Some children's adventure films in the 80's were so dark and disturbing! Does anyone agree with me?

Case in point:

Young Sherlock Holmes

The Watcher in the Woods

The Devil and Max Devlin

Dragonslayer

The Dark Crystal

The Secret of NIMH

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Gremlins

The NeverEnding Story

Baby... Secret of the Lost Legend

The Black Cauldron

Return to Oz

Labyrinth

Legend

The Monster Squad

Willow

Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night

Some children's adventure films in the 80's were so dark and disturbing! Does anyone agree with me?

Case in point:

Young Sherlock Holmes

The Watcher in the Woods

The Devil and Max Devlin

Dragonslayer

The Dark Crystal

The Secret of NIMH

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Gremlins

The NeverEnding Story

Baby... Secret of the Lost Legend

The Black Cauldron

Return to Oz

Labyrinth

Legend

The Monster Squad

Willow

Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night




I have hilighted in red the ones I agree with you on.  Dark Crystal, Something Wicked, and Young Sherlock were ones I was going to mention.  

I didn't think "Young Sherlock Holmes" was particularly dark, but I was 16 when I saw it and fell head-over-heels in love with Sophie Ward (who played Elizabeth Hardy) so I saw it three times in one weekend!

A bunch of those on your list, I didn't see.  The "fantasy" genre didn't appeal much to me.  I liked Limahl's song "The Neverending Story."  
Secret of NIMH was kinda sappy.  I didn't think it was dark.

Batman (1989) was billed as a family movie, but it was pretty dark and creepy.  

My school was encouraging us to watch "The Winds of War" miniseries (February 1983).  Now, this wasn't specifically for kids, but my school thought it had educational value.  Anyway, there's a scene where the Nazis throw dozens of Jews out of trucks and into a pit in the ground, whereupon they proceed to machine gun them all to death.  That one stayed with me.  I was shocked.  I guess that was the idea.

There was also the hub-bub about how "traumatizing" the TV-movie "The Day After" was going to be.  My sister's school even prepared after The Day After counseling services.  So, we watched it, and we were like, "That was it?  What a turkey! A nuclear holocaust would be waaaay worse than that!"
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/10/vogel.gif

'Gremlins' is classed as a '15' certificate film over here in the UK, didn't stop me watching it as a kid though, lol.

The cartoon adaption of the novels 'Watership Down' and 'Animal Farm' rank up there. Dark stuff. I remember watching both as a kid with a lump in my throat.

If I watched this anytime back in 1985 I would probably find it difficult to sleep that night, lol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak3z2Pm7Iwg

"The Dark Crystal" was very heavy, but still enjoyable.

"Labyrinth" was a little long and freaky too... until "Dance Magic Dance".  ;D

Loved "Willow" at the time and remember going to the cinema for that. Wouldn't really consider that dark and disturbing.

* edit : Remember being taken to see Dragonslayer in 1981... I think I fell asleep.  :)

Up until about '85, it was real easy to buy a ticket for an R-rated movie.  I got to see stuff like "Animal House," "Midnight Express," "The Blues Brothers." 

I remember taking insult to my tickets for "Coming to America" get refused.  They'd let you buy the ticket, then the ticket-ripper would card you.  That way you more likely to watch the 7:30 showing of "Moonstruck" instead.  To hell with that.  Give us our f**king money back!  I went the next day without my dorky friend and got a ticket no problem.  One time they asked me if I was 18 at the Harvard Square theater.  I was going to see "Straight To Hell" featuring Courtney Love and Dick Rude, by Alex Cox.  The guy just asked me and when I said yes, he just let me in.  Those are the only time I've been asked my age before going into a movie.  We probably shouldn't have been allowed to see "The Taxi Driver, " "Midnight Express," or "Saturday Night Fever," but as long as there was a parent present, the theater still had to sell you a ticket.  Some of those movies would have gotten nailed with an X-rating a few years before, but the motion picture industry lobbyed hard against the X-rating because people would think of it as smut film never give it a chance....well,  maybe twice for the review board!  So, NC17 was born in the late 80s for movies like "The Cook The Thief His Wife And Her Lover" and "Tie Me Up Tie Me Down!"

:D

The evil book from The Care Bears movie...

http://www.retrojunk.com/img/art-images/80scare_spirit.jpg

Reminds me of the Necronomicom, from the Evil Dead.

http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs47/f/2009/167/0/d/AOD_Necronomicon_DVD_cover__by_jvk.jpg

;D

There are a few others that seem to be missing:

Goonies

Iceman

Back To The Future II

Cocoon

ET  (I heard a lot of kids screaming and crying when I saw it)

The Empire Strikes Back

The Empire Strikes Back



It's funny you should mention that, as that's the one I like least from the original trilogy. It was darker than the other two.

You forgot "Children Of The Corn", I remember it tripped me out to see kids so young being so evil who thought it's cool, I swear that Maliki made an a**h*le  I knew in school seem like a cool dude.Yea.... but remember what happened when he tried to be smart turning the coven against Isaac and having him sacrificed and install himself in his place.  And then theres "The Omen" I,II,and III. That was creeping too.Danny

You forgot "Children Of The Corn", I remember it tripped me out to see kids so young being so evil who thought it's cool, I swear that Maliki made an a**h*le  I knew in school seem like a cool dude.Yea.... but remember what happened when he tried to be smart turning the coven against Isaac and having him sacrificed and install himself in his place.  And then theres "The Omen" I,II,and III. That was creeping too.Danny


Kind of sort of agree with you, but I was thinking of films directed towards kids, and not about kids.

;D

ET  (I heard a lot of kids screaming and crying when I saw it)



Me too! I had to get the chloroform and go to the back of the van where I had the little buggers chained down!

http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/12/evil1.gif

Lots of good ones listed.  How about 'The Last Starfighter'?

Lots of good ones listed.  How about 'The Last Starfighter'?


I guess...

Lots of good ones listed.  How about 'The Last Starfighter'?


Dark and disturbing?  What kid didn't dream about aliens showing up, applauding him for his video gaming skills, and giving him a chance to not only save the universe, but to come back and pick up the girl of his dreams before leaving home with her... in his very own starship?

If you saw The Last Starfighter as dark and disturbing, I'm not sure I wanna know what you though about Flight of the Navigator, which was my other childhood favorite.  

I had a good childhood and turned it into a comparably-decent adulthood, and I still think happiness is lookin' at Earth in your rear-view mirror.

Dark and disturbing?  What kid didn't dream about aliens showing up, applauding him for his video gaming skills, and giving him a chance to not only save the universe, but to come back and pick up the girl of his dreams before leaving home with her... in his very own starship?

If you saw The Last Starfighter as dark and disturbing, I'm not sure I wanna know what you though about Flight of the Navigator, which was my other childhood favorite.  

I had a good childhood and turned it into a comparably-decent adulthood, and I still think happiness is lookin' at Earth in your rear-view mirror.


What was the show with the giant robot called Guy King (sp.?)
???

I'm just figuring you'd know.

Dark and disturbing?  What kid didn't dream about aliens showing up, applauding him for his video gaming skills, and giving him a chance to not only save the universe, but to come back and pick up the girl of his dreams before leaving home with her... in his very own starship?

If you saw The Last Starfighter as dark and disturbing, I'm not sure I wanna know what you though about Flight of the Navigator, which was my other childhood favorite. 

I had a good childhood and turned it into a comparably-decent adulthood, and I still think happiness is lookin' at Earth in your rear-view mirror.


I never found it disturbing, but the aliens in the film can be frightening to some.

I saw the film at a drive-in when it came out in 1984, but I fell asleep and never saw the end.  It took me 26 years to see how it ended when I got the blu-ray copy a few mos. ago

The Lost Boys

I can't say it's for kids, but who the hell else could the Lost Boys be for?  It's simplistic, it's suburban, it's Kiefer Southerland...

I have never met any woman over the mental age of fifteen who cared one way or the other about Kiefer Southerland. 
Nah, I don't like the way that sound!

"Labyrinth to celebrate 30th Anniversary with theatrical re-release and deluxe Blu-ray edition"

http://www.insidethemagic.net/2016/04/labyrinth-to-celebrate-30th-anniversary-with-theatrical-re-release-and-deluxe-blu-ray-edition/