Monday 1/16/2012 at 04:09 AM | 89534
Jaws, IT and Susperia!
joshk1986 Monday 1/16/2012 at 04:48 AM | 89537
Funny that my first picks were the first two mentioned...IT and Tremors.

I remember tting around the TV with my family and couns in the dark watching IT and being terrified. My older coun hugged a pillow the entire time so she could cover her face in it any time something scary happened. Tremors scared me just for the thought of something living underground that could pop up and get you at any time.

I'd have to say, though, that the movie that scared me more than any was Night of the Living Dead. Let me give you a little setup first before you laugh...I lived in the country of a small town in the middle of nowhere. On two des of my house were woods and on the other de...a decrepit, old cemetary. You try laying in the dark on a stormy night after watching a movie about zombies and knowing that if zombies DID come back to life you would be the first to have their brains munched on. Not good.
Ed Reilly Monday 1/16/2012 at 01:11 PM | 89547
i saw Salems Lot on tv when i was about 5/6ish and i've never ever been able to sleep with the curtains open at night nce then.
jb66 Monday 1/16/2012 at 04:37 PM | 89557
I keep seeing people stating how young they are, so I'm gonna state I'm eighteen, and I have been watching horror movies for well 15 of those years ( i know it's more, but its all I can remember). It started for me was Child's Play. That was the first horror movie I can remember seeing, and Chucky scared the shit out of, to the fact that I had no dolls, or any kind of toys like that. The next film that scared me, about two years later, was It. And oh my god did that movie do a number to me. Nightmares all the time, my fear of clowns (and balloons) surfaced, scared of taking a shower....and that damn clown.

One film, that no matter how many times, even though I've seen it thousands of times, still sends shivers down my back, and that is The Shining.
AshPower23 Monday 1/16/2012 at 06:00 PM | 89561
"El libro de piedra" is the only one movie that really terrified me (and also my brother). You must to see the veron of 1969.
el_feto Monday 1/16/2012 at 06:22 PM | 89563
For the time when it came out and the age I was (7), lent Night Deadly Night totally messed with me. The idea of Santa kililng people was a pretty scary idea, esp condering that dude can just come into your house via the fireplace. As an adult, I can look back, laugh at my fears and appreciate the true concept and charm of that clasc
mordrid99 Monday 1/16/2012 at 09:47 PM | 89577
I used to watch horror movies when I was a kid and there was alot of good ones but the fact is while I loved all the movies i saw Ive never been scared of any of them.Im unscareable.
horrorlord Tuesday 1/17/2012 at 03:30 AM | 89595
The ghost nanny scene from Ghostbusters II always freaked the fuck out of me hahaha. It was just very creepy... http://images.wikia.com/ghostbusters/images/d/d9/JanoszPohaNanny.
joshk1986 Tuesday 1/17/2012 at 11:55 AM | 89615
Almost forgot about "The Car". I found a copy of this at work yesterday and brought it home for a watch. Good Times.

aceofspades70 Wednesday 1/18/2012 at 01:01 AM | 89653
The Car is amazing! The ending is so hilariously over the top, fucking love it
joshk1986 Wednesday 1/18/2012 at 03:13 AM | 89660
aceofspades70 Thursday 1/19/2012 at 01:35 AM | 89701
Stupidly enough as much as I watched horror movies as a kid there was only one that terrified me.........Wishmaster....Do you know how embarrasng that is? Extremely.
Kiki_Freddy's_girl Thursday 1/19/2012 at 09:39 PM | 89722
That would have to be lver bullet for me i saw it when i was about 8. My mom wanted me and my brother to watch and said we would love it. Lol we did but could sleep for weeks after it. But also aliens. I saw that at 3 lol and that scared the shit outta me as well.
ricco1985 Monday 1/23/2012 at 06:55 PM | 89827
I mentioned in a different post that Dawn of the Dead (the original) did it for me and it led directly to The Exorcist and Alien.All three films left me covered in flop sweat and never able to go into the basement without getting that sense of pure dread.Of course,if you'd ever seen my parents basement you'd understand why.It looks like the one from Blair Witch.
terminalwally Monday 1/23/2012 at 07:04 PM | 89829
When I was about 5 or 6 years old (1980/81) I watched Don't be afraid of the Dark - the 1973 made for TV movie - and the little monsters behind the heating vent scared the absolute shit out of me for YEARS, I probably still have a little redual fear of the dark from that movie all these years later. It fucked my world all up and probably played a huge part in creating the horror movie freak-a-zoid that I am now. I haven't seen the remake yet and I am kind of hetant to watch it because i don't want to ruin the memory for me. Ade from that, Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street creeped me out pretty good the first time I saw them. Unfortunately it's been a while nce a movie has truly frightened me. gh.
UndeadPlatypus Monday 1/23/2012 at 08:49 PM | 89834
ALL Nightmare on Elm Street films got me as a kid. As well as that stupid goddamn clown in Poltergeist
LaLaLauren1011 Tuesday 1/24/2012 at 01:15 AM | 89845
ALL Nightmare on Elm Street films got me as a kid. As well as that stupid goddamn clown in Poltergeist

Shit the Poltergeist clown still freaks me the hell out! LOL
UndeadPlatypus Tuesday 1/24/2012 at 01:55 PM | 89860
Pet Semetary & American Werewolf in London as a child Even as an adult The Exocist still creeps me out LOL!
MOWDEReeL Wednesday 1/25/2012 at 02:18 AM | 89875
COUNT YORGA and GRAVE OF THE VAMPIRE
ny ghoul Thursday 1/26/2012 at 10:39 PM | 89917
child's play. that doll was so f***ing scary when i was a kid ha
darkdeepwoods16 Saturday 1/28/2012 at 09:22 PM | 89957