Everyone has those films from their childhood that they like to describe as "traumatizing: — films that terrified them or made them face themes and topics they maybe weren’t ready for at the time. Animated films in particular seem to be the most commonly cited when it comes to "childhood ruining" movies, and it’s no wonder why. Animation tends to get away with things live action is rarely able to, especially when it comes to creepy character or setting design, or even story beats — having an animated dog introduce the concept of death to your child seems to feel a bit more acceptable than having some random real life actor do it. As children grow older, these films tend to have a lasting impact on them, shaping the kind of interests they have and slowly morphing into something less terrifying and more nostalgic. Even so, looking back on these films is sure to bring some surprises, especially along the lines of "I can’t believe my parents let me watch this!"
The following is a list of some animated films that might have traumatized you as a child. Some spoilers ahead.
Coraline (2009)
While certainly the youngest film on the list, Coraline makes up for it in pure creepiness. Stop-motion animation is already known for sometimes being a little off-putting, and this film takes it to a whole new level. Characters with long gangly limbs and disproportionate bodies amble about strange dark houses and woods, all while ghosts and other creatures lurk in the shadows. The creepy look-alike doll of the main character is the cherry on top of this already hauntingly beautiful film.
The film follows Coraline, a young girl who has recently moved into a strange old house with her parents. Bored by the mundane life she leads and frustrated that her parents seemingly have no time for her, Coraline takes to exploring. Eventually she comes upon a strange small doorway, which leads to an alternate world filled with color, good food, and parents that are fun and interesting. However, as wonderful as this new world seems, Coraline eventually begins to realize that her "Other-Mother" is hiding a dark and sinister secret, and it’s only a matter of time before Coraline falls victim to her plans.
Coraline isn’t a film for the faint of heart; references to child death, depictions of body horror, and a main villain that’s as twisted as the hallways that she stalks all come together to turn this film into something that some might find "a bit too much." Yet, Coraline maintains a level of wonder rarely seen in most films; as much as it’s animation and story send shivers down your spine, they also captivate and delight with dazzling movement, color, and concept.
The Brave Little Toaster (1987)
Before Toy Story made its debut, The Brave Little Toaster featured the childhood household objects of a young boy, alive and waiting for their "Master" to return to his vacation home. While at first glance, a bunch of talking appliances and a baby blanket may not seem all that traumatizing, the adventure they "brave" in an attempt to hold onto the past is strange and troubling, to say the least.
Multiple near-death encounters ensue, including death-by-lightning storm, drowning in a river, quicksand, and even dismantling by a well-meaning appliance store owner. Despite being everyday objects, the fact that these characters walk and talk like people add a level of horror to the trials they endure. To top it all off, the group even ends up in a junkyard at one point and has to witness the destruction of countless singing cars… all while slowly approaching their own demise.
Did I mention that this movie is also a musical?
Whether you find this movie as traumatizing as others do, there’s no denying that a car singing about how worthless it’s become, moments before being crushed into a tiny cube of metal, is bound to have some lasting effects on the adolescent psyche.
All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989)
Don Bluth’s films always tend to have a sort of darkness to them; forests are destroyed, animals are experimented on, or, in the case of All Dogs Go To Heaven, it's that all dogs (and everything, really) eventually die… and also that Hell is a real place that your dog might go to.
The main character of this film, Charlie B. Barkin (Burt Reynolds), is a conman and casino owner, recently sprung from the pound and ready with a new "leash" on life. Of course, this only lasts for a little bit as his former partner and co-owner of their casino, Carface (Vic Tayback), decides to have Charlie killed. While nothing is explicitly shown, watching the protagonist drunkenly dance on the end of a dock while a car comes barreling toward him until the screen explodes in wild color is traumatizing enough in itself. From there, the film only gets weirder — Charlie escapes from Heaven (which means he can never go back) and comes back to life only to meet Anne Marie (Judith Barsi), an orphan girl who can talk to animals. He plans to use her gift for money, obviously, and the ensuing shenanigans all end in a world of literal fire.
What sets this film apart from other children’s films today, other than the heavy drinking and gambling, is that the entirety of it revolves around death. Even in happier scenes, Charlie still wears the pocket watch that represents his life — should it ever stop ticking, he will die and, since he is no longer allowed into Heaven, his alternative is doggy Hell.
If you think that all Dog Hell involves is endless vet trips and no treats, a horrifying dream sequence filled with fire, brimstone, and the dog-devil himself will quickly change your mind.
The Secret of NIMH (1982)
Another Don Bluth film about animals in terrible situations, The Secret of NIMH, follows Mrs. Brisby (Elizabeth Hartman), a small mouse whose youngest child, Timmy (Ina Fried), is dying of pneumonia. In an attempt to save his life, Mrs. Brisby dares to go where few mice have gone before; first, into the lair of the Great Owl, who, while wise, is known to eat mice. The sequence, while beautifully animated, is dark and suspenseful; the world is a dangerous place for a small mouse, and this film does an incredible job of illustrating why.
The second place that Mrs. Brisby dares set foot in, however, is the main reason why this movie has left such a dark spot in the memories of so many children: the rats of NIMH, a curious group of highly intelligent rodents who have set up home beneath an old rosebush, are Mrs. Brisby’s last hope in saving her family. Within their tunnels, at the foot of their ancient leader, Mrs. Brisby learns about the truth of their existence — horrific animal experimentation — and of the tragic death of her husband, Jonathon.
While the film conjures forth a world of fantasy beneath our very feet, the reality of the animals’ hardships is bleak. The scenes reveal the rats’ tragic pasts in the labs of NIMH are startlingly disturbing — more than just rats sit in metal cages, waiting for whatever horrible experiments are to come. And the escape from the lab is equally terrifying.
It is difficult to rid the line "sucked down dark air vents to their deaths" from one’s mind.
Spirited Away (2001)
For many people, Spirited Away was their first foray into the world of Studio Ghibli, and it remains, to this day, one of the more well known films that the studio has created. The film received universal acclaim upon its release, even winning the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of the film's sales rights and subsequent U.S. release in 2002 only helped bolster its popularity in the West.
Yet, despite its charm and magic, Spirited Away also boasts a significant amount of strange, and sometimes downright disturbing imagery. If the multitudes of shadowy spirits that wander through the land that Chihiro (Rumi Hiiragi, Daveigh Chase), the young protagonist of the film, has found herself lost in aren't enough to give you goosebumps, perhaps the scene where Chihiro's parents are turned into ravenous pigs will give you the chills your looking for. Chihiro's jounrey to escape the spirit world and save her parents is fraught with other dangers, such as the infamous No-Face (Akio Nakamura, Bob Bergen), who eats everything (and everyone) in his path to the giant witch, Yubaba (Mari Natsuki, Suzanne Pleshette).
The film is a wonderful tale of growing up and remaining courageous in the face of adversity, but that doesn't mean that every child watching it won't have nightmares.
The Last Unicorn (1982)
One would think that a story about a unicorn would be filled with laughter and rainbows and things of similar caliber; however, The Last Unicorn came about in an age where dark fantasy was becoming popular, and the film reflects the sentiment. The Unicorn (Mia Farrow), who has no true name and who is the most beautiful thing in all the world, is alone, though she doesn’t know it. Away in her forest, she has no idea that the other unicorns of the world have vanished until a traveling butterfly reveals to her the truth. Confused and angered by their sudden disappearance, the Unicorn resolves to go and find the others herself.
Yet, this story is not one of adventure only; at its core, despite her travels and meetings of new friends, the story of the Unicorn is one of death and mortality. The Unicorn is immortal and, thus, cannot feel all the emotions that mortals can — she cannot regret, lest she live with it for eternity, and she is unable to comprehend death as anything but ugly.
So, when she is suddenly turned mortal by her new friend, Schmendrick the Magician (Alan Arkin), in an attempt to save her from what drove away the other unicorns, she has a bit of a crisis. She breaks down and reveals that she can feel her body dying all around her, suddenly stricken with the fact that the body she is in will wither away and die. While other children's films have dealt with death before, and continue to do so, none have ever quite tackled one’s own imminent death — at least not in a way that feels so raw.
Watership Down (1978)
There isn’t much to say about Watership Down that isn’t traumatizing.
On the surface, the story of a handful of rabbits traveling in search of a new home might seem fun and adventurous; in reality, why this movie was ever marketed to kids is a mystery to many people.
As stated before, the film follows a group of rabbits as they travel across the land searching for a new home, after their old home is destroyed by humans. The simplicity of the story ends there. Terrifying visions of rivers of blood plague one of the group’s members during the journey and many of the group never even make it to the fabled "Watership Down," picked off by various predators, people, and even cars. The film comes to a head in a final battle between warring rabbit factions (yes, a battle) and the animators pull no punches; blood and spit fly as rabbits rip each other to bits, killing each other and leaving behind little rabbit corpses to litter the land. When a dog is added into the mix, literally killing rabbits on screen, everything becomes a bit hectic, to say the least.
The film ends with one of the main characters dying and going to the rabbit afterlife to meet God, and it is rather shocking to think that this is one of the tamest parts of the movie.