Most of us can remember certain movie scenes from our childhood that caught us off-guard with unexpected violence, depravity, or sadness that made an indelible impression on our young minds. Most of the time, these scenes are nowhere near as disturbing as half of the torture-porn footage that assaults viewers in horror films these days. Usually it's a moment of darkness in an otherwise cheery movie, which is especially the case with character deaths in animated films.
I'll start us off with a few that I remember really disturbing me as a child:
There are a few others that come to mind, but I think I will cut it off right there and give you all a chance to share your traumatizing scenes.
I'll start us off with a few that I remember really disturbing me as a child:
- Raphael getting his ass kicked (TMNT) - As a child of the 80's/90's, I was a huge Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan. I had been watching the lighthearted cartoon series for years before the live-action movie hit theaters. When it did, I made sure my parents and I were first in line to see it opening night. The first half of the movie was everything I had hoped it would be: awesome turtle costumes, cool fight scenes, Splinter, Shredder! Sure, it was a little more serious in tone than the cartoon series, but that was understandable for a live-action treatment. Everything was all fine and dandy until the scene where the Foot Clan jumps Raphael on that rooftop. They proceed to beat his ass mercilessly despite his attempts to defend himself. They end up overpowering him and throwing him through a glass skylight into the room below where the rest of the gang was hiding out. He was beaten so badly at that point that he was rendered unconscious.
I know it doesn't sound that bad, but as a kid it was very strange to see a Ninja Turtle take that kind of punishment. They were nigh invincible on the TV show, but here I saw the Foot Clan beat down Raphael with an unsettling degree of gleeful cruelty. - Littlefoot's mom dying in the first ten minutes of Land Before Time - Ugh. This scene absolutely GUTTED me as a small child. Bambi's mom? I felt nothing. Simba's death at the hands of his brother? Shit happens. But this scene destroyed my world. It's still incredibly sad to watch to this day. Don Bluth's animation studio at its finest right here.
- Johnny 5 being dismantled (Short Circuit) - Here's a perfect example of a lighthearted movie taking an unexpectedly dark turn. About 3/4 of the way through this comedic buddy adventure story, the cheerful robot Johnny 5 gets chased down by the bad guys and beaten to a pulp. His circuits are smashed, his wires ripped and torn asunder, and all the while he pleads with the attackers to stop in this detached tone that could only come from a sentient being that can't feel actual pain. This scene is burned into my memory.
- Thomas J dies via BEES (My Girl) - This is going on the list by virtue of its sheer surprise factor. A child character suddenly dying by being stung to death by fucking bees and changing the entire tone of the movie? What the hell?! This was an early lesson during my childhood development about the fleeting nature of life and our own mortality. If this little kid's life could end at the drop of a hat, so could mine. That thought was very chilling when I was five years old. Here's the funeral scene that followed.
There are a few others that come to mind, but I think I will cut it off right there and give you all a chance to share your traumatizing scenes.
