Disney’s Creepy ’80s Horror Movie You Have To See To Believe – /Film

It's hard to remember a time when Disney wasn't the most dominant force in entertainment, but until the Disney Renaissance from 1989 to 1999, the studio was definitely riding the struggle bus. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Walt Disney Productions was doing their best to attract older audiences, as their family-friendly offerings weren't performing as well as they'd liked. This is how we ended up with films like "Escape to Witch Mountain," "The Island at the Top of the World," "The Black Hole," and "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," all films that people frequently forget are Disney-made due to their content. In 1980, Disney tried their hand at horror and the result was the film adaptation of Florence Engel Randall's 1976 young adult Gothic sci-fi novel, "A Watcher in the Woods." Knowing their reputation for kid's movies, Disney actively told small children not to see the film, which only added to the film's allure.

The former home owner is Mrs. Aylwood, played by Bette Davis who has at this point proven herself in "hagsploitation" horror films. The youngest American girl, Ellie, was played by Kyle Richards, just two years after her role in John Carpenter's "Halloween." What starts out as a pretty standard haunted house movie slowly turns even creepier, as Ellie's sister Jan discovers the town locals were screwing with dark magic during a solar eclipse. Thinking she's solved the case, Jan decides to recreate the ceremony during another solar eclipse in the hopes it will bring Mrs. Aylwood's daughter back. Dancing with the dark arts is a bit much for Disney, but in 1980, they were hoping the film would be popular enough to help save their failing company.

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Disney's Creepy '80s Horror Movie You Have To See To Believe - /Film