There’s no decade us horror fans are more nostalgic about than the 1980s, largely thanks to all the gory slasher flicks that dominated the era. But the 80s also represented a golden age for another sub-genre thats fallen by the wayside in recent years: family-friendly horror.
Films like The Monster Squad, The Gate, Little Monsters and Gremlins are shining examples of this particular subset, which I’ve always referred to as ‘kids in peril.’ All of the above featured children as main characters, giving the films an adventurous quality akin to other 80s staples like E.T. and The Goonies. There’s just something special about horror movies where kids are tasked with defeating evil forces. Unfortunately, it seems they were almost entirely exclusive to the 80s. Sure, PG-13 horror films are still popular at the box office, but protagonists have gotten older and the adventure just isn’t there.
The good news, however, is that nostalgia is currently sweeping the nation. New lines of kid-friendly monster toys are once more on the shelves of Toys R Us, and even slashers seem poised and ready for a comebackThe Town That Dreaded Sundown being a notable recent example. Could family-friendly horror also be on its way back into our lives?
The answer to that question, when you look ahead to the near future, seems to be a resounding ‘yes.’
Many horror fans balked at comments made by Sam Rockwell, the star of this summer’s Poltergeist remake, that the PG-13 film will be “more of a kids movie,” with the main character being a 10-year-old boy. He also described it as being “more of an adventure,” leading many to bemoan Hollywood’s obsession with watered down horror. That the original Poltergeist, produced by Steven Spielberg, was (mostly) a family-friendly film seemed to go over the heads of many. Meanwhile, the quotes were music to my ears. As the since-released trailer seems to indicate, Poltergeist 2015 looks to be very much cut from that Amblin cloth, set to bring some much-needed adventure back to the genre.
But Poltergeist isn’t the only film putting ‘kids in peril. ‘Looking ahead to 2016, the enduringly popular Goosebumps franchise finally makes the leap to the big screen, with the epic monster mash set to bring many of the book’s most iconic characters to life. Again, the protagonists are going to be youngsters, tasked with saving their town from the likes of mummies, zombies and the dreaded ‘Haunted Mask.’
According to news that broke this week, Blumhouse Productions is also getting in on the fun, as they’ve just tapped Harald Zwart to direct what’s being described as a family-friendly horror film. Details, for now, are wrapped up tighter than those Goosebumps mummies, though the mere suggestion of a family horror film from the company should excite all who grew up as monster kids – and still consider themselves precisely that.
Another upcoming project ready to give youth of today accessible horror fare is the feature film adaptation of Greg Taylor’s 2009 book Killer Pizza, which pits kids up against various monsters. It’s been a while since we’ve heard a peep about the project, but last we did hear, Adam Green (Hatchet) was writing, with Chris Columbus (Home Alone) attached to produce. Here’s hoping that film is still on MGM’s menu.
One could say that this particular resurgence has been slowly building, with Joe Dante’s 2009 film The Hole tapping into the joys of kid-friendly horror. In that one, a group of kids discover a hole in the basement of their home, unleashing evil (including a scary clown doll) from within it. Similarly, 2011’s Super 8 was intended as a throwback, as J.J. Abrams got his Spielberg on for a family-friendly adventure of nostalgic proportions.
Horror fans are often unfairly critical about PG-13 horror. Taking that hard stance is forgetting just how many of the genre’s classics came equipped with the rating. Just as there’s a place for hard-R, so too is there a place for family-friendly frights. They provide gateways into the genre for younger viewers, and make us older folks feel like kids again, reminding us that the idea of a monster being under our bed was, in retrospect, kind of awesome.
I don’t know about you, but I’m welcoming this potential resurgence with open arms. And if family-friendly horror is the wave of the near future, I plan on thoroughly enjoying the ride.
