WithHenry Selick's new stop-motion horror Wendell & Wild releases on Netflix October 28, we will once again see that animation isn't a genre just for kids. It's going to be so exciting to see another horror film that utilizes the unlimited creativity animation can provide, but while we're waiting in anticipation there are more animated films out there that will put you in the spooky mood. Pulling from a range of animation styles, levels of scares, and a litany of talented creators, here are some animated films that you can have fun with at a Halloween movie marathon, watch with the family after trick-or-treating, or unwisely watch alone in your room at the dead of night.
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Monster House (2006)
The legacy of Robert Zemeckis' motion capture animated films is certainly a messy one, but Monster House is by far the strongest feature. A haunted house film taken to the very next level, it follows a rag-tag trio of kids investigating the spooky manor across the street that seems to be eating both belongings and people.
A great horror movie for older kids — it might spook little ones a bit too much — it has an incredibly original and at times quite moving story. It also has a sardonic sense of humor and the house itself is one of the most creatively designed monsters in horror cinema. This film isn't talked about nearly enough, and if the other animated films of ImageMovers were to this standard of quality, it may still be around today.
Paranorman (2012)
It really was a challenge choosing between this film and Coraline in an effort to show as many filmmakers as possible and avoid repeats, but while Coraline is a stunning dark fantasy with its share of frightening moments, Paranorman is the one that gets you into the Halloween mood. It has everything a good Halloween movie needs: a misunderstood boy with supernatural powers, a witch's curse, a zombie uprising, and a small town with a dark past.
We can see a lot of the elements Laika Studios would use to perfection in its next film, Kubo and the Two Strings: Creative blends of stop-motion and computer animation, and blends of both fun adventures and moments that make you choke up. Paranorman was overlooked during the 2012 awards season, but it deserves much more acclaim than it was given.
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
You can't have Halloween without the gang at Mystery Inc, and there are a lot of movies to choose from. The monster franchise of animated Scooby-Doo movies have an unreal range of quality from one star to five, and there is a lot of debate from the fandom of which film is the strongest. There are some people love for ironic or nostalgic reasons, and some that are just surprisingly good, but a great jumping off point is Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island. The story follows Scooby and the gang, tired of the constant crooks in costumes, investigating an island in the middle of the Louisiana bayou, where the monsters are a little more real than they're used to.
This was the film that revitalized the characters before the new millennium, and for good reason because the tone and story of this film maintains the camp of classic Scooby while ramping up the humor, horror and mystery. If you liked the series Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated or even Gravity Falls, definitely go back and watch this one.
Extraordinary Tales (2013)
Edgar Allan Poe is the king of Gothic horror, with his tales of madness, death, and murder gripping the public for almost two centuries now. Many of his classic stories have been translated to the screen, mostly thanks to Roger Corman and Vincent Price, but Extraordinary Tales tells many of them all in one anthology. Anthologies are great for horror, a murderer's row of creative talents telling, or in this case, adapting stories in their own styles.
"The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Fall of the House of Usher," "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar"and"The Masque of the Red Death" are all interpreted in different styles featuring the voices of Guillermo del Toro, Christopher Lee, Julian Sands, and Bela Lugosi. This is a fun, gothic time that gives smaller creators their chance to shine with the voices of industry giants backing them up, if you like Poe, check this film out.
The Wolf House (2018)
This is the most frightening movie on this list, and the writer, from experience, would not advise watching it alone. The Wolf House tells the story of a young woman who takes refuge in an isolated house in the woods to escape a colony of religious fanatics, and it truly shows the potential animation has to unnerve.
While it's not jump scare central, the house twists into a nightmare around the fear the protagonist feels, painting the walls into a void, moving across the floors and furniture, creating shadows and monsters from everything inside, the camera almost acting like a poltergeist as candles flicker and objects shift. Chilean directors Joaquin Cociña and Cristóbal León use the whole house to its absolute horrific advantage, the stop-motion is purposefully rough to create a surreal, inhuman and unsettling feel throughout. This film is a masterpiece of horror, and if you can stomach more disturbing and uncanny imagery, then this is a top recommendation.
Mad God (2022)
This film is an insane labor of love by Phil Tippett, taking 30 years to make and releasing on Shudder only a few months ago, but the time and care he put into it was worth it. Mad God is a surreal, orphic descent into the underworld story, the scale of this fever dream of war, death and destruction is like nothing seen before on streaming.
Tippett is considered a master of monster design and that mastery is shown in spades here, with the stop-motion making everything feel even more visceral and tactile. The demons and tortured souls of his world are lovingly and expertly crafted. There's not a lot to say without revealing the captivating and abstract descent, so I urge you to watch this film, even just to commend the amount of effort it took. It's Ray Harryhausen on acid, a disturbing and existential trip through hell, a showcase of immense creativity and perseverance, and it is like nothing else on streaming right now.
The Corpse Bride (2005)
This was even bigger than my struggle between Coraline and Paranorman, Tim Burton has three wonderful Halloween films to choose from. The Nightmare Before Christmas is legendary, but was actually directed by Henry Selick, Frankenweenie is insanely underrated and a labor of love by Burton based on an early short film, but The Corpse Bride represents everything we love about Tim Burton.
It's like a mixtape, a combination of all his best work put into one movie: The unlikely love story of Edward Scissorhands, the creative underworld imagery of Beetlejuice, the hallmark lead actors of Sweeney Todd, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter, the over-the-top gothic stylings of Sleepy Hollow and of course the musical styling of Danny Elfman. This is the most Tim Burton movie, and Emily, the Corpse Bride herself, has become an iconic character and the subject of many Halloween costumes, and for good reason. This is an immensely fun watch.
Fear(s) of the Dark (2007)
Another anthology, this time from France, Fear(s) of the Dark is a blend of 2D and 3D animation covering the ideas of fear, trauma, and paranoia. Notable graphic artists and comic book creators came together on this film, creating their own short stories in black and white. Short form horror is incredibly effective of instilling a burst of fear in the audience, and the fact that every short is black and white both unifies and diversifies the style.
The tales of terror are also incredibly diverse, human shaped beetles, haunted Japanese burial grounds, and giant crocodiles galore. This is a moody, aesthetically pleasing film and a brilliant effort from brilliant artists, French animated films have a reputation for greatness and this certainly adds onto it.
The Haunted World of El Superbeasto (2009)
This is the Rob Zombie film for people who can't stomach his more hardcore pieces, this movie flourishes by piling irreverent cartoon humor on top of the usual gratuitous sex and violence. The Haunted World of El Superbeasto follows an exploitation filmmaker and lucha wrestler (Tom Papa), with his trusty sidekick Suzi-X (Sheri Moon Zombie) as they fight werewolves, zombie Nazis, and the nefarious Dr. Evil (Paul Giamatti) in a heavy metal gore-fest.
It is as stupid and crazy as it sounds, and the film knows exactly how stupid and crazy it is. It's an obscenely raunchy cult classic of horror animation and horror musicals with Zombie as always breaking the boundaries of what he can get away with. It's ridiculous, it's over the edge, and it's a bloody good time at any horror night.
The Halloween Tree (1993)
Ray Bradbury fans unite for the most underrated film on this list. Based on his 1972 novel, The Halloween Tree follows a group of kids going on an adventure through time to save the soul of their friend while learning about the origins of Halloween hallmarks like witches, demons, mummies, and the holiday itself. This film is a delight, and a perfect one to watch with the family.
It has a very warm and nostalgic feel, helped by the vocal talent of Leonard Nimoy and narration by Bradbury himself, it's a little Halloween fairytale about friendship, tradition, and even the concept of mortality. It's a comfort film to be sure, low on scares, just a nice one to watch with the kids in your life as you settle down and eat your trick-or-treat plunder that will make you learn and feel.
