Turkey Day Terror

Tradition dictates that Thanksgiving is a time for family, and turkey slaughter. I say the latter with joy in my heart, as I harbor a grudge against all turkeys thanks to one biting me when I was young. I've been biting back with pleasure ever since.

Whether you're planning a traditional full-course turkey dinner with parents and kids and aunts and uncles and cousins and hobos (give that turkey an extra stab for me) or spending your day with the MST3K Turkey Day Marathon (Ahem... hi) it's certainly a time that gets you thinking about family. For better or for worse.

On the other hand, if yours is too much of a headache, you could always think about someone else's family, especially ones that make you more grateful for even your own potentially wacky kin. On that note, here are some of my favorite horror films featuring creepy relatives and terrified families.

THICKER THAN WATER:

Texas Chainsaw Massacre & Repo! The Genetic Opera

The Sawyers from TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, and The Largos from REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA are a special kind of crazy that make you look at your own insane relatives and wonder how much of it is genetic. Of course, we can't overlook the inbreeding factor for the Sawyers.

SIBLING RIVALRY:

A Tale of Two Sisters & Halloween

While very different films and stories, there are still some interesting threads running between the titular sisters in TALE and the Meyers' siblings in HALLOWEEN. The former is much more cerebral and twisty, while the latter is the classic slasher flick.

ZOMBIE MUMS:

Dead Alive & Shaun of the Dead

Is it still matricide if your mother is a zombie? Either way, Shaun and DEAD ALIVE'S Lionel don't have time for philosophy. Their mums have become the living dead, and there's just one thing to do with them. Shaun's moment is utterly heart-wrenching, whereas Lionel's is more gut-churning.

HAUNTING HOMES:

The Shining & The Amityville Horror

Some houses (and hotels) are born bad, and both The Torrances in THE SHINING and The Lutzes in AMITYVILLE sure get an idea of how bad they can be.

HELLSPAWN:

Rosemary's Baby & The Exorcist

Talk about awkward. I'm pretty sure Chris McNeil from THE EXORCIST would have a bone to pick with Rosemary. The kid's dad did sort of possess and terrorize her daughter.

And a bonus: The Thanksgiving play from Addams Family Values. Classic.