Unintentional Horror
by dan_dassow | created - 25 Oct 2013 | updated - 25 Oct 2013 | PublicHalloween is definitely the ideal time to watch as many horror movies and shows as possible, but while contemplating all things slasher/zombie/vampire we realized that some of the creepiest things we've seen on TV and in movies weren't actually intended as horror. Here are a few non-horror movie moments that mentally scarred us and still send a permanent shiver down our spines.
Which is your favorite from this list created by IMDb Editors of unintentional horror?
See the IMDb Editors list with their commentary (http://www.imdb.com/list/giQ206U1s14/?ref_=hm_ad_t2#1).
Discuss here.
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1. The Little Mermaid (1989)
G | 83 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
A mermaid princess makes a Faustian bargain in an attempt to become human and win a prince's love.
Directors: Ron Clements, John Musker | Stars: Jodi Benson, Samuel E. Wright, Rene Auberjonois, Christopher Daniel Barnes
Votes: 291,147 | Gross: $111.54M
Near the end, the sea witch Ursula -- already an unsavory character -- grows exponentially in size and terrorizes a ship during a nasty storm.
2. The Electric Company (1971–1977)
TV-G | 28 min | Family, Comedy
A comedy variety show that teaches basic phonetic and grammar concepts using live-action sketches, cartoons, songs, and Spider-Man episodes.
Stars: Jim Boyd, Morgan Freeman, Judy Graubart, Skip Hinnant
Votes: 2,290
While watching Morgan Freeman and the rest of the cast was delightful, a few of the animated segments -- chiefly, a weird animated wiggly electric mouth that counted numbers in an odd robot voice -- scared the toots out of our of your friendly neighborhood TV editor when she was a tot.
3. Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, Family, Romance
The life and adventures of the Ingalls family in the nineteenth century American Midwest.
Stars: Melissa Gilbert, Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Rachel Lindsay Greenbush
Votes: 26,917
Nellie Olsen was a spoiled brat, and Laura's nemesis, but she also scared the crap out of one of the editors. "Little House on the Prairie" was one of her favorite shows but whenever she appeared I got so nervous, I would stop watching the episode. When she thinks back, her memories of those "Little House" episodes have warped into a Hitchcock nightmare. After Nellie got older, she fell in love and got married and supposedly "changed her ways", but I never believed it. To her, she was pure evil.
4. Small Wonder (1985–1989)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi
The zany adventures of a suburban family, their next-door neighbors, and an innovative robot designed to look like a human child.
Stars: Richard Christie, Marla Pennington, Jerry Supiran, Tiffany Brissette
Votes: 5,335
The basic premise: a scientist invents a Voice Input Child Indenticant robot, and he and his family dress her up in a what looks like a doll outfit and pass her off as their daughter Vicki. Whether the main scare factor was her super-strength, her awkward robot-speak, or the fact that they would sometimes open the panel on her back and mess with her circuitry, I am not certain. All I can say is that some part of me was always sure she was going to malfunction and either kill or assimilate them all.
5. Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
PG-13 | 125 min | Comedy, Drama
After a bitter divorce, an actor disguises himself as a female housekeeper to spend time with his children held in custody by his former wife.
Director: Chris Columbus | Stars: Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fierstein
Votes: 291,203 | Gross: $219.20M
There was something so subtly sinister in the look of Robin Williams's Doubtfire get-up - one editor can't ever nail down if it's the facial prosthetics, or clothes, or the fact that he's their flipping father sneaking into their house daily in disguise - that it completely changed the movie for her.
6. White Chicks (2004)
PG-13 | 109 min | Comedy, Crime
Two disgraced FBI agents go way undercover in an effort to protect hotel heiresses the Wilson sisters from a kidnapping plot.
Director: Keenen Ivory Wayans | Stars: Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Busy Philipps, Maitland Ward
Votes: 163,383 | Gross: $70.83M
The Wayan Bros.'s lame attempt to capitalize on the lame trend of black male comics cross-dressing for comedic effect kicked off anew in the early '00s by Big Momma's House. Only the Wayans took the extra step of not merely dressing like women, but women who are supposed to be blonde and Caucasian, who actually ended up looking like grown up versions of those alien children from the Village of the Damned (1995).
7. Independence Day (1996)
PG-13 | 145 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy Earth. Fighting superior technology, mankind's best weapon is the will to survive.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell
Votes: 606,039 | Gross: $306.17M
For one editor it was the stuff of nightmares -- literally. For around six months after seeing the movie, he was pursued by the city-sized alien spaceships every night when he went to sleep. No matter how fast he ran, he couldn’t get away from the effects of their atomic-bomb-style blast. Eventually, he was able to break this, though he still cringes when those early scenes come on TV.
8. Crawlspace (1986)
R | 80 min | Horror, Thriller
A man who runs an apartment house for women is the demented son of a Nazi surgeon who has the house equipped with secret passageways, hidden rooms and torture and murder devices.
Director: David Schmoeller | Stars: Klaus Kinski, Talia Balsam, Barbara Whinnery, Carole Francis
Votes: 3,848
OK, so technically this is a list for unintentionally scary movies and TV series, but it must be said that when he was alive, Klaus Kinski could freak the bedazzles out of anyone just by ordering ice cream.
9. Westworld (1973)
PG | 88 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
A robot malfunction creates havoc and terror for unsuspecting vacationers at a futuristic, adult-themed amusement park.
Director: Michael Crichton | Stars: Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Norman Bartold
Votes: 63,005 | Gross: $16.06M
When Westworld started, one editor figured, cool, a fun western one he hadn't seen before. What followed was a little kid's nightmare come to life onscreen. And when the Robot Gunslinger's face slid off, revealing his circuitry...well, that became lifelong nightmare material.
10. Planet of the Apes (1968)
G | 112 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
An astronaut crew crash-lands on a planet where highly intelligent non-human ape species are dominant and humans are enslaved.
Director: Franklin J. Schaffner | Stars: Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans
Votes: 193,600 | Gross: $33.40M
One editor was pretty young at the time she saw this film, and there was something about the way the ape's mouth moved in the mask that freaked me out. She avoided the movies, the show, and couldn't even bring myself to watch Tim Burton's version.
11. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
PG | 102 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Young Dorothy Gale and her dog Toto are swept away by a tornado from their Kansas farm to the magical Land of Oz, and embark on a quest with three new friends to see the Wizard, who can return her to her home and fulfill the others' wishes.
Directors: Victor Fleming, King Vidor | Stars: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr
Votes: 428,889 | Gross: $2.08M
The flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz freak one editor out to this day, but as a little kid, they were the worst kind of terror in the world. During the annual TV airing of the movie, her mom would make her either leave the room or cover her eyes and ears when the scene came along with all the monkeys jumping out of the window to fly and snatch Dorothy at the Wicked Witch of the West's command - she just got too upset to deal with later if she saw any of that scene at all. Just looking at that picture while writing this has her a wee bit jumpy.
12. Breaking Bad (2008–2013)
TV-MA | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student in order to secure his family's future.
Stars: Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn, Betsy Brandt
Votes: 2,139,368
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