For many of us, it was Walt Disney's “Old Yeller”: When the beloved title character (SPOILER ALERT) leaves this mortal coil, it left us shaken to the core. For others, it was the animated classics: From “Bambi” through “Dumbo” and beyond, Disney seemed to have a penchant for inserting tragedy into otherwise family-friendly fare -- a tradition that continued in 2003's "Finding Nemo." Though billed as wholesome children’s entertainment, many kids’ movies are rife with needless, inappropriate and/or just plain disturbing content. Watching “101 Dalmatians” with my 6-year-old fairly recently, I had the unenviable task of delicately explaining exactly what the insidious Cruella DeVil wanted to do with those cute little puppies. Thanks a lot, Walt. Recently, parenting website Babble.com rounded up its own list of the 26 Most Disturbing Kids Movies Ever, pulling together titles both infamous and surprising (“The Care Bears Movie”? Really?) Many of the selections are predictable (if you’ve never found anything a bit creepy about certain scenes in “Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory” or “The Wizard of Oz,” you just haven’t been paying attention), but show any of them to your kids and you’re bound to field a few awkward questions (“Why did Bambi’s mother have to die, Mommy?”) and dry some tears. Parents have to decide what is and isn’t appropriate for their kids to watch. They also have to provide context and put entertainment in its proper perspective – but that isn’t always as easy as it sounds. Have your children been exposed to content you’d have shielded them from if you could? Have you ever had a hair-raising experience watching a movie with your kids? Let us know in the comment section below. For further reading: The 10 kids movies that are inappropriate for kids
When parents bring underaged children to inappropriate movies And for the flip side of the coin,… Creepy kids on film