Highlights

  • Casper and Ghostbusters are brilliant Halloween classics that provide a tamer and more family-friendly alternative to scary movies.
  • Tim Burton's Corpse Bride maintains his signature macabre style while still being suitable for younger audiences.
  • Hocus Pocus, The Addams Family, and Hotel Transylvania are lighthearted and entertaining movies that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

Halloween season is finally here, and everybody is already picking out the final touches to their costumes, decorating their houses, and drawing up the perfect Halloween movie marathon. While most enthusiasts of this season will be doing a rewatch of the entire Halloween movie franchise, not everyone wants to watch seriously scary movies.

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People who just aren't too fond of the genre or have young children around won't be rushing to binge the most frightening and gory movies available and might want something a bit tamer that all can enjoy. Luckily, there are plenty of brilliant classics that, while fitting the festive mood, won't traumatize young viewers.

10 Casper

Christina Ricci In Casper

Most people will think of frightening movies like Poltergeist or 13 Ghosts when thinking of movies revolving around restless spirits, but not all movies are like this, just like how not all ghosts are unfriendly menaces looking to frighten or even harm residents of their home.

Casper is one such movie and ghost and is a childhood staple Halloween movie. But sadly for the Harvey family, Casper isn't the only spirit on the premises. Deciding to work together, Casper and the Harvey family attempt to rid their home of the evil spirits while learning more about the benevolent ghost child Kat eventually comes to befriend.

9 Ghostbusters

Bill Murray & The Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters is a supernatural comedy movie that has gone down as one of the greatest in movie history, boasting genuine humor, a brilliant cast, and one of the most memorable songs that people still listen to and sing along with to this day. Though multiple reboots and sequels have tried to ride its coattails to success, nothing has come close to touching it.

Ghostbusters follows the stories of a team of four parapsychologists who decide to make their living busting ghosts, as the title suggests. The business is anything but easy, as the ghosts aren't just going to go quietly. As supernatural activity begins ramping up all over New York, the team definitely has their hands full.

8 Fantasia

The Sorcerer's Apprentice Fantasia

Disney has movies for all ages and all events, with Halloween being the perfect time for a rewatch of Fantasia, which puts a funny, family-friendly spin on the witches that worship the holiday. In this classic Disney title, Mickey is blessed with magic that he uses to enchant mops and other household cleaning supplies to clean his mage's tower for him.

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Featuring funny magical antics, plenty of Disney charm, and a fantastic soundtrack to boot, there is little not to love in this classic title. With a run time totaling over two hours, it's certain to keep the kids entertained for a good while.

7 Corpse Bride

Emily and Victor in Corpse Bride

The master of the macabre, Tim Burton, always manages to make gruesome and gothic movies without them being too dark or disturbing for a younger audience. This is true of Corpse Bride, a stop-motion movie that delves into the sanctity of marriage and the afterlife, with a sprinkling of humor and catchy songs for good measure.

In this movie, rich heir Victor accidentally marries himself to a restless, undead bride after practicing his vows in a dark forest. He is dragged to the underworld by his new bride, Emily, who seems oblivious to his attempts to return to the land of the living. Meanwhile, opportunistic Lord Barkis Bittern has moved into Victor's place to marry Victoria, intent on killing her to inherit her family's riches.

6 Hocus Pocus

Mary, Winifred, and Sarah in Hocus Pocus

A timeless movie exploring a trio of Salem witches navigating the changes of the modern world, Hocus Pocus is a movie that will have the whole family in stitches. The charisma and chemistry of the three leads are undeniable, and those who watch will be torn on whether to cheer on the protagonists or the evil witches.

After two children light the black candle that is the key to returning them to life, Winifred, Sarah, and Mary return to wreak havoc just in time for Halloween night. It's thematically appropriate for the holiday and will delight audiences of all ages.

5 The Addams Family

moriticia and gomez addams 1993 movie the addams family

Based on the classic black and white TV series, The Addams Family tells another delightfully dark, yet funny story about the titular eccentric family that adores all things gothic and macabre. In this movie, a con artist attempts to steal the Addams family fortune by placing her son, Gordon, who eerily resembles Gomez's long-lost brother Fester, in their house. The hilarious long-con all turns out to be true, in a sense, as Gordon was Fester the whole time.

Hilarious and charming, The Addams Family will enchant the entire family with their humorous and odd antics and even teach the importance of family.

4 Hotel Transylvania

Hotel Transylvania Movie Still Dracula MAvis Frankestein Griffin Jonathan

Being public domain, many writers, game studios, and moviemakers have put their own unique twist on the character of Dracula and his mythos, spinning new and interesting tales. While most aren't so family-friendly, the Hotel Transylvania movies certainly are.

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In this new and bold take on the classic gothic work of fiction, Count Dracula invites all his ghoulish friends to his hotel to celebrate his daughter Mavis's 118th birthday, as she enters adulthood in vampire years. But things are thrown into chaos when an ordinary human called Johnathan infiltrates the hotel. Drac scrambles to keep his secret safe from Mavis and the other guests to hilarious effect.

3 Goosebumps

Slappy the ventriloquist doll from the Goosebumps movie.

Those who were kids in the 90s probably recall the book series known as Goosebumps, which features a frightening kid-friendly tale of terror, usually revolving around an American teen that finds themselves, friends, and family in jeopardy from some supernatural threat that can range from werewolves to sentient dummies.

Goosebumps plays into its popularity as a book series, having RL Stine exist as a writer with a bookshelf full of his creations. But, these books aren't just for casual reading, as they contain a monster strapped within their pages. When two friends break into his house and independently unleash Slappy, the two must team up with the author and his daughter to put a stop to his dastardly plans.

2 Scooby-Doo

Scooby-Doo Daphne Velma Sarah Michelle Gellar

The legendary cartoon revolving around the Mystery Gang solving cases of unexplained phenomena made its way to the big screen back in the early 2000s to make a feel-good Halloween flick. The Scooby-Doo movie centers around the same gang from the show, but they have all split up in the hope of pursuing other things.

That is until they are all invited to a horror-themed tropical resort, creatively named Spooky Island, all intent on solving the mystery on their own, but nothing can keep the Scooby gang from teaming up to solve a mystery, not even themselves. Fans of the Scooby-Doo show will find much to enjoy here, and this will definitely serve as a family-friendly spook-fest.

1 The Nightmare Before Christmas

Jack in The Nightmare Before Christmas

While debates still burn on whether this is truly a Christmas or Halloween movie, one thing is certain: this movie is so good fans should watch it for both holidays. The Nightmare Before Christmas is a classic Disney staple everyone should see more than once, with an interesting plot, a colorful cast of characters, and truly one of the best movie soundtracks of all time.

This spooky yet festive movie follows the story of Jack Skellington, a beloved celebrity of Halloween Town who has grown tired of his status as the Pumpkin King and wishes for something new. That is when he stumbles upon Christmas town, and while trying to bring that festive cheer to the residents of Halloween town, he unwittingly places Santa Claus and his friend/admirer, Sally, in the dangerous clutches of the dreaded Oogie Boogie, The Nightmare Before Christmas' main antagonist.

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