Having family movie night can be difficult when you have young children and older children. Finding a movie that has age-appropriate content, as well as being clean, is quite difficult! Add to that the differences in preference between boys and girls, and it can be tricky to find a family movie that everyone can enjoy! We feel it’s better for our younger children to be watching things that are appropriate for them. So rather allowing them to watch something more mature, our older children often must watch something less mature. Family-friendly movies are difficult to find!
However, something that has helped us with this immensely is our TV Guardian. It filters out profanity including taking the Lord’s name in vain. There are many movies that are okay content-wise, but have to have a few instances of profanity…seriously…if Hollywood would make a filtered version of every movie, instead of an “uncut” version, they would make a lot more money! So, having some sort of filter, whichever you choose, helps a lot with being able to watch movies that would otherwise not be family-friendly.
One last tip when choosing a movie: go back in the day! I love introducing some of the movies I loved as a kid to my kids!
Now, here are some of our favorite family movies that bridge the gap between older and younger children.
Five Family-Friendly Movies
- Dreamer—
What little girl doesn’t love a movie about a girl and her horse? It has enough action and humor in it to engage our sons too. More than anything, it’s a story about overcoming, and believing. Even better, it’s based on a true story. Mild language ruins a couple of parts,. If you don’t have a language filter, preview it and skip the parts with language, as it’s not riddled with it!
- The Sarah, Plain and Tall series—
Perhaps a bit lesser known, these movies are timeless! They need no filtering and are entertaining for all ages. They are a little slow-moving for my sons, but overall, they like the story-line enough to be on board for watching.
- I Still Believe—
This movie is a tear-jerker. Though it doesn’t have any bad language in it, it does deal with a little more mature subject matter. Our six-year-old watched it with us, as it’s mostly mild, but we skipped over a couple of scenes because they were a little heavy and quite intense. It is also based on a true story and worth the watch! (Streaming on Hulu currently)
- Ramona and Beezus–
This is one of my all-time favorites! However, while my boys were willing to watch it when they were a little younger, it’s a harder sell now that they’re older. They’ll oblige, but it doesn’t really make the list of movies they’re begging to watch! Teenage girls will probably enjoy it more though!
- Pilgrim’s Progress—
We read the book as a family this year and it was so good! The original book, by John Bunyan, is a high-level reader. We read one of the abridged versions aloud as a family and I cannot say enough good things about it! It is so thought-provoking that even our youngest daughter was asking deep questions about faith. The movie is no let-down! It follows the book beautifully, although not as in depth. There is some peril in this movie, so if you have young children who are especially sensitive, I would recommend waiting, but our six-year-old really enjoyed it!
The most important thing when choosing family movies is to keep your family safe and the content appropriate. Our children may not watch movies rated PG-13 or higher without the use of the TV Guardian and our prior approval. When our oldest son turned thirteen, we debated whether or not we should allow him to watch more mature movies and we chose not to.
We, for some reason, as a society in general, see growing up as a rite of passage into the world of garbage entertainment. Why? It is a scientific fact that teenagers’ brains are going through massive reconstruction during that time! Why on Earth would you want to allow them to fill that construction zone with garbage when you’ve spent the last 10-12 years trying to keep the garbage out?
It’s also important to lead by example. From the day we got married, my husband and I followed the rule that we would never rent, see, or own an R-rated movie. This was a rule my parents had when I was growing up, and it’s a rule I respected because they led by example.
If you’re watching what you fill your own mind with first, you will be more successful in watching what your kids put in theirs as well! You can also keep family movie night clean and friendly by visiting the Plugged In website. We have used this tool so many times and find it an invaluable resource when choosing movies! I get absolutely nothing in return for telling you that—except helping other families choose movies that are family-friendly.
When is your next family movie night? How is your summer fun list going?
RElated: Screen-Free Family Fun Night
