There is something wonderful about sitting down with a nice, safe, spooky but not scary, family friendly horror film. The kind of film that deals with horror themes, but in a non-threatening way.
It has been said in the past that horror is not a family genre, and that these kinds of film cannot be classed as such, but I disagree. A film like monster house has as much right to be celebrated in the genre as a gory slasher flick.
Hotel Transylvania and Hocus Pocus can be great introductions to the genre for young children, and as adults we can get plenty from them too. It is heartwarming to see our youngsters getting into the misadventures of icons like Dracula, and the Wolfman, and they are well made, funny films.
What is considered a family friendly film differs from country to country. In the USA films like poltergeist are classed as family friendly, but in the UK the film has an age rating of 15. And gremlins started life as a 15 in the UK, but these days has a PG rating.
Over the years, even 18 or R rated films have been marketed to younger audiences with animated series of the films being made. Tales from the cryptkeeper, the toxic crusaders and so on are all based on adult films, but the cartoons are a lot of fun for everyone to enjoy.
Sometimes it's nice to stay within the genre that we love, but enjoy something completely light hearted and tame, and there is nothing wrong with that. There is a time and place for films like martyrs, but when you're not feeling like taking on that much there is always the option to kick back with the Munsters!
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