FReeper-Recommended Family Films

Us | 3/24/2002 | Daniel J. Phillips (BibChr)

[BibChr]

I am here to ask for, and offer, help!

We have a weekly tradition called Burger Night. I cook for the family my own special formula for burgers, and show them a movie.

Here's the hard part: the movie has to have something for a family ranging in age from 2 to 46. Okay, we go soft on the 2yo, because he's hit-and-miss at this point. But that leaves boys aged 6 and 15, an 18yo girl, my wife and me.

Here are the criteria.

• Positively: It's got to have enough action to hold the 6yo, humor for all preferably, and if there are positive role models and moral lessons, all the better.
• Negatively: no sex, little or no profanity, little or no blood, not too intensely scary.

Here are some examples in both categories:

HITS (to varying degrees)

• Prince of Egypt
• Sgt.York
• Baby's Day Out
• Cats and Dogs
• Princess Bride (have to fast forward one scene)
• Sands of Iwo Jima
• Emperor's New Groove
• Toy Story I and II
• Stagecoach
• Rio Grande
• Hondo
• The Man Who Shot Liberty Vallance (a little talky for the younger set)
• McClintock!
• Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
• Ever After (a little talky)
• Time Machine
• Iron Giant
• Atlantis
• Shane
• Tarzan and the Lost City
• Tarzan Finds a Son
• The Last Starfighter
• Star Trek: Generations
• All Star Wars movies

A COUPLE OF MISSES

• Big Jake (a few spurts of explosive blood, and everyone started looking at me)
• Indiana Jones and Anything (not yet, too violent)
• Quiet Man (not yet; favorite for my wife and me, but probably too talky)

Those are not exhaustive lists, but they should give you an idea (and maybe ideas of your own).

So now it's your turn. Every week, it gets harder for me to pick another movie that'll be a winner. I'm soliciting suggestions.

So please name your recommendations for family fare, with any brief comments you'd add. My (our) thanks in advance.

[Old Fud]

Friendly Persuasion

How Green Was My Valley

You Can't Take It With You

A Hole In the Head

The Man Who Would Be King (Slightly PG-ish, but a compelling and excellent adaptation of the Kipling tale)

Pride and Prejudice

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Song of Bernadette

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (what family movie list would be complete without Don Knotts?)

How the West Was Won

A Tree Grows In Brooklyn

The Sound of Music

And, lest we forget, It's a Wonderful Life

[Itzlzha]

Folks, I MUST HIGHLY recommend ICE AGE!!!

There isn't a bad word or violent act (except the sabretooths' attack, but REAL modest...), and it teaches REAL VALUES!

Ones like...sacrifice, perseverence, friendship, honor, trust, loyalty, forgiveness, love, and FAMILY!

Plus, it's damn funny too! There are jokes for the ADULTS that don't involve sex, drugs, or any other deviance!

[who knows what evil?]

Where are the Superman films? The third and fourth are horrible, but they are certainly harmless family fare, and you KNOW good will triumph over evil. (Superman, not Christopher Reeve.)

[SENTINEL]

Don't miss October Sky. A true story about rockets, dreams and determination.

[brothersjudddotcom]

Did you read the review or are you interpreting it as a protoMarxist story?

[hole_n_one]

How about galaxy Quest?

Great choice!

Sigourney never looked better!

[eddie willers]

All those old Dean Jones Disney movies like: Love Bug; Blackbeard's Ghost, etc.

I remember when Disney created Buena Vista Films so they could produce R rated movies, Dean Jones (a devout Christian) said...

"Guess they'll remake my movie as 'That F&%$*ng Cat!"

[mafree]

How Green was my Valley. Classic.

I love that movie too.

[Jambe]

Roger Rabbit !!!! Nothing wrong with a little patty-cake!

[mafree]

The Marx Brothers and Abbott and Costello are very good at teaching children what good humor is all about. A few years ago I bought the whole "Our Gang" series. It was a excellent investment.

I agree wholeheartedly. Also Laurel and Hardy.

[hole_n_one]

[Always Right]

Princess Diaries is fun and entertaining and is a very clean film.

[hole_n_one]

Nut!

[Non-Sequitur]

It was 'Captains Courageous' but it was with Freddy Bartholomew, not Roddy McDowell. Lionel Barrymore played the captain and Mickey Rooney played his son.

[jonatron]

Polyester!

[andysandmikesmom]

A Christmas Story....a wonderful funny movie, good year round not just at Christmas..."You'll shoot your eye out"

My Dog Skip...a wonderful coming of age story about a boy and his dog...made all the more wonderful, because its actually a true story....

[Billy_bob_bob]

Well, if you want to go for the REALLY classic films, you could do what I did and buy the collected "Chaplin Mutuals", this is a series of 12 short films that Charlie Chaplin did very, very early on in his career. I got them on laserdisk, hopefully they're on DVD by now.

Whatever you might think of the man his work was brilliant, and many of the moves and setups you've seen in a million movies were done by Chaplin first.

[Crowcreek]

"Fly Away Home"

Adjust your tube -- The cinematography is breathtaking. And it's a pretty good flick for all ages . . .

[hole_n_one]

My Dog Skip is a treasure!

[mafree]

You are right- I was about to list him and Buster Keaton but forgot.