6 Halloween Movies For Teens!

Howdy!

So, this post will generated for the teenagers in your life that want to explore the mysterious and possibly a little blood for this Halloween! There is not a cartoon movie on it, and I did that for a reason. No teen wants to watch a kiddie film, but I also didn’t want to go too far because despite the whole rating of PG-13, I know some parents will not approve really violent movies either, so I’m hoping I’ve picked out a well-balanced batch of films to satisfy their ever-maturing tastes!

Beetlejuice (1988)

In my last post, I talked about the fact that I was influenced by my sister and our friends to watch several of the films I had listed, but for this, all but the last two, I fell in love while watching them with my mom. Beetlejuice being the main boss, and even now if one of us see it on our guide, we’ll record it. However, I wasn’t a real fan of the character Beetlejuice, he used to scare the living daylights out of me! As an adult, I enjoy the dark tones throughout the movie. The abstract art (I know) and how much black Lydia wore in the film, but my ultimate favorite part is when Adam and Barbara go down into the underworld, I don’t know why I’ve always liked it but I do.

This is definitely not a kid-friendly movie as I remember watching it before I was the age of seven, and as I said, I was absolutely afraid of it. There are still scenes that make me uncomfortable, but for the most part I can get through it in one piece! It’s really funny, all of the characters are different and add an comical element to every scene. So, this is a good middle ground film for teens.

The Addams Family (1991)

Here’s an interesting tale for you, I actually remember watching the old black and white Addams Family episodes on TV Land years ago! I’m pretty sure I watched them with my papaw but I could be wrong too. Anyways, the films are very beloved between my parents and I, I’m not quite sure about Blondie as her tastes have always been in the adults section compared to mine, but she could still love it I guess! I think the first is the best, even though I do think the attempted killings of the baby brother in the second movie are pretty hilarious! For me, I just enjoy the weird brotherly bond between Gomez and Finister, and you should already know what I think about Gomez and his wife Morticia. She’s one of the fiercest women ever!

The Addams Family in many forms is usually very fun to watch, because you don’t want to believe that there are people out in the world like that, but in reality there are! They are also in many forms all around the continent, but the movies that came out in the 90’s are still interesting despite being close to 30 years old now! They’re fun movies and should be respected as such I think.

Casper (1995)

I have never met a person who doesn’t love the character Casper! If I was a ghost, lonely as can be, I’d probably do the same thing he did and force somebody to bring me a friend! I think the film in general is so good, and definitely a guilty pleasure for sure! There are scenes that are real serious but the majority of it is flat out hilarious! My favorite scene is when Casper cooks Kat breakfast, and basically scares her for the second time!

I know if a teenager is reading this post and wondering why I’d put this on here, is because it does still have some ominous elements featured, such as death, performing exorcisms, and the downside to the haunting of ghosts. It’s a nice medium of in between being a pure kid movie to a young adult, mostly because for the rowdy and slightly mean uncles: Stretch, Stinky and Fatso!

Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire (2005)

I really adore the Harry Potter films, but I had to really think of one that could fit this list, and the only one that has always made me feel uncomfortable is Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire mainly because of the games and how disturbing and serious the ending was when Voldemort’s physical form was shown and of course the death of Cedric Diggory.

There is a lot of graphic violence in every movie, but I always thought this was probably the worst because it was the first time where a beloved character was killed off in the story. I feel it would be too much for a young kid to watch that scene because it is pretty intense. I’m not saying the death of both Sirius Black and Dumbledore wasn’t that bad, I mean, they clearly were to everyone, but this was different. The whole tone of this film was darker and got you ready for what was to come later in the rest of the movies.

Twilight (2008)

Twilight came out before the premiere of The Vampire Diaries so it wasn’t even on my radar until about 2011, and I finally gave in and watched it for the first time because everybody around me, family included, kept driving me crazy about who I liked the most and when I didn’t have an answer to their question, they’d freak out! However, I’d get away with it once they found out I liked TVD, so that was my saving grace at the time! Anyways, I think the first movie and the final part of Breaking Dawn are my favorites! They both have different directors, so there are scenes that I think are perfect to set the tones apart.

Despite for the outside vampires: Laurent, Victoria and James it is actually really clean. You do have to keep in mind that it is about vampires and werewolves, so you know there will be lots of blood and graphic violence involved. The first film is the ideal teenager fantasy based, especially if your teen hasn’t watched anything like this before. I don’t recommend letting them watch part one of Breaking Dawn for the sex scenes featured in the story!

Dark Shadows (2012)

I watched this for the first time ever last Halloween! I decided that I was going to watch all of the spooky movies that appeared on Freeform that year, and this was the only one that I actually liked out of the four films! I really liked all of the female actors, they all had strong roles but my favorite was Michelle Pfeitter as Elizabeth Collins Stoddurd, she was intimating as hell, but then again I’ve always said that about Michelle! She scares me. Johnny Depp’s character Barnabas was creepy, but I thought he was a funny guy too. I’ve always had a tough time watching a Johnny Depp film, especially when he dresses up in full make up and basically transform into this other being that you can barely recognize him.

This is a perfect vampire based movie for teens that I could find, because it wasn’t too bloody but it still had those scary moments that (maybe not) everybody loves to watch during this time of the year! It was entertaining and kept my attention, even through the many, many commercials. I also know that the network probably took out the gory scenes, maybe that’s the reason why I enjoyed it so much! If you’re worried about that too, it might be better to have your teen watch it on that channel too.

I am not going to lie, but I am happy to be done with this section! It was pretty difficult to come up with films that I’ve watched more than once and that could be counted for teenagers! I was always afraid of paranormal things growing up and I can barely get through Ghost Adventures in one piece as an adult, so you can just imagine how I was years ago! Before I finish this, I want to add a couple of spooky television shows that your teen might like to watch if they’re not into movies: The Vampire Diaries, Shadowhunters, and Charmed. 

Do you have a favorite on the list above? How were you watching more mature scary movies or TV shows like these as a teen? Can you name any more that could fit the criteria?  

Favorite Family Friendly Films!

Howdy!

You know, I look at my sister and wonder about her sense of humor a lot. She can laugh at the silliest things! She will share different videos on her social media outlets and even at family gatherings, that can be both scary and shocking at the same time! How can she (and Brandon too!) think some of these ridiculous things can be comical? I credit myself for sticking to myself on what makes things funny, and I usually always go for movies that have very few sexual and offensive jokes in it. I enjoy the cleaner and fun family friendly movies.

This list is complied of different comedies and dramas that I’ve enjoyed both as a teenager and an adult. To me, they’re timeless and I can actually see some relatable things in the film; I find it a bit odd that there are characters that remind me of the cleaner versions of my family members! If you’ve never seen any of these movies or haven’t watched some of them in a long time, I strongly suggest you make time in your day to watch one or two at least.

Father Of The Bride (1991) – Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, Kimberly Williams, Martin Short

I actually watched this movie for the first time in a really long time a few months ago! My mom recorded it back in January and she’s the one that showed it to me. Growing up, the two of us kind of enjoyed the second movie better, but after I watched it after all this time, I thought this was better!

How is this relatable though? Well, I literally saw things in this movie that we dealt with my dad before Blondie got married. There were WAY too many similarities! I also want to show this to my dad and say, at least she didn’t want a wedding planner like Franck! Now that I’ve watched it, I find it very cute and yes, I cried while watching it and as I remembered Blondie’s own wedding. I was sort of a mess by the end of the night!

Beethoven (1992) – Charles Gordin, Bonnie Hunt, Nicholle Tom, Christopher Castile, Sarah Rose Karr

This movie always makes me cry! The beginning would just break my heart, nobody wanted him and when somebody did, they wanted to hurt the poor guy! I remember watching this a lot as a kid, and blame it on my sister to always pick it! She was like a damn ox, she could get through every sad part in a movie, whereas I am definitely my mother’s daughter who usually has tears rolling down my cheeks before the climax of the saddest scene ever!

I think one of my favorite scenes is when Beethoven goes off on a little afternoon adventure and finds a child who will share an ice cream cone with him. Now as an adult, I find this absolutely disgusting (even though my dad does this with ChiChi with both Popsicles and suckers!) I just thought it was so cute back in the day! I also love the doggy standoff at the end of the movie. You have this row of both large and tiny dogs ready and willing to attack these dognappers and that crazy vet.

Casper (1995) – Christina Ricci, Malachi Pearson, Bill Pullham, Cathy Moriarty

One of my favorite movies from my childhood is Casper! I always found it weird that I was never interested in ghosts or spirits after watching this though!

This one also makes me cry. Man, every single one has made me bawl my eyes out so far! I think it was last scene while the “human” Casper is dancing with Cat, and James sees his dead wife Amelia float up to him, those scenes always get me going but as bittersweet they are, I do enjoy the film as a whole! The uncles are absolutely hilarious and I have been known to quote some of the infamous scenes too.

Dr. Dolittle (1998) – Eddie Murphy, Kristen Wilson, Norm Macdonald, Chris Rock

I love this movie, but if you were ask other members of my family, they’ll probably tell you that the second was better! The bear was freaking hilarious! Anyways, this was good, but I think because of how serve the tiger’s condition was, it made my mom, Blondie and I all cry our eyes out!

I really loved the funny scenes involving Lucky, the drunken Monkey, and Rodney the Guinea Pig. The part where Lucky (poor dog) is getting checked out at the vet and that German Shepherd is like being dragged across the floor because he knows he’s about to get fixed and he’s basically pleading with his owner with “please, I’ll never look at another poodle again” and yet as one walks right out of the door, it immediately captures his attention, after they pause to let them through the doorway, the poor dog is back to begging. Of course, the best part is when it’s Lucky’s turn and the vet just without warning just puts his hand up Lucky’s butt and the only thing that Lucky can say at that moment of impact is “Hello!” I just crack up instantly, because it’s the best if not the only reaction, one would have at that moment.

Rush Hour (1998) – Chris Tucker, Jackie Chan, Elizabeth Pena, Tzi Ma, Tom Wilkenson

This is a movie where you can watch in the morning, afternoon, or late at night. It’s one of those that can help boost your mood because it is just so freaking funny. Even though, this is a movie where watching it in closed captions should be a requirement because you can have a little bit of trouble understanding Jackie Chan in certain scenes, I still thoroughly enjoy it.

Cheaper By The Dozen (2004) – Steve Martin, Bonnie Hunt, Hilary Duff, Alyson Stoner

When my mom recorded the remakes of Father Of The Bride, I actually found this one playing on Starz quite a bit and I instantly had to watch it too. It’s been a really long time since I’d seen it, but I do remember the laughs and especially the pranks played on Nora’s boyfriend Hank, played by Ashton Krutcher. Gosh, he was so perfect for that role, because he was so funny as this stereotypical model, only thinking of himself. The younger kids were the best jokesters on the planet.

I know I probably could have added a few more onto this list, but I actually had to remove a couple because I think I will do another post that’s similar to this post, because it involves animals. I actually have three other movie inspired posts coming soon, so you’ll have to keep an eye open for those too!

What are some of your favorite family oriented films? Are you a purist when it comes to comedy or do you mind it being a little obnoxious like my sister? 

Favorite Halloween Movies

I wanted to do a Halloween treat. Two of my favorite movies that I love to watch in October. Well along with the Halloweentown movies that Disney Channel plays but ABC Family shows Beetlejuice. I know there’s a lot of Halloween movies out there like all the horror movies, those are not my cup of tea at all.

My mom loves Beetlejuice. I grow up on it. It’s the only movie of a guy whose dead and a couple who haunts their own house that I’m actually scared of. It’s a funny movie so I think it balances it out a little. I love this scene at the end, where Beetlejuice steals the guy’s number and he sprinkles stuff on his head and shrinks. That is what I say, Karma.

My second favorite, well anything Casper related is good. The original and the one “Casper Meets Wendy” who is played by Hilary Duff. I think I was my favorite. Even though nothing replaces the original movie. Both are good. I hated the lady in the first one. She irrated the crap out of me. Although Casper’s uncles did too. By the the second movie they weren’t bad.

I remember watching both movies and thinking, “gosh I wish all the ghosts were friendly.” As I got older I realized they are friendly, they’re just driving you crazy. I hope I never meet a ghost. I also hope what my mother keeps telling me they’re not real is true. My sister and papaw on the other hand kind of think his house is haunted. I never go in the living room by myself unless I am occupied with my phone. I am paranoid.