Top 10 Scariest Don Bluth Movie Moments Reaction

“Thumbelina” seems like one of Bluth’s more lighthearted films, especially with the delightful Jodi Benson voicing the titular heroine. Looking at the bigger picture, though, “Thumbelina” is more surreal than you remember. The main character is not only born the size of a thumb, but fully dressed, able to talk, and emerging from a flower. She grows up around animals that could accidentally crush her and a mother who almost bakes her into a pie. Even more nerve-wracking are some of the smaller characters who take a romantic interest in Thumbelina, including a toad, beetle, and mole. As adults, this premise leaves us with a lot of disturbing questions. But we guess it’s better just to enjoy the twisted ride like we did as kids.

This sci-fi adventure opens with the destruction of Planet Earth, sending what’s left of humanity to flee across the galaxy. After that, you wouldn’t think the film could get any darker. Yet, “Titan A.E.” tops itself with the death of one character. Starting as the sardonic comedic relief, Preed surprises the audience with his betrayal. We were even more surprised, though, by Preed’s graphic downfall. In a double-double cross, Preed turns on Captain Korso with a fight breaking out. Sneaking up from behind, Korso snaps Preed’s neck on screen, chucking his dead body down the stairs. In an era where most animated movies had bad guys accidentally fall to their doom, Bluth pulled no punches with this unsettling demise.

It’s all sunshine and posies until our heroes face off against the troll queen Gnorga, voiced by Cloris Leachman at her most deliciously vicious. When Gus himself is transformed into a troll, Stanley steps up as he turns his green thumb on Gnorga. Although Stanley seemingly has the upper thumb, Gnorga gains an advantage as she manipulates Gus. The unsuspecting Stanley is thus turned to stone with a look that says, “Why, Gus, why?” For a film that otherwise has a fairly flowery aesthetic, seeing the main character petrified makes for a surprisingly unnerving climax. As one would expect from a Don Bluth movie, though, our heroes are eventually changed back while Gnorga remains a rose bush.

Torn on which way to go, Littlefoot trusts his mother’s directions while the others follow a stubborn Cera. As if the volcanic backdrop and skeletons weren’t ominous enough, Cera’s poor leadership results in Petrie taking a dive into the tar. Meanwhile, Ducky and Spike find themselves surrounded by a river of lava ready to engulf them. Littlefoot returns to help, but it isn’t long until the four are all swimming in tar while a pack of “domeheads” chase Cera. They’re scared away by a tar monster, which is fairly creepy until we realize that it’s the young dinosaurs stuck together. This scene runs the gamut, transitioning from brutal intensity, to a humorous resolution, to a tearful moment as Cera reflects on her mistake.

For a film centered on cute little rodents, “The Secret of NIMH” has an impressive body count. The climax alone sees multiple characters meet grim fates that still haunt us. First, Nicodemus gets crushed by the Brisby house thanks to the traitorous Jenner and the reluctant Sullivan. Pursuing the mysterious amulet, Jenner slashes Sullivan while dueling Justin in a surprisingly bloody final battle. Taking his dying breath, Sullivan finds redemption as Jenner gets his comeuppance in the form of a knife to the back. Even then, Bluth doesn’t let the audience relax. The Brisby house nearly sinks with the children inside. Through their mother’s bravery and the power of the amulet, though, this pulse-pounding climax is capped off with a happy ending.

With his body constantly falling apart, Rasputin wouldn’t feel out of place in a David Cronenberg picture. While his rotting corpse also amounts to some welcome dark comedy, the villain maintains a creepy presence throughout. In that sense, his scenes almost play out like an “Evil Dead” movie. Rasputin’s ghastliest moment comes during the demonic climax as he attempts to complete his curse on the Romanovs. In a progressive move for a 90s animated film, it’s the heroine who finishes off the villain. With Anastasia crushing the source of his power, Rasputin’s flesh melts into a green puddle while his skeleton is reduced to ashes. The filmmakers shot live-action references before animating “Anastasia.” Maybe that’s why this scene oozes with such eerie detail and realism.

Surviving a monstrous storm, Fievel finds there are cats in America. To scare the cats out of New York, the mice construct a massive mechanical mouse using a parade float and other parts. In a way, their secret weapon works too well, as the Mouse of Minsk also sends the audience scampering under their seats in terror. Even with the viewer’s knowledge that it’s all smoke and mirrors, this giant mouse has a phenomenally menacing design with jagged teeth, bleak eyes, and fireworks blasting out of its mouth. Rotoscoping was utilized to bring the Mouse of Minsk to life with a model being constructed. The animated version is already freaky enough. We don’t want to think what the live-action version looks like. Well, at least now there are no cats in America (well, fewer cats).

With the booming voice of John Carradine, the Great Owl commands Mrs. Brisby to enter his dusty, cobweb-infested domain. Although Mrs. Brisby powers through for her son’s sake, she doesn’t know if the owl will help her or eat her. The bones scattered on the ground and in the walls suggest the latter. Actually, it’s a spider that attempts to gobble up Mrs. Brisby with Jerry Goldsmith’s musical score adding to the intensity. While the Great Owl comes stomping to her rescue, his face isn’t much friendlier with glowing yellow eyes and a perpetual frown. The Great Owl may assist Mrs. Brisby in the end, but this scene encompasses the heart-racing dread of walking into a dragon’s lair. No, not that “Dragon’s Lair!”

Despite being rated G, “All Dogs Go to Heaven” features smoking, drinking, gambling, and the premeditated murder of a German Shepherd. And that’s all just in the first several minutes! While the opening sets us up for something dark, nothing can prepare us for Charlie’s hellish nightmare. Having turned his back on Heaven, Charlie contemplates what waits when death rears its ugly head again. The filmmakers conjure every image we associate with the underworld: A tornado that sucks you into a sea of lava, a ship commanded by a winged skeleton, and a dragon-like creature draped in fire. If you think the finished product is traumatizing, a few moments were cut from this scene, although that only reduced the fear factor from 12 to 11.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Enter The Grand Duke, “Rock-a-Doodle” (1991)
Another Sinister Owl, This Time With the Chilling Voice of Christopher Plummer

Drake’s Demise, “The Pebble and the Penguin” (1995)
Do All Penguins Go to Heaven?

Dragon the Cat, “The Secret of NIMH” (1982)
This Feline May Be More Dragon Than Cat

There Are Many Cats in Russia, “An American Tail” (1986)
Seriously, Were These “Cats” Gene-Spliced with Wolf & Bear DNA or Something?

The Tanner, “The Small One” (1978)
The Donkey Gets Out With His Hide, But the Other Animals Probably Aren’t As Lucky

Bluth gave us some hair-raising villains, but none tower over the audience with more terror than the Sharptooth. Whenever this Tyrannosaurus storms onto the screen, destruction, death, and the stuff of prehistoric nightmares is bound to follow. On more than one occasion, our young heroes find themselves mere inches away from the beast’s snapping jaw of razor-sharp teeth. The only thing more threatening than his mouth is his piercing eye, which we see up close in arguably the film’s scariest shot. Or at least the scariest moment that made the final cut. We’d say #ReleaseTheBluthCut, but that animation is long gone and perhaps too scary for human eyes.