Top 10 Scary but Safe Horror Movies

Even if you’re not a horror fan, you have to appreciate the phenomenal acting, directing, and sound design of this movie. The two young stars are especially brilliant – a testament both to their talent and to John Krasinski’s skill as a director. You might find yourself gripping your arm rest while you watch, but that’s because most of the film is more tense than scary, as the characters live in constant fear of the slightest noise. This tension is punctuated by scenes of brief but intense action when the aliens finally rear their ugly heads. Those moments are scary, but “A Quiet Place” is mostly free of jump scares and gore, making it an easier watch than many alien horror films.

The 1980s produced plenty of terrifying, gorey, and violent horror movies, but this isn’t one of them. “Gremlins” is a horror comedy, with an emphasis on the comedy. While it does get bloody at times, the cartoonish nature of both the violence and the gremlins themselves makes it pretty easy to bear. The creatures do terrorize an entire town and kill several people, but they’re not really evil. They’re more like agents of chaos, and their antics are funny rather than scary. It’s actually a little sad when they get killed, because despite the havoc they wreak, they’re extremely fun to watch.

You might expect an homage to the horror genre to be pretty traumatizing to watch. After all, this movie is packed with everything horror haters can’t stand: blood, gore, terrifying monsters, and jump scares. But somehow, “The Cabin in the Woods” manages to be scary and super fun to watch at the same time. That might be because the movie frequently cuts back to the underground technicians who are monitoring the action in the cabin. Their meta-commentary breaks up the tension and provides some comic relief . The violence is also so over-the-top that it’s not actually scary, just absurd. If you can stomach the carnage, you’ll find that this modern classic is a highly entertaining watch.

To be fair, if you watched this as a kid, it probably did traumatize you. But for adults, the scares are a little too tame to be truly terrifying. That might be surprising, considering that it was directed by horror veteran Tobe Hooper, who brought us movies like “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.” There are some gross-out moments and a few genuinely unnerving scenes, but most of “Poltergeist” is spooky and atmospheric rather than scary. That’s probably thanks to the influence of writer Steven Spielberg, who reportedly spent a lot of time on-set and had a hand in the film’s direction. The result is an engrossing family drama with creepy horror elements that even fans with a low tolerance for terror can enjoy.

Speaking of spooky and atmospheric, this gothic ghost story feels like it came from another era. Grace Stewart lives with her two children and three servants in a creepy old country mansion that must be kept dark due to the kids’ allergy to sunlight. Soon, the family begins hearing strange voices, and the children claim to be visited by another family that only they can see. Grace starts to suspect that the servants aren’t what they seem. We won’t spoil the big reveal, but if you’re easily unnerved, you might want to watch this one with the lights on.

The horror genre really began to hit its stride on the big screen in the 1930s, and Universal Pictures staked its claim as the studio known for monster movies. In 1931, Boris Karloff’s turn as Frankenstein’s monster thrilled audiences, with one critic even calling it “a new peak in horror.” The film drew many comparisons to “Dracula,” which was released earlier the same year and has also left a major mark on cinema history. Neither of these movies is very scary by modern standards – but they are classics for a reason, and every cinephile and horror buff should watch them at some point.

The extreme violence and gore of this groundbreaking film were shocking to audiences in the late 60s. The MPA rating system didn’t exist yet, and many families who took their young kids to see the movie were stunned by the carnage on screen. Director George Romero used real animal meat and organs for the flesh-eating scenes, and if you’re easily grossed out, you might still find them hard to watch. Fortunately, we only see the blood and guts for a few moments, and the fact that it’s in black and white makes it considerably easier to tolerate.

Not many horror movies get an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture, but this is one of them. M. Night Shyamalan is at the top of his game in this chilling, slow-burn thriller. With few jump scares and next to no violence, the film still manages to keep audiences on the edge of their seats thanks in part to masterful cinematography and a near-perfect musical score. Young Haley Joel Osment’s performance also deserves serious acclaim. In the hands of a less talented actor, some of the most pivotal scenes just wouldn’t have worked as well as they did. “The Sixth Sense” is a great stepping stone into the horror genre for those who prefer to stay away from the harder stuff.

By the mid-90s, the slasher genre had gotten pretty stale, but this film deserves credit for reviving it. Like “The Cabin in the Woods,” “Scream” is a horror movie for people who love horror movies, filled with homages and references to the classics. Fair warning that it is somewhat violent, though it’s nothing compared to really hardcore gore fests like the “Saw” franchise, or even the more recent “Scream” sequels. The opening scene has become one of the most iconic in horror history, and it’s also arguably the toughest scene to watch. If you can get through it, you can definitely handle the rest of the movie.

This horror comedy series becomes less horror and more comedy the further it progresses. It starts in modern times with a group of college students trapped in a cabin where they’re possessed and attacked by demons. By the third film, protagonist Ash is fighting Deadites in medieval times. The amount of blood and gore on display is impressively over the top, to the point that it’s absurd rather than frightening. There are still plenty of scares, but the physical comedy, cheesy one-liners, and crazy action sequences make this franchise a wild adventure that anyone can enjoy.

What’s your favorite not-so-scary horror movie? Let us know in the comments.