# Movie Recommendations for kids **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2017, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191 "2017-08-31T19:25:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2017, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/41 "2017-09-02T09:15:12Z")
I introduced the Firebug to the Marx Brothers (shock and surprise, huh? ;)) when he was about 7 years old. _Monkey Business, Duck Soup, Horsefeathers._ They went over quite well. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2017, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/42 "2017-09-02T09:18:11Z")
A couple weeks ago, I was watching _The Maltese Falcon_ on DVD. The Firebug, now 10, wandered in about halfway through, and he stayed around for the rest of it. Looks like we’re getting rain all day today here in southern Maryland. I may inflict \*Casablanca \*on him. I’ll let you know what he thinks of it. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2017, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/43 "2017-09-02T11:14:52Z")
If animation is still on the table, _The Iron Giant_. And if you’re going to show them _Airplane!_, you’ve got to show them _Zero Hour!_ And in quick succession, _Seven Samurai_, _The Magnificent Seven_, _Three Amigos_, and _A Bug’s Life_. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2017, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/44 "2017-09-02T11:42:53Z")
Are they too young for _Lord of the Rings_? If so, try [_Dragonslayer_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonslayer). Surprisingly good! ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/45 "2017-09-03T01:55:39Z")
[quote=“psiekier, post:36, topic:795191”] _Howl’s Moving Castle_ is good, but I feel _Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind_ and _Lupin III and the Castle of Cagliostro_ are better. If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? I’ve seen Mononoke already and thought it was decent. I’m thinking Spirited Away or Totoro, but I haven’t seen either. Flash Gordon doesn’t really hold up well, have you seen it recently? I think similarly of a lot of older 80s and early 90s movies. Three Amigos was great when I saw it, but I kind of think it isn’t actually a good movie. And Dune, man that was a mess 😛 I’ve read the book and enjoyed it, but the movie is just all over the place. Big Trouble in Little China was good, but they really don’t seem to appreciate campy movies yet. Edge of Tomorrow could work though. Now, Secret of the Kells is great, they’ve seen it multiple times (thanks Amazon Prime!). Same for Superman, and Superman II. I think a few are probably too mature for them, like Fifth Element. They may enjoy Pacific Rim, but I didn’t. @ Shoeless - Big is great, and we’ve seen it, but just the one version 😛 @SigMan - umm, some good recommendations there, but Porky’s? Really? Maybe I’m a prude but I think they can discover that on their own. Coming to America was hilarious, but “the royal penis is clean” is pretty much no. Stripes has that super awesome shower scene that I really enjoyed, but that’s also a no. Some of the others are making the list 🙂 @John Mace - They can probably watch Lord of the Rings, but I think it may be just on the other side of the too much dialogue/plot line for them. I’m cautious because I love the movies and want to save them for when they are ready and will appreciate them, otherwise they’ll get a bad impression and it could ruin it for them. Dragonslayer was good. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/46 "2017-09-03T03:57:41Z")
Blazing Saddles Oceans 11 Monty Python and the Holy Grail (some of the jokes will go over their heads, but mine loved it anyway) Howl’s Moving Castle ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/47 "2017-09-03T04:05:35Z")
The Robert Downey Jr Sherlock Holmes movies. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/48 "2017-09-03T05:18:55Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? I’ve seen Mononoke already and thought it was decent. I’m thinking Spirited Away or Totoro, but I haven’t seen either. > > … > > Now, Secret of the Kells is great, they’ve seen it multiple times (thanks Amazon Prime!). There will always be differences in taste, but the general consensus (and the box-office verdict) seems to be that _ **Spirited Away** _ is the best Studio Ghibli movie. _Totoro_ is wonderful, but might appeal more to younger kids. _Ponyo_ is another one to consider. It also has younger kids, but great science fictiony elements. If they liked _The Secret of Kells_, they will probably love _Song of the Sea_, by the same studio. I think _Song of the Sea_ is the better of the two. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/49 "2017-09-03T11:05:06Z")
_The Truman Show_. ---
**Author:** ![Sandra\_Battye](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sandra_battye/32/552_2.png) [@Sandra\_Battye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandra_Battye)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/50 "2017-09-03T17:18:30Z")
_Second-Hand Lions_ has Robert Duvall, Michael Caine and Haley Joel Osment. Between old-fashioned adventure and the problems of growing up/growing older it will keep appeal to both you and your kids. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/51 "2017-09-03T19:08:04Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? I’ve seen Mononoke already and thought it was decent. I’m thinking Spirited Away or Totoro, but I haven’t seen either. > [@GreenWyvern](#): > > There will always be differences in taste, but the general consensus (and the box-office verdict) seems to be that _ **Spirited Away** _ is the best Studio Ghibli movie. > _Totoro_ is wonderful, but might appeal more to younger kids. _Ponyo_ is another one to consider. It also has younger kids, but great science fictiony elements. Some parents might have an issue with _Pom Poko_. It’s a movie about anthropomorphic raccoons and kids would enjoy that. But there’s an unusual aspect of the story; the raccoons have magic testicles (Japan can be a strange country) and while this aspect isn’t too graphic, it is clear enough that most kids will understand it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/52 "2017-09-03T19:16:50Z")
[quote=“psiekier, post:36, topic:795191”] [li]_Superman II_ (1980 movie starring Christopher Reeve)[/li][/QUOTE] I don’t think anyone mentioned Superman, the 1977 movie that this is a sequel to. I thought it was a better film, and really worthwhile, even given the weird ending with Superman reversing time. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/53 "2017-09-03T19:57:52Z")
[QUOTE= **Bone** ; If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? I’ve seen Mononoke already and thought it was decent. I’m thinking Spirited Away or Totoro, but I haven’t seen either. [/QUOTE] _Castle in the Sky_ > **[Castle in the Sky (1986) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092067/?ref_=nv_sr_1)** > > Castle in the Sky: Directed by Hayao Miyazaki. With Mayumi Tanaka, Keiko Yokozawa, Kotoe Hatsui, Minori Terada. A young boy and a girl with a magic crystal must race against pirates and foreign agents in a search for a legendary floating castle. …because cool robots rule. ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/54 "2017-09-04T01:41:37Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > > [@psiekier](#): > > > > _Howl’s Moving Castle_ is good, but I feel _Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind_ and _Lupin III and the Castle of Cagliostro_ are better. > > If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? I’ve seen Mononoke already and thought it was decent. I’m thinking Spirited Away or Totoro, but I haven’t seen either. My suggestions were for Miyazaki movies specifically, of which _Cagliostro Castle_ is my favourite, even if its cast of characters were already (in)famous in both anime and manga. It’s from 1979, though, before Studio Ghibli was formed, as was [technically] _Nausicaa_ (from 1984) - but in addition to his work on the latter film, Miyazaki also wrote and illustrated the fantastic manga on which it is based. Those are _his_ characters in _his_ world … if you didn’t notice the decidedly environmentalist bent. If I’m limited to actual official Ghibli films, I’d pick _Spirirted Away_. > [@Bone](#): > > Flash Gordon doesn’t really hold up well, have you seen it recently? Doesn’t hold up? Klytus, are your men on the right pills?!? I saw _Flash Gordon_ at a drive-in movie theater in 1980, and I never stopped loving it. I shared it with my kids (I have a working copy on VHS) a couple of years ago, and they loved it as well. Seth MacFarlane and I can’t be the only ones who are fans of this movie; it spawned [the single funniest _Family Guy_ scene ever!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDqfN-3szXo) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/55 "2017-09-04T02:35:43Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > If there was one Ghibli movie, what would you pick? You haven’t mentioned if your kids were both boys, both girls, or one of each. From the movies you are mentioning showing to them, it sounds sort of like two boys. A lot of the Ghibli movies have female protagonists and tending-towards “girly” interests and I don’t know how cootie-tolerant your kids are. _The Cat Returns_ is the most American-like of the Ghibli movies. Lots of action and light humor, not as much seriousness as most Ghibli movies. That might be the best second choice of a Ghibli movie. (The first would have to be _Spirited Away_.) Pom Poko has been mentioned–I don’t think your kids would care too much about it because it is too serious and complex of a story. It may be about talking animals, but it is a 2-hour epic that is for a large part conversations about strategy for fighting a war against human land developers. I think that they would be confused and bored by it. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/56 "2017-09-04T02:44:54Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Pom Poko has been mentioned–I don’t think your kids would care too much about it because it is too serious and complex of a story. It may be about talking animals, but it is a 2-hour epic that is for a large part conversations about strategy for fighting a war against human land developers. I think that they would be confused and bored by it. It also has a fairly grim ending. The movie is a metaphor for how growing urbanization is destroying Japan’s remaining natural areas. The raccoons live in nature and their territory is threatened by developers. In the end, the raccoons lose; the land is developed. Most of the raccoons die but a handful survive by turning into humans. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/57 "2017-09-05T15:44:31Z")
I’ll check out Second Hand Lions, sounds interesting. Possibly a bit talky, but we’ll see. I remember really liking the first RDJ Sherlock Holmes, but not the second. It’s been a while but that is being added to the list. As for Spirited Away, is it dubbed? I think there may be a dubbed version that is better for the kids. I’ve looked around a bit and doesn’t look like I can stream it, even paying for it. I’m not so concerned about the gendering of movies, figure a good story holds up with boys or girls as protagonists. This weekend it was unhealthly hot outside, so we concluded a marathon of Back to the Future. I forgot how campy the sequels were, but the original was great. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/58 "2017-09-05T15:53:01Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > One of my favorite movies, Aliens, is probably too violent for them right now. I showed my kid Aliens around age 10 but we then watched some of the “Making of” featurettes afterward to drive home the whole “This is all fake” bit. He liked it though. Also we watched Gremlins around that age. Amusingly, the biggest issue for me was the Phoebe Cates “That’s how I learned there was no Santa Claus” scene since we weren’t sure if he still believed or not and didn’t want Gremlins to be the way he learned otherwise 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/59 "2017-09-05T16:19:25Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > As for Spirited Away, is it dubbed? I think there may be a dubbed version that is better for the kids. Yes. Up until recently, Ghibli movies have been released by Disney in the US, and have pretty good dubbing, as far as dubbing goes. (Also with Disney dubs and probably suitable for your kids, _[Totoro](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Neighbor_Totoro#Cast)_, _[Porco Rosso](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porco_Rosso#Cast)_, and _[Kiki’s Delivery Service](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiki's_Delivery_Service#Cast)_.) Oh–and now that I think about it, [_Arrietty_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arrietty#Cast) would probably fit the bill–and while you are looking into _The Borrowers_ adaptations, look for [this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Borrowers_%282011_film%29) one. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191/60 "2017-09-05T16:37:08Z")
While on animation, I didn’t mention [_Tokyo Godfathers_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_Godfathers) before because I didn’t know if it ever had an English dub or American release, but I see that it does. Not only a great animated movie but a great movie, period. Also with an English dub, _[Summer Wars](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_Wars#Voice_cast)_ and [_Oblivion Island_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oblivion_Island:_Haruka_and_the_Magic_Mirror#Voice_cast). Unfortunately, the excellent _[Summer Days with Coo](http://nishikataeiga.blogspot.com/2011/04/summer-days-with-coo-2007.html)_ doesn’t seem to have an English dub, but I note several sites that stream the subbed version, if your kids are willing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movie-recommendations-for-kids/795191.md?page=4)