PG-13 horror films often get a bad rap; typically produced with families and younger audiences in mind, they often pull punches and end up coming across as mild and unfulfilling.
Of course, that doesn't mean that every PG-13 horror movie deserves to be written off. While total gorefests like Saw or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre were made notorious in part because of their shock value, gripping psychological and paranormal films often skate by the MPAA despite their heavy and affecting themes.
The Last Exorcism (2010)
A movie keen on highlighting the moral dilemmas of a Christian evangelist who maintains his role in the church for financial reasons despite having lost his faith, The Last Exorcism is a wild and twisted movie that'll leave audiences wondering what exactly to think.
The film deals with some heavy elements that likely aren't particularly well-suited for younger teens. Plus, though there's no real gore, there is a fair amount of blood-soaked set-dressing, and the film's final moments will leave fans feeling profoundly uncomfortable.
The Woman In Black (2012)
Starring Daniel Radcliffe in one of his most remarkable post-Potter roles, The Woman in Black tells the tale of a lawyer sent to an old manor situated on a Marsh in order to prepare the estate for auction. He soon discovers, however, that the house's previous tenants are still roaming the halls, appearing as ghostly apparitions eager to avenge unjust acts perpetrated against them.
There's essentially no gore to speak of, but The Woman In Black is nonetheless a bleak and melancholic movie that could terrify and potentially upset younger audiences.
The Birds (1963)
Sometimes seen as a rebuke of metropolitanism in an era of rapid social change, The Birds is perhaps second-only to Psycho in Alfred Hitchock's groundbreaking and well-regarded filmography. Though some of the themes and special effects come across as painfully dated today, The Birds was downright horrifying in 1963.
The PG-13 rating didn't exist at the time of the film's release, though it was later entered into that category thanks in part to a few particularly grizzly scenes—the ghastly zoom-in of a man with his eyes gouged out being chief amongst them.
The Sixth Sense (1999)
Easily the most well-regarded and recognizable M. Night Shyamalan film, 1999's The Sixth Sense is best remembered for its incredibly well-crafted twist. While it seems a little forced after repeat viewings, it caught plenty of viewers off-guard and is, more than two decades later, still one of the most memorable surprises in horror history.
A definitive role for a young Hailey Joel Osment, his character, Coel, must reconcile with the qualms of the spirits of the dead in order to send them to the afterlife. There are a few scenes of extremely morbid aspect, and it's definitely a hard PG-13 sort of film.
The Exorcism Of Emily Rose (2005)
Movies about demonic possession are a dime-a-dozen, but 2005's The Exorcism Of Emily Rose attempts to turn the genre on its head by framing its events as a mature courtroom drama instead of a house-of-horrors thrill ride ala 1973's The Exorcist.
Though the William Peter Blatty movie adaptation is almost certainly scarier, there's something to be said for the oppressively grim nature of Emily Rose. It gets to be a bit hokey at times, but the morbid and matter-of-fact presentation make it a more intense watch than its PG-13 rating would suggest.
The Ring (2002)
A Western adaptation of the 1998 Japanese horror masterpiece Ringu, The Ring is a terrifying watch with a central premise that has kept it in the American pop culture subconscious for almost two decades.
With a narrative woven around a girl seeking supernatural vengeance after being trapped in a well, The Ring is made intensely unnerving thanks to its eerie, off-kilter visuals. Those who've seen it will be hard-pressed to forget the horrors of Samara clawing her way out of a television screen, nor will they forget the now-iconic line "you will die in seven days."
Mama (2013)
Horror movies hinging on paranormal plot points are often more likely to earn PG-13 ratings thanks to their relative lack of violence and viscera. However, that doesn't mean they have to shy away from weighty or controversial subject matter.
2013's Mama sees two young girls struggle to reintegrate into society after spending years with an occult entity in an abandoned house. The adoptive entity, however, never leaves their side, much to the complete terror of their new foster parents. It may sound run-of-the-mill, but Mama will have seasoned horror fans watching through the gaps in their fingers.
The Grudge (2004)
After she's murdered by a jealous husband, the spirit of Kayako Saeki wreaks havoc on anyone who enters the house in which she lived. Light on scares when compared to Ju-on, the original Japanese film from 2002, The Grudge was nevertheless a major horror hit.
Though the first two acts are fairly tame, the scares come hard and heavy during the film's final moments, and audiences will always remember the horrifically gripping scene of Kayako slithering down the staircase. It also features a pretty grim ending, as the plan to burn the Saeki house down ultimately fails.
Drag Me To Hell (2009)
Before he gained widespread notoriety for his mid-2000s Spider-Man trilogy, Sam Raimi was a comedy-horror icon famous for films like The Evil Dead and Darkman.
Fans were shocked to see him return to his campy horror roots with 2009's Drag Me To Hell, but arguably more shocking was the fact that the movie only received a PG-13 rating. Violent, blood-soaked, and strangely perverse, it's often thought of as one of the most line-crossing movies ever to receive that rating, and fans of Rami's previous work shouldn't be turned away simply because of the tame guidelines it somehow managed to maintain.
Jaws (1975)
We have to admit that we're bending our own rules with this one, as, when it was original released in 1975, Jaws didn't receive a PG-13 rating, as the MPAA wouldn't establish the category until 1984. It's also currently rated PG rather than PG-13, though that's even more outlandish.
Often cited as the first major blockbuster and one of the scariest movies of the 70s, Jaws features a not-insignificant amount of blood and some fairly infamous severed-limb sequences. It also establishes an atmosphere of dread unparalleled by almost any other movie of its kind, making it a tough watch, even for teens.