Children in horror films are usually represented in one of two ways. First, creepy kids in horror movies are very popular - from Horror 2Little Pale Girl, down to Village of the Damned and very much in between - many of them are possessed by ghosts or demons or are under the control of science. Secondly, children are used as a catalyst for horror; adults need to fight something or someone to keep the child safe.
But what about that small group of horror movie kids who are neither evil nor in need of rescuing? Often difficult to portray well due to the inherent problems of young characters (no money, no transportation, no parental help), horror fans usually fail to see the kids who can save the day. These horror films feature tough teenagers who are just as capable, and sometimes even more so, than adults.
Attention: plot spoilers for the following films are discussed.
10 Hyun Seo, “Master” (2006)
In the 2006 South Korean film about creatures. GuestHyun So (Ko Ah Soon) shows himself to be a capable teenager with courageous survival instincts. Even though the monster grabbed him and carried him to his lair under the river, Hyun Seo fights well and helps save another victim.
Using what few resources she has, Hyun-seo calls her father, alerting him to her whereabouts, and makes a rope out of old clothes. When the creature regurgitates another prey, Se Joo, Hyun Seo helps resuscitate him, helps him hide, and never once stops trying to escape. Her ingenuity and bravery make Hyun Seo’s tragic fate even more devastating for viewers.
9 Mark, Good Son (1993)
1993s good son gave Macaulay Culkin an opportunity to play against an evil Henry type and let Elijah Wood show off your acting skills as the heroic Mark. Mark starts the film wide-eyed and innocent, but gradually begins to confidently confront Henry.
When Mark’s pleas for help from Henry’s parents go unheeded, Mark acts and puts himself at risk by throwing Henry off a cliff. Since both boys cling to Henry’s mom, Susan, for their entire lives, she can only save one. The choice may be Susan’s, but without Mark’s intervention, she wouldn’t be alive to make that choice.
8 Carly (and Josh), Mom and Dad (2017)
Black horror comedy Mom and Dad sees how the desire for infanticide has spread to the parents of a suburban town. Carly (Ann Winters) and Josh (Zachary Arthur) should avoid being killed by their own parents (performing a correspondingly excessive Nicolas Cage And Selma Blair) in this manic and violent film.
Josh basically takes on a helpless role, with the burden of survival falling on Carly’s older sister. Carly is resourceful and unshakable, even willing to potentially kill her parents by ingeniously setting a gas leak trap against them. But Carly isn’t heartless either: she keeps her parents alive, but ties them up… for a while.
7 Luke, “Witches” (1990)
Classic family horror movie from 1990. Witches, Jacen FisherLuke almost single-handedly destroys a coven of - you guessed it - witches. He does all this without much help from adults and spends most of the film as a mouse!
In his human form, Luke cleverly hides and spies on Anjelica HustonThe Grand High Witch, confirming her suspicions of malicious intent. But even after Luke is turned into a mouse by a terrifying witch, he doesn’t stop in his quest to destroy the clan and hatches a plot to turn their magic against them by slipping a witch’s potion into their food - like a MOUSE!
6 Cole, “Nanny” (2017)
Cole (Judah Lewis) kicks off the 2017 horror comedy. Nanny as a meek and lonely seventh grader whose parents hire him a nanny so they can spend the night in a hotel. But by the end of the film, Cole gains newfound confidence that he can keep counting murders.
During one crazy night when he was pursued by teenage cultists, Cole deftly avoided being captured and killed them one by one, often with one or two witty verbal jokes. Cole is very entertaining and personifies “zero to hero” when he ends up saving the day from evil.
5 Gwen (and Finney), Black Phone (2022)
black phone shows the dynamic family relationship between Gwen and Finney (Madeleine McGraw And Mason Thames) when they confront the child-killer Reaver (Ethan Hawke). Although Finny spends most of the movie in Grabber’s basement after being kidnapped, he still manages to get the upper hand and eventually defeats him with some ghostly advice.
However, the real badass is the cheeky Gwen McGraw. In addition to the supernatural power of useful premonitions, Gwen also possesses a strong love for and kinship with Finny. This becomes clear when she constantly sticks up for him, even getting into fights with bullies as well as her father protecting him. And it is her ideas that lead useless cops to Grabber.
4 Cassie, Evil Dead: Rise (2023)
Evil Dead: Uprising brings the familiar deadites out Evil Dead the right to attack residents of an apartment building in Los Angeles. One family - Ellie’s mother; children Danny, Bridget and Cassie; and Aunt Beth are fighting hard for survival after finding the Necronomicon and unleashing the evil.
While the older kids and Beth take on most of the hard work against the infected Ellie, Cassie provides quiet resilience to impending doom by calmly stating that Ellie is no longer her mom. Cassie also helps Beth by giving her a weapon in the middle of the fight and also gives her a new sense of purpose before taking on the Marauder. On top of that, Cassie stops (albeit briefly) her infected sister Bridget by impaling her with a broom handle. Cool.
3 Regan, A Quiet Place (2018)
Millicent Simmonds made a splash with her breakthrough role as Regan in Quiet place. A brave and determined teenage girl, Regan often stands up to her parents because she wants to help provide for her family and protect them from vicious aliens - and she has a hearing problem.
Regan wants to prove herself to her father out of guilt over her brother Beau’s death, which complicates their relationship but solidifies Regan’s devotion to her family. Through Quiet placeRegan’s fearlessness is shown when she protects her surviving brother Marcus, warns nearby farms of impending danger, finds a key to disarm the aliens, and still manages to contact her father.
2 Phoebe (and squad), “Monster Squad” (1987)
horror comedy monster squad sees the nefarious return of Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster, Mummy, Wolfman and Gillman in their quest to take over the world. Battling against parents, bullies, and now monsters, the teenagers of the Monster Squad do everything they can to stop the forces of evil through their enthusiasm, knowledge of knowledge, and sheer tenacity.
The only female member of the group, Phoebe (Ashley Bank) is the most important member: she hires the “scary German guy” and Frankenstein’s monster and is the only one who can read this passage to defeat evil. Although every member of the Monster Squad contributes, Dracula would have simply won if Phoebe had not been around. Plus, she’s cute as a button!
1 Ben (and The Losers Club), It: Chapter One (2017)
It’s hard to single out just one member of the Losers’ Club to get attention, since each of the teenagers in Stephen King’s IT: Chapter One able in his own way. In addition, without working together and supporting each other, they would not have been able to defeat Pennywise (Bill Skarsgard).
However, BenJeremy Ray Taylor) arguably contributes the most to determining the history of IT and where they are. While exploring the library, mostly to hide from bullies, Ben learns of a threatening demon and reports it to the group. He is also the one who brings Beverly out of her trance after she is captured and hypnotized by Pennywise. When it comes to his fears - like teenage bullies, a real demon, and first love - Ben faces every one of them.
Source: Collider
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