The 1980s were a remarkable time for movies, when studios were experimenting with what worked and what didn't resonate with audiences. The result is a wild decade of films full of unforgettable projects we still talk about today because there's nothing else quite like them.
That experimental vibe also bled into kids' movies of the decade. Disney tried out a few notably darker projects, like The Black Cauldron, and studios were still figuring out what was acceptable for a children's story and what wasn't.
It's fair to say that many 80s kids' movies could never be released for that same audience today. Some, like The Dark Crystal, feature imagery even adults still find disturbing. Others tackle themes better suited to a mature audience, even if they appear unassuming at first glance.
Even moviegoers who go into 80s films knowing what to expect are still surprised by what passed for a kids' movie decades ago. With this in mind, here's a selection of 80s kids' movies that traumatized viewers at the time. Some of these projects shocked audiences thanks to a specific scene or delivery. Others feature villains so terrifying that they are likely responsible for countless sleepless nights among younger audiences. We will be delving into spoilers for this list, as many movies are traumatizing thanks to specific scenes.
10 The Transformers: The Movie (1986)
The Transformers: The Movie will only be traumatic for kids who already have an investment in the show's characters. Still, one death is particularly hard-hitting and oddly sustained for a movie about robots that can transform into vehicles.
The 1986 Transformers movie contains all the Autobots vs Decepticons action you'd expect, including the Decepticon leader, Megatron. Optimus Prime battles Megatron in a colossal battle that sees both legendary Transformers gravely injured.
The Autobots try to rescue their commander after the battle, but it's too late. They surround Optimus Prime as he passes his leadership on and dies shortly after. Death isn't usually a permanent state in the show. To see such an iconic character defeated in such a final way is a bitter pill for any Transformers fan to swallow.
9 The Fox And The Hound (1981)
The Fox and the Hound is an 80s Disney classic about enduring friendship against all odds. It contains fewer specific traumatic scenes than many movies on this list, but it doesn't shy away from some upsetting moments.
The 1981 movie focuses on the close bond between Tod, a fox, and Copper, a hound dog. They become friends as pups, but Copper's owner, Amos, takes him away and trains him to be a hunting dog. All of a sudden, the dynamic between these two lovable characters changes from friends to predator and prey.
There are some tense scenes, like an animal attack in the forest, but Tod and Copper's strained friendship hits some audiences surprisingly hard.
8 The Last Unicorn (1982)
The Last Unicorn is a beautiful, but bleak, animated story about a unicorn, voiced by Mia Farrow. She embarks on a grand journey to discover if she is truly the last of her kind.
Her quest is notably less jovial than you'd expect in a film about such a mythical creature. Magic feels like it's fading from the world, and the unicorn meets people who would rather exploit what is left than preserve it.
The Last Unicorn is a sad movie and contains some particularly traumatic scenes. The unicorn encounters a traveling carnival run by Mommy Fortuna during her quest. We see all the caged animals she's collected, including the Harpy, which remains scary today, especially when it escapes and wreaks havoc from above.
7 Return to Oz (1985)
Many films on this list are notable for exploring dark themes or for containing tonally jarring moments. Return to Oz is remarkable because, while it is an absolutely bleak movie, it also contains some horrific creatures that remain scary to this day.
The creatures in question are called Wheelers. They are unlike villains you would find in a typical fantasy movie, with horrific faces and bizarre movements. These characters are also extremely fast and mobile, so there's no escape on foot.
The Wheelers attack Dorothy (Fairuza Balk) and relentlessly chase her down. We later learn that the creatures can talk, and they threaten Dorothy as she escapes. Return to Oz is exceptionally dark for a Disney film, and the Wheelers are likely responsible for many sleepless nights.
6 The Brave Little Toaster (1987)
The Brave Little Toaster is a unique movie on this list because the premise sounds child-friendly and even suitable for a modern-day Pixar movie. In reality, it's an animated tale with many frightening scenes that viewers recall decades later.
The movie follows a group of sentient household appliances. They set out on a journey to find their master, who they believe has abandoned them in a cabin. Each appliance has its own way of dealing with its situation. Toaster, for example, is headstrong in his belief that their master still loves them while others are more skeptical.
The Brave Little Toaster also doesn't shy away from some horrifying scenes. We see a sentient air-conditioning unit having a prolonged existential crisis before exploding, and the harsh outdoors puts our heroes through the wringer as they venture outside.
5 The Dark Crystal (1982)
Many audiences are aware of The Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal by Jim Henson Productions. Both films are praised for their high-fantasy adventures, which still hold up incredibly well thanks to their reliance on practical effects.
The Dark Crystal makes the list because it's much darker than The Labyrinth, with its horrifying antagonists, the Skeksis. The story focuses on Jen, the last Gelfling, on a quest to retrieve a crystal shard.
Audiences remember the Skeksis as terrifying, vulture-like creatures. There's something uniquely unsettling about them, from their mannerisms to their sounds. We also see them draining the life essence from a podling in an unusually sustained and cruel torture scene, which could reduce young audiences to tears.
Many viewers remember Steven Spielberg's E.T the Extra-Terrestrial as a wondrous family-friendly movie about a young boy, Elliot (Henry Thomas), who befriends an alien.
The movie is an 80s classic, but it's not without its scary or traumatic moments. The infamous hazmat scene, in particular, is horrific as faceless government agents in protective suits collect E.T. from Elliott's home.
Another scene that shocked audiences into silence was E.T.'s death, which is prolonged and clinical as Elliot and his friend are surrounded by scientists wearing hazmats. E.T the Extra-Terrestrial is an emotional movie with a bittersweet ending that's just as impactful on future viewings.
3 The Secret Of NIMH (1982)
The Secret of NIMH is surprisingly mature for a movie aimed at kids, with many themes that will resonate with an older audience as well. The film follows the adventures of Mrs. Brisby, an intrepid field mouse fearing for her and her son's safety.
Mrs. Brisby's home is under threat from a farmer. The catch is that she cannot leave, as she's caring for her sick son, Timothy, who isn't well enough to move. She embarks on a quest to find the hyper-intelligent rats of NIMH for help.
The world of the rats is an eerie, oddly beautiful place, and the home of many traumatic scenes. We learn that the rats are intelligent because humans experimented on them, and the movie shows an all-too-real lab full of panicked creatures awaiting a horrific fate.
It's arguably a traumatic scene regardless of your age, cementing The Secret of NIMH as a brilliant, but exceptionally dark animated movie.
2 The Land Before Time (1988)
The Land Before Time is a classic animated movie about dinosaurs fighting for survival after a massive earthquake. Littlefoot is a young long-necked dinosaur who embarks on an adventure to find safety in the Great Valley.
Littlefoot isn't alone for most of his journey and befriends a small group of other dinosaurs on the way. However, most audiences remember The Land Before Time for its introduction, where events descend into chaos. Littlefoot is separated from his mom, and we see him desperately searching for her as the night draws in.
The young dinosaur eventually finds her, but we discover she has been mortally injured by a predator. Littlefoot doesn't understand why his mom can't get up, and her passing is a gut punch, even after multiple viewings. Some audiences would argue that the death in The Land Before Time is even more impactful than Mufasa's death in The Lion King, and it's a scene everyone remembers.
1 The Neverending Story (1984)
The Neverending Story is a classic 1980s fantasy adventure film starring Barret Oliver as Bastian. He borrows the Neverending Story book from a shop and quickly realizes his actions influence the tale on the pages.
The book is about Atreyu (Noah Hathaway) and his quest to rescue the Childlike Empress. He enters the Swamp of Sadness on his white horse, Artax, which sets in motion arguably one of the most horrific scenes in 80s kids' cinema.
Artax gets stuck in the swamp and can't move. Events suddenly become so much worse when Atreyu notices that Artax is slowly sinking. The scene is still horrific as Atreyu screams at his friend to start moving, only to see him sink into the mud.
It's a sustained, emotionally scarring scene, so impactful that it's the first thing anyone who's seen The Neverending Story thinks of when the film is mentioned. There's no comic relief and no triumphant rescue. Artax is there one moment and gone the next, and it's tonally jarring, given that the movie feels like a regular fantasy tale up until that scene.
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