Throughout my childhood, my parents did a good job of ensuring that the movies I watched were age-appropriate. I wasn’t allowed to watch Gremlins. I did get to watch Ghostbusters, but only when it came out on network television. So even the edgier PG stuff had to be sanitized.
In hindsight however, there seem to be some incongruities in my parent’s philosophy. I remember three films that were probably a little too scary for my young imagination. I’m not sure how they got through the filter, but they were freaky with a capital “F”. Kids in peril. Giant puppets engaging in all sorts of sorcery and magical zaniness. Oh, and let’s not forget David Bowie dancing around in a spandex jumper.
So the bad news is that I was clearly traumatized as a child. The good news is that at least we can pinpoint the three reasons why I’m so weird.
1. The Labrynth:
Well, well, well. If it isn’t the aforementioned David Bowie decked out with one of the most fantastic hair/outfit combos ever. And he has a bunch of crazy puppets with him. And he’s making that cute little baby cry. And the lyrics of his song include the poetic, “Put that magic jump on me/Slap that baby make him free”. Okay, then.
2. The Neverending Story:
Snow! Peril! Horse sinking in mud! Zombie princess girl! Giant turtle sneeze! Crazy laser-eye creatures! Good thing that big fluffy white flying thing was so nice.
3. The Dark Crystal:
And you thought the main character looked strange. Those skeletor bird lookin’ things are are scary enough in their own right, but then they go pumping that crystal voodoo through their eyes. *shudder*
Reliving all these memories is probably going to keep me awake all night.
Renew and Restore
