I admit that when it comes to R-rated horror movies, I’ve pretty much lost control of my 13-year-old daughter. She doesn’t bother to ask — or call, or text, or whatever — when the group wants to watch a shocker like “The Descent.”
Sometimes the best you can do is teach them when to close their eyes.
Yet these horror movies are an ongoing dilemma with parents, as we reach the height of Spooky Week proceedings. At this party of thick-skinned teenagers watching “The Descent,” one girl couldn’t sleep afterward, and another opted out to play board games with the little kids.
Sitting down for a family fright fest on a late October night is a great tradition — you just have to let the kids guide you. You know better than anyone which ones won’t sleep for a week, and which ones could watch “The Exorcist” in HD without batting an eye.
So here are some milder PG-13 rated movies with some tangible frights and a good story. Most are suited for about age 11 and older, again depending on your judgment.
The American version of “The Ring” still ranks on my personal top 10 of disturbingly scary movies. No real gore, just a pervasive sense of doom.
“The Sixth Sense” holds up well. “Disturbia” is a nice update of Hitchcock’s classic “Rear Window.” Speaking of Hitchcock, “The Birds” has some wonderful, nonbloody frights if you can get past the first half-hour of setup and dialogue. “Psycho” is tops, for a slightly older crowd, and an encyclopedia for budding filmmakers.
I also enjoy the American version of “The Grudge,” with the added alienation of a U.S. national trying to make her way in the insular culture of Japan. Nicole Kidman’s professionalism makes “The Others” into an intriguing haunted house film.
And finally, there’s no better black-and-white classic than the original “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” The fear and paranoia — ultimately justified to the paradoxical horror and satisfaction of everyone involved — are timeless.
