Mater and the Ghostlight(2006)
2006 · John Lasseter · 7 min
Mater, the rusty but trusty tow truck from Cars, spends a day in Radiator Springs playing scary pranks on his fellow townsfolk. That night at Flo's V8 Café, the Sheriff tells the story of the legend of the Ghostlight, and as everyone races home Mater is left alone primed for a good old-fashioned scare.
Animation · Comedy · Family · Horror
6.3493 votes
TMDB score
0/5
Intensity
0/5
Gore
0/5
Stays with you
How Mater and the Ghostlight scares
It starts light and playful, with silly pranks around a friendly little town, then builds toward one quick spooky moment near the end. The whole thing is short and gentle, more about campfire-story fun than any real fright. Nothing here is meant to actually scare anyone; it's a cute, kid-friendly wink at spooky legends. Great for little kids who want a tiny taste of 'scary' without any real tension or danger.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Mater and the Ghostlight rates psychological 1/5, visceral 1/5, gore 0/5, lingering effect 0/5, and overall intensity 0/5.
- Psychological: 1 of 5
- Visceral: 1 of 5
- Gore: 0 of 5
- Lingering: 0 of 5
- Intensity: 0 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 75 of 100 — leans Jump scares
Supernatural vs Real-world: 15 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 5 of 100 — leans Fun-scary
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A playful, joke-filled start that slowly ramps into a short burst of spooky jump-scares before settling into a light, funny finish.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 2, 1.
How scary is Mater and the Ghostlight?
On The Horror Database's 0–5 intensity scale, Mater and the Ghostlight rates 0/5 — gentle by horror standards, delivering its fear through jump scares more than lingering dread. It works on both fronts, unsettling the mind while going for the body. Expect it to be restrained with gore and fun-first. The dread fades once the credits roll.
Watched it? Sign in to confirm whether this profile fits.
