As we grow older, we understand the implications of what we are viewing and that has made some of these films creepier and more unsettling.
Lets look at 10 of the scariest, creepiest, or downright disturbing animated films of all time. They may not immediately jump out at you. But give these plots some thought. I have done my best but let us know in the comment box below if there is something that we here at Shock need to see.
(For more specialized lists and editorials, may I suggest heading over to this page?)
10 Scary Animated Feature Films
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10
MONSTER HOUSE
This is a film that forgot it’s a kid’s film. The opening sequence has our “hero” DJ, inadvertently killing his neighbor, old man Nebbercracker. All this on Halloween. What they discover is that the house is alive and not in a fun H.R. Pufnstuf kind of way. The house eats people and it’s eerie to say the least. Sure, it’s all fun and games. But at the end of the film, the house still ate people.
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9
PARANORMAN
ParaNorman has a whole lot of awesomeness packed into its running time. It’s fun and full of horror Easter Eggs. But look closer: What is the film about? An 11-year-old boy speaks to the dead including his grandmother as she sits in the house unbeknownst to the rest of the family. The school where Norman goes is rehearsing a play to celebrate the execution of a local witch trial centuries ago. The witch was a little girl Norman’s age, who was tortured to death!
I have no doubt that if this film was live action, it would be rated R, for that plot point alone.
The film features flesh-eating zombies, too!
The conversations with dead relatives are creepy, of course. But the torture and execution of a young girl for witchcraft is the kind of thing that stays with you long after Norman has saved the day.
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8
101 DALMATIANS
We all know that Disney films were twisted, but it never really dawned on me how twisted they were. Cruella de Vil is buying up dalmatians all over town and wants her old school mate Anita’s new litter as well. Is she just a mad dog enthusiast? Well...sort of? She wants to make a dog skin coat! Say it to yourself slowly…she wants a dog-skinned coat. How sick and disturbing is that?
Wait, and she is going to use puppies!!! Never really hit me as a child, but as an adult animal lover (and even if you aren’t), that is just plain morbid and nightmare-inducing.
Think about the abused animal commercials that come on television while you are watching a cable special then think about 101 Dalmatians. The film is horrifying in the truest sense of the word.
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7
CORALINE
Coraline is like an even more twisted version of Beetlejuice.
A young girl and her family move into a new home. She misses her friends and her parents all but ignore her. As they are busy trying to get settled, Coraline spends her time exploring the house. After following a mouse through a hole in the wall, she finds herself in a mirror universe where her parents and everyone around her cater to her every whim. She lives in the world of her dreams; there is just one catch, her “other” parents want her to give them her eyes and replace them with buttons!
Coraline plays with the classic bait and switch scenario to a perfection. Her dreams become nightmares when she refuses to give up control and give in to the desires of her perfect life. At that point the imagery is frightening and familiar things take on a whole new form. I gave my mother wide births after seeing this film because…you never know…
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6
WATERSHIP DOWN
Let’s face it. The book disturbed us at school and the movie did an even more horrifying job of destroying our innocence.
Watching this film is required for a well-rounded education and an understanding of balancing man and nature, but good Lord did this thing traumatize a generation and is still doing so today.
One can’t help but shed a tear while hiding their face at the cruelty inflicted from one rabbit to another. It may not be a “horror” film, but it does everything a horror film should.
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5
WICKED CITY
Wicked City is anime at its best. Think Blade Runner written and directed by David Cronenberg and re-edited by Jess Franco.
This is an unrelenting body horror nightmare with a dark future setting. Though it is highly sexual, it isn’t as enticing as Hentai.
It’s disturbing and nightmarish to an extreme. Example: our hero has a fling with a woman that turns into a spider and sports a teeth-filled vagina. Nothing is what it seems and the film as a whole was quite shocking when released.
This is before anime fell in love with tentacles and orifices. Let’s put it that way. Regardless, the mind-bending imagery holds up, guaranteeing a nightmare or two.
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4
PINOCCHIO
Those who never considered Pinocchio scary haven’t really been paying attention. A young boy is kidnapped, and sold into slavery by a couple of street thugs.
Sure.
The film, up until this point, is scary only in its implications. All that changes at Pleasure Island. The silhouetted transformation from children into donkeys is truly unsettling and the fact that it is showcased in a foreboding way makes it worse. It lingers in the back of the mind as an in escapable end. The film actually pulls no punches and that may have been a factor in its initial failure at the box office.
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3
ALL DOGS GO TO HEAVEN
If you haven’t watched this film, don’t shake your head at me.
This is one unrelenting trip through the netherworld. It concerns a dog named Charlie how is killed by a human and returns from the dead to seek revenge.
For his actions he is condemned to burn in hell surrounded by demons. Christ! This was actually made for kids but to watch it now is a truly creepy experience that begs us all to ask questions on morality.
I can still see the dog in the flames.
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2
THE LAST UNICORN
I am not quite sure, to this day, what the hell the intention was with this film. I understand the plot, but what lies beneath is a heavy tale of cruelty with some acid induced sexually twisted overtones.
The giant bull was scary as a child and horrifying as an adult. I’m not even going to go into the smothering boobie tree. Just watch this one.
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1
THE PLAGUE DOGS
What sadistic creep came up with this film? [Editor's note: That would be Martin Rosen, the same sick fuck who gave us Watership Down!]
Scary, disturbing, and traumatizing until the end. This should have never been made.
The film opens with cruel animal testing on chimps as well as dogs and other animals. If you make through the scene you will be plagued by nightmares later. That’s just the beginning. The dogs may be carrying a plague and are treated as a threat.
Sure, this being scary depends on your disposition, but this film checks all the boxes and I know many people who will not watch it under any circumstances.
