Are There Any Movies For Children Anymore?

02-23-02 | PaulJ

[PaulJ]

My wife and I just returned from Blockbuster where we were looking for something we could watch with our nine year old son. I am not a prude, but I prefer my son not watch films with profanity and certainly without nudity or sexual content. Out of the hundreds and hundreds of films for rent there was almost nothing suitable. We've seen most of Disney's stuff and he is a bright and mature boy for his age, so it doesn't have to be animated (in fact, I'm not crazy about animated movies) nor does it have to be a movie geared for little children. I just want something where they aren't swearing every other word and they're not parading around the house naked discussing their private parts. Even an occasional cuss would be alright ( I cluck my tongue to show my disapproval) as long as it's not the "F" word or something as bad. But, holy cow, there's nothing there!

Can any of you good folks here recomend something for us to watch? Or do you know of any web sites that maybe could help. I feel so bad for my son to go in there and leave empty handed. Any help you can give us would be appreciated.

[ActionNewsBill]

October Sky

Great movie for any age!

[oregon conservative]

The Adventures of Yellow Dog, Esther-VeggieTales, Heidi-lots of versions.

[El Sordo]

Horatio Hornblower.

The movies have historical violence, and I suppose the third installment "The Duchess and the Devil" has a small bit of innuendo (check it out and decide for yourself).

The character of HH sure does make for a good role model.<HH's behavior towards women in the fourth installment "The Wrong War" is downright noble.

[discostu]

Some more looking at my library (unfortunately my favorite genre is mob movies, which are either too long or too profane for kids, sometimes both) here's some more recent ones:
Tremors (and Tremors 2, haven't seen 3 yet), funny a little scary, clean language, and the gun nut is the hero.
Evil Dead/ Army of Darkness series, one of the only series in the world that get's better with each installment, as a bonus you don't have to see the previous to enjoy the later (Evil Dead 2 is actually more of a remake of Evil Dead than a sequel). Off the top of my head I can't recall any foul language, all blood is off camera.
Space Cowboys, 4 great actors telling a great story, there is the "butt scene" but it's not lacivious.
Oh Brother Where Art Thou, the Coen brother's redo of The Odyssey only in the depression south with escaped convicts. Good story, pretty clean (can't think of any foul language, but the Coens usually get a couple in), and as an added bonus you can instroduce your kid to great gospel music (not that boring junk they call Christian rock today, real to tapping joyous sound GOSPEL music).
Speaking of the Gospel Leap of Faith is high on my list. The story of a charlatan preacher that finds the real thing. Renewal, joy, morality, lots of good stuff in the movie, including more good gospel music (I love good gospel music).
The great sci-fi attack: MIB, Independance Day and Mars Attack. Varying degrees of quality, MA has the most bad language of the bunch, but is also the funniest (and my favorite of the three).
Less recently made but only recently available: The Avengers (the TV show, not that awful movie). Funny, smart, clean, and a tastefully but attractively dressed Diana Riggs offers a little something extra for the adults (actually your kid's at about the age he'll start noticing, a good time to shove some well mannered well dressed attractive women under his nose, remind him that Britney spears is a whore and not deserving of his time).

As I said up top, I'm into mob movies. And I was raised by Marines, so my idea of clean language might not gel with yours, probably recommend a pre-viewing, or check with sites that rate this kind of thing. I'm definitely not deliberately leading you astray, but there's always the possibility of accidental leading.

[Yaelle]

In answer to your question: NO. I have a 10 year old son, and I haven't found much that I approve of. I think the Pokemon movies were decent, as they had themes of bettering yourself, conquering bad, and helping others.

Even more insidious than bad language or sex in a movie is the blatant disrespect and distrust of adults and authority. Parents are treated as buffoons, as are any other examples of authority. Disney is NOT immune.

I also do not think that "cool" should be worshipped. The way I see it, this quality is praised in pop culture for kids ABOVE ALL ELSE. It appears that "cool" = caring less for almost anything (values, people, etc.) than do your peers. The coolest ones are the ones who care the least. Appearances in "cool" are not merely important, they are EVERYTHING.

While we can't keep kids completely away from popular culture, it is so much better to try and replace it, for our 10-14 year old children, with challenges that are fun and will remain meaningful over time, such as rock climbing or other slightly dangerous sports, learning crafts, any challenging hobbies.

I guess movies are mostly out for us, until we find a good adult winner or two. There are some that our kids would find interesting, I am sure. Even if some themes are mature, if they are themes of life that are true, they will be appealing to young, intelligent "tweens." I am thinking of films like "Driving Miss Daisy" or "Shawshank Redemption" (or even maybe a film without Morgan Freeman - funny that the two examples that came to mind contained him).

[RnMomof7]

I took my mom to see "The Liar" some years ago..I could not believe the little kids there...6,7,8 years old..now it was a funny movie..rated pg 13..but it was VERY sexual . Some impiled and lots of bedroom humor..personally I would not let a 13 year old see it 16 maybe..but then I am old:>)

[Amore]

Gosford Park for a 9-year-old boy? I'd think he'd be bored silly. Of course, so was my 36-year-old sister, so perhaps his age isn't that important.

[octobersky]

Yes, October Sky was a wonderful movie and after watching the video I was inspired to base my FR nickname on it!

[knarf]

"The Old Man and the Sea"

Excellent!!

And that reminded me of "Captain's Courageous."

[mystery-ak]

Mystery Alaska(no connection)
Rudy

October Sky

ET is about to be released on DVD with extra scenes

Close Encounters(one of my hubby's favs)

and any John Wayne movie.....introduce your son to the classic westerns.

[lsee]

Go to Screenit.com for accurate reviews of movies. Don't be fooled by the G and PG ratings of some so-called kid's movies. A G is not always suitable for all (Rugrats in Paris and Recess School's Out, for example) and PG movies are not created equal.

The thing I like about Screenit is they spell out exactly what potentially objectionable material a movie might contain and allow you to judge whether or not you object to those things. Once in a while, they will screen a movie based on its early release or something because when we actually see the movie, certain scenes they mention are no longer in the film or possibly they interpreted the scene incorrectly. But most of the time, their reports are dead-on. If you are interested, I can post a list of kid-tested, mom-approved movies viewed by my family.

Ignore those who mock your caution. Our children deserve vigilance.

[discostu]

All that time making the list and I totally forgot about Pixar and Dreamworks, computer animation has probably saved the genre. Toy Story 1 and 2, Bugs Life, Shrek. Clean funny movies with good stories, and if you're into computers the technology they wielded is amazing, I'll never forget when I spotted the chipped paint in the gas station in Toy Story, they drew chips in the paint. And on the clamation side let's not forget Nick Park and his projects Wallace and Gromit (shorts about a dumb guy and his brilliant dog) and the feature length Chicken Run.

I know you said you're not into animation but these might be worth reconsidering. I'm not generally into drawn animation myself, but the computer and clay stuff can be truly amazing.

[strictlyaminorleaguer]

I think the two best children's movies I've seen in recent years are Toy Story 1 and 2...funny, clever AND clean! In fact, I think the best kids' movies being made today are the animated ones. Shrek was funny, but I could've done without the potty humor which is sneaking into more and more kids' movies. Sadly, there aren't as many live-action films for kids that have been good, with the exception of Spy Kids; I went to see it with my nephew and absolutely loved it! Another good recent movie is October Sky (got me weeping)

[Jeremy_Bentham]

There were no children at Gosford Park, at least none that I saw; they could have come in under the cover of darkness I suppose. The children would definitely have to be mature beyond their years to want to see this movie.

[PaulJ]

While we can't keep kids completely away from popular culture, it is so much better to try and replace it....with challenges ..... such as rock climbing or other slightly dangerous sports, learning crafts, any challenging hobbies.

How right you are. In fact, we rarely watch movies or TV at all, that is why I am so much out of the loop.It just so happens that my wife is with my older son tonight at a Special Olympics dinner and my youngest and I decided to have a father & son movie night, you know, with the popcorn and Junior Mints, but like I said, we ended up leaving Blockbuster empty handed with my son dissapointed and me disgusted. But with all of these suggestions I'm just going to have to have to go back.
By the way, you're other points are also quite valid.

[strictlyaminorleaguer]

I have to disagree with your recommendation of the Count of Monte Cristo if you mean the one that's out now. Remember the sex scene on the beach and the woefully-miscast Luis Guzman character walking in on Mercedes after she and the count slept together? This movie was risible to anyone who read and loved the original novel; the only worthwhile part of it to me was getting to gaze at Jim Cavaziel (what a hottie!). Otherwise, I wouldn't recommend it even for pre-teens.

[Youngblood]

Presumably he's seen the Star Wars movies? The Jurassic Park films (I know I loved dinosaurs when I was a kid!). The first two Superman movies are a lot of fun.

[strictlyaminorleaguer]

Let me amend that...I would have to say it might perhaps depend on the maturity of your 9-year-old, but I would go with an older version of this story just to get a better idea of the original Dumas novel. This one veers significantly from it.

[discostu]

Can always start them with Godfather. I saw 1 when I was 7 (maybe 6), my mom couldn't find a babysitter and she was damned if she was going to miss the movie (this was back in the days before video). The only lasting effect it's had on me is my addiction to mob movies, which is a good thing I say.

Monsters Inc was great. Actually kids movies as a whole are really making a comeback. Being not fond of kids myself I find myself looking for the non-kid windows to see these movies. Cats and Dogs was great. Loved Potter. There's still some crap (Snow Dogs... what were they thinking) but right now kids movies are probably the best they've been in my lifetime, they've finally started making smart movies for kids.