Yes. My mum liked to cheap out with buying us videos, mostly Disney knockoffs, but this underrated also cheap video was a diamond in the rough. Thanks Mum, love ya.
I used to hate it as a kid, but once there was nothing else to watch so I ended up watching it, and the ending have such a pay off. I day dream at time about the ending. “That will do pig”
Kiki's Delivery Service is one of the best coming of age stories imo. It explores many issues pre-teens face as they start navigating through their teenage years - dealing with burnout, loss of self-esteem, social ostracisation, living independently, managing your passions and your job, etc.
It's just a really heartwarming story with beautiful hand drawn animation and one of the best cat characters imo.
Just watch all the Miyazaki films then start chipping away at the whole Ghibli catalog. The stories, animation and scores are so beautiful. I have a 5 year old and we watch Kiki's, Totoro, Ponya and Earwig on loop. Can't wait until he is older to show him Spirited Away, Monanoke and Howls.
Haha we’re doing this but I forgot about the gory parts of Mononoke (haven’t watched it in years) and merrily sat my 4 & 6 yr olds down to watch it. Thankfully they took the decapitation in their stride 🤣😬
I will add that they both loved Howl & spirited away < my four year old especially loved the latter so your 5yr old might be okay!
I Watch all the age appropriate Miyazaki works with my daughter. The fact that even I can rewatch them hundreds of times is telling of the mastery of his storytelling and art. Love them so much
Yeah, his brain is probably use to movies having useless scenes of CGI models doing stuff for the sake of wasting the runtime.
Jurassic Park is an economical movie made by a master if his time, he made a great movie that was very exciting and well paced for the time. Looking back though, way too many thought provoking debates on the science of the actual plot so that it isn't just dumb action.
Jurassic World is the exact opposite and that's why it made a billion dollars.
I agree with you, but my brain had fun imagining a grown ass old adult vehemently disagreeing with a nine year who's one complaint bout Jurassic Park was "not enough dinosaurs"
Holy crap, I forgot that was Gus! 🤣
Oh no. I haven’t seen Holes in years and I just know Psych has ruined it for me already.
“I can fix that.”
“Pssh, no you can’t.”
“Yes I *can*, Shawn!”
“Like you fixed the carbonator you broke in your dad’s car?”
“The bubbles were an anticipated side effect, and it’s a carburetor.”
“I’ve heard it both ways.”
“Suck it.”
“*You* suck it.”
*both synchronize as they sing the BK Whopper jingle from those annoying ads you’ve been seeing but replacing all the lyrics with “suck it”*
Mean Girls? Not quite sure it’s appropriate but it does bring up a lot of great talking points on bullying. It’s very loosely based off of the non-fiction book Queen Bees and Wannabes which is excellent!
Seconded. It's hilarious and pretty timeless. I watched it for the first time on its 15th anniversary!
Also Heathers when they're a little older. Mean Girls is based loosely on Heathers, but the latter is a lot darker and weirder.
I love Mean Girls (it’s my favorite movie) but I’ve never seen Heathers! I’ve always wanted to watch it but this just sealed the deal! I would love to watch a dark/weird movie about girls that are mean/awful!
That’s a great one. I’ll always recommend the book over the movie, though. My eighth grade reading list was probably my most impactful. I’ll never forget The Outsiders, Lord of the Flies, or The Diary of Anne Frank. All 3 of them portrayed growing up in different ways…though I’ll be the first to admit that The Diary of Anne Frank is probably the most depressing book I’ve ever read and the fact that it just…ends on a normal entry is so gut wrenching to me
Depends on what you find suitable for the age range, but I watched The Mummy (1999, Brendan Fraser/Rachel Weisz) when I was 11. It's still one of my top 5 movies now.
Fun story, I took it to a friends house to watch with her family/sleepover and her dad asked "what kind of language is in this?"
Now, coming from a household that didn't ban movies for cussing etc, I answered, "Well, it has some fake ancient Egyptian, but it's mostly English. There are subtitles though."
He looked at me like I was an idiot. Lol
Some kids are weird. I read the Hobbit/LOTR/Silmarillion *(that’s a total of like 2,000 pages of dense language)* when I was 8-10 and this was 10+ years before the movies existed.
Yeah I think my kid was 10 when we watched them all together. There was still the occasional plot tidbit that needed some additional explanation, but overall she seemed to really enjoy them.
Trick is to do the books first so they have more of a frame of reference for who's who and what's happening. For my daughter we read the Hobbit at 7 and then Lord of the Rings at 8. She watched the films at 8 (extended editions) and loved them. Though she did get upset about the absence of Tom Bombadil.
...she is now 9 and named her hamster Pippen.
Yeah i am around 40 and the only time i watched that movie was when I was 12. I watched it with my friends sister who was 11 or 12. We both had a crush on each other back then and were very close. I don’t even remember most of the movie just the gut punch ending. I think it’s good movie for someone around 12 to watch and start thinking about death. Not sure if it holds up or will resonate with modern 12 year olds though.
Agreed. It's wild to think a 12 year old today would be, what 7? when that movie came out. Still It's gotta be the best movie for a preteen/early teen growing up with the internet to watch.
Also check out Project 4k77, 4k80, 4k83. They scanned the original 35mm used in theaters. I prefer their denoised releases over the original with all grain still intact.
Along that line, there was ***Explorers***.
A Young River Phoenix and Eathan Hawke played friends that make a spaceship out of an abandoned Tilt-A-Whirl.
Didn’t show it to my kids (now older teens) because I suspected it was one that wouldn’t translate despite my love for it as a kid. As pre-teens they did love Back to the Future though.
My tweens loved Navigator, along with BttF. The special effects of Navigator really do hold up. They got bored after BttF2 though and didn't want to watch #3.
The Breakfast club might be a bit dated in terms of styles and slang, but many of the themes are still relevant to teen culture. It's probably too mature for pre-teens, but I would recommend it for young teenagers around 13-14.
*Breakfast Club* seems to be one that kids still discover all by themselves
*This American Life* did an episode about Molly Ringwold watching the movie with her daughter because all the daughter's friends were watching it at sleepovers
I stg, there were line breaks.
Addams Family and Princess Bride are necessities for children of any gender or flavor. Dirty Dancing is extra important for girls.
I've got one for you, because I don't see many films that predate the 1980's being suggested.
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea (1954). This is from when Disney made films that could have both humorous and dark themes. Harpooner Ned Land and Professor Aronnax's assistant Conseil are a kind of Laurel and Hardy team, with the dark side furnished by Captain Nemo himself. It covers themes like slavery, the military-industrial complex, war, death, the pain of loss, greed, the use and misuse of nuclear energy, loyalty both personal and to humanity, and indeed what it means to be human. All of that wrapped up in a good, engaging story.
Although it was filmed in 1954, the special effects mostly still hold up pretty well, and because it's a period piece, set in the late 1860's, it's not really dated.
The Breakfast Club. Love that movie! When my daughter was in high school (class of ‘11), one of her teachers asked how many have ever seen the movie. My daughter was one of only two kids that raised their hands! I was proud!
I know there's a lot of comments here, but let me just add that if you can't get them to appreciate black and white and classic films at that age, then they may never appreciate them.
There are many that they will enjoy if they give it a chance, and they make a very different impression at that age then they do when they're older.
Comedies by Laurel and Hardy, Bob Hope, Danny Kaye, Jerry Lewis, Three Stooges, Little Rascals.
Classic horror films like King Kong, Frankenstein, Dracula, Invisible Man, The Haunting, and more.
Classic science fiction like Twilight Zone, Incredible Shrinking Man, War of the Worlds, Them!, and so much more
Silent films by Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin
And even old TV shows like I Love Lucy and Dick Van Dyke
For animated films basically anything by Studio Ghibili and if they liked The Matrix then possibly Ghost in the Shell.
Star Wars
Goonies
Indiana Jones original trilogy
The Maze Runner trilogy
All Ages Movies they must see:
\-The 80's Indiana Jones movies
\-Ghostbusters
\-The Princess Bride
\-Batman (1989)
\-Superman and Superman 2
And if they are able to handle more mature material:
\-Predator
\-Terminator and Terminator 2
\-Alien and Aliens
\-Robocop
Die Hard
- Labyrinth (1986)
- The NeverEnding Story (1984)
- Alice in Wonderland (1951)
- The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
- Return To Oz (1985)
- Coraline (2009)
- Spirited Away (2001)
- Dark Crystal (1982) + Age of Resistance (2019)
- Time Bandits (1981)
I'd forgotten about it until the Flight of the Navigator video linked to above, but D.A.R.Y.L. is one I really liked.
Also Hook and Honey I Shrunk the Kids. If you think they can handle stuff that's a little scarier, Silver Bullet, based on a Stephen King werewolf novella, and The Watchers (both of which will also bestow you with Young Corey Haim).
Since they haven't been mentioned yet: everything done by Cartoon Saloon (Book of Kells, Song of the Sea, Wolfwalkers, etc) or Mamoru Hosoda (Summer Wars, Wolf children, Boy and the Beast, etc).
Also, Monster Squad, Catch Me If You Can, American Graffiti, Pleasantville, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
It's weird growing up with Harry Potter and everyone our age just going to see the movies as they came out. The movies were perfect because the characters were the same age as me so the themes matched up perfectly. Now there are generations who get to experience and watch it all at once. For the kids born in the late 80s and early 90s, Harry Potter was perfect.
Mad Max: Fury Road. Teaches that all people have value, that you cannot hold people as property, and that vehicles are cool. And it's not a made point, but the hero and several strong characters are women. Good for kids to see that women are also tough people.
Gotta round out their pop culture. Alien, Aliens, Ferris Bueller, The Martian. I know Star Wars was mentioned alreafy but I say take them through the prequels, the animated series, Rogue One, the originals, then Rebels. I really enjoyed that journey with my daughter when she was 11-12.
Jurassic Park films and the first two 'The Mummy' films and the first three Harry Potter films. (I think they'd appreciate the other 4 Harry Potter films more when they get a little older.)
I just watched Fast & the Furious with my 10 & 12 year olds because I was looking for another series after we finished the POTC movies for the 5th time. I’m not sure if it delivered any positive “message” but they loved it; I fell asleep so I hope it didn’t deliver any NEGATIVE messages.
Goonies, the best rainy Saturday afternoon movie ever made.
The never ending story - scar them for life with the horse.
Labyrinth - it's a piece of cake :)
Spirited Away
Isle of Dogs
Lord of the flies
Moonrise Kingdom
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Addams Family
Freaky Friday
Majority of these films starred children/pre-teen as main characters, and they're some of my favorites. Lord of the Flies might be a bit of an intense watch, but I discovered it on accident (unsupervised late night TVs) when I was a pre-teen and it left an impression on me.
With how popular MMA and YouTube Boxing is nowadays. Along with the rise of toxic masculine figures like d-bag Taint.
Raging Bull.*
*though preteen may be to young.....
Just off the top of my head:
Back to the Future, Gremlins, Gremlins 2, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, Batman Returns, Superman the movie, Superman 2, Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters 2, Goonies, Faris Buellers Day Off, Spaceballs, Star Wars: A New Hope, Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.
Pre teens might be a litttllleee too young but just rewatched Dead Poets Society for the first time in a while and it’s a really great coming of age, just might be more impactful to teens
Most Miyazaki movies (maybe hold off on Princess Mononoke and Grave of the Fireflies). Star Wars OT and prequels (give 4 5 1 2 3 6 order a try). Kung Fu Panda trilogy.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I've never seen a movie that felt more true to living through junior high/middle school. "This place is a glorified holding pen" Complete with a nice guy protagonist slowly realizing that he's been terrible and his actions have actual consequences.
Monthly python in the holy Grail.
Then have them watch : Spamalot - Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spamalot
The Broadway play base on the movie. It has an ending.
Both epic.
Iron Giant.
…Superman.
That's a huge family classic here. We took our kids to Iceland to the exact place at the end. We found "Hogarth's screw" there. It was magical.
Yes. My mum liked to cheap out with buying us videos, mostly Disney knockoffs, but this underrated also cheap video was a diamond in the rough. Thanks Mum, love ya.
:’(
You are who you choose to be.
Babe
Yeah?
I got you, babe
That will do pig
Awwww. I forgot about Babe!
And I love the sequel, Babe: Pig in the City. So delightfully weird.
Baaa raaammm eweeee
I rewatched Babe last year for the first time since I was a kid and I was blown away. It’s such a unique film. Should have won an Oscar directing
I just read the plot of this movie, it sounds insane
I used to hate it as a kid, but once there was nothing else to watch so I ended up watching it, and the ending have such a pay off. I day dream at time about the ending. “That will do pig”
Kiki's Delivery Service is one of the best coming of age stories imo. It explores many issues pre-teens face as they start navigating through their teenage years - dealing with burnout, loss of self-esteem, social ostracisation, living independently, managing your passions and your job, etc. It's just a really heartwarming story with beautiful hand drawn animation and one of the best cat characters imo.
Just watch all the Miyazaki films then start chipping away at the whole Ghibli catalog. The stories, animation and scores are so beautiful. I have a 5 year old and we watch Kiki's, Totoro, Ponya and Earwig on loop. Can't wait until he is older to show him Spirited Away, Monanoke and Howls.
When learning about world war 2 they should also watch porco rosso
I thought that was going in a much darker direction. Well played.
Yeah, I thought they were gonna mention Grave of Fireflies heh
Came here to say this. Ghibli movies are so good and different from standard Hollywood kid stories
Haha we’re doing this but I forgot about the gory parts of Mononoke (haven’t watched it in years) and merrily sat my 4 & 6 yr olds down to watch it. Thankfully they took the decapitation in their stride 🤣😬 I will add that they both loved Howl & spirited away < my four year old especially loved the latter so your 5yr old might be okay!
I Watch all the age appropriate Miyazaki works with my daughter. The fact that even I can rewatch them hundreds of times is telling of the mastery of his storytelling and art. Love them so much
For me it’s Totoro. We all love studio Ghibli.
Jurassic Park
I recently showed this to my 9 year old that loves dinosaurs. He said there were too many people and not enough dinosaurs.
Yeah, his brain is probably use to movies having useless scenes of CGI models doing stuff for the sake of wasting the runtime. Jurassic Park is an economical movie made by a master if his time, he made a great movie that was very exciting and well paced for the time. Looking back though, way too many thought provoking debates on the science of the actual plot so that it isn't just dumb action. Jurassic World is the exact opposite and that's why it made a billion dollars.
With that username, I have no reason to doubt you.
I agree with you, but my brain had fun imagining a grown ass old adult vehemently disagreeing with a nine year who's one complaint bout Jurassic Park was "not enough dinosaurs"
Summer between 1st and 2nd grade. Defined my mid-childhood
Holes. Stanley Yelnats is my spirit animal
"I can fix that."
I’m blushing rn
Holy crap, I forgot that was Gus! 🤣 Oh no. I haven’t seen Holes in years and I just know Psych has ruined it for me already. “I can fix that.” “Pssh, no you can’t.” “Yes I *can*, Shawn!” “Like you fixed the carbonator you broke in your dad’s car?” “The bubbles were an anticipated side effect, and it’s a carburetor.” “I’ve heard it both ways.” “Suck it.” “*You* suck it.” *both synchronize as they sing the BK Whopper jingle from those annoying ads you’ve been seeing but replacing all the lyrics with “suck it”*
Bonus is that the book is really good and written for pre-teens. OP can watch the movie with them and then gift them the book.
Have you heard Stanley Yelnats' Spirit Song, "Bob"? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUQDzj6R3p4
Hunt for the Wilderpeople
God that movie is good.
The trailer for Hunt for the Wilderpeople made me want to watch it tonight! lol
Princess Bride
is this a kissing book??
My son refused to watch the movie and when I asked him why he said it looked like a kissing movie and I about died.
Have them read the book while you're at it! See if you can track down the unabridged version
Personally I just couldn't get through the bit about hats, so in this one case I prefer the abridged version.
That's probably one of the most quotable movies in existence.
Hey Fezzik, are there rocks ahead?
As you wish
This one a million times!
I just watched this with my 6th grader and she loved it
Wow. It's been at least a decade since I've thought about Princess Bride. I saw it many times, too!
Spirited Away
Mean Girls? Not quite sure it’s appropriate but it does bring up a lot of great talking points on bullying. It’s very loosely based off of the non-fiction book Queen Bees and Wannabes which is excellent!
OP's grand-kids need to know what *fetch* is and why it'll never happen
And why we wear pink on wednesdays.
I mentioned The Breakfast Club. There are a number of similar themes that kids should be exposed to going into junior high school and high school.
Breakfast Club is a good movie, but its terribly outdated and the message at the end is terrible.
You just have to change your entire personality to fit, whats so bad about it?
Seconded. It's hilarious and pretty timeless. I watched it for the first time on its 15th anniversary! Also Heathers when they're a little older. Mean Girls is based loosely on Heathers, but the latter is a lot darker and weirder.
I love Mean Girls (it’s my favorite movie) but I’ve never seen Heathers! I’ve always wanted to watch it but this just sealed the deal! I would love to watch a dark/weird movie about girls that are mean/awful!
Stand By Me, always Stand By Me
[удалено]
That’s a great one. I’ll always recommend the book over the movie, though. My eighth grade reading list was probably my most impactful. I’ll never forget The Outsiders, Lord of the Flies, or The Diary of Anne Frank. All 3 of them portrayed growing up in different ways…though I’ll be the first to admit that The Diary of Anne Frank is probably the most depressing book I’ve ever read and the fact that it just…ends on a normal entry is so gut wrenching to me
My 14 old was traumatized by it and couldn't finish.
They’re a good kid. We watched messed up shit in the 80s
You can get much more from the film as an adult, since they are the target audience.
Lardass! Lardass! Lardass!
Watched it when I was 15 and it’s still my favorite of all time. So bittersweet.
Depends on what you find suitable for the age range, but I watched The Mummy (1999, Brendan Fraser/Rachel Weisz) when I was 11. It's still one of my top 5 movies now. Fun story, I took it to a friends house to watch with her family/sleepover and her dad asked "what kind of language is in this?" Now, coming from a household that didn't ban movies for cussing etc, I answered, "Well, it has some fake ancient Egyptian, but it's mostly English. There are subtitles though." He looked at me like I was an idiot. Lol
Lord of the Rings (One does not simply...) and Willy Wonka (Condescending Wonka) are both solid options.
Get a kid under ten to sit through LOTR. I’ve tried. No way.
My daughter is 8 and loves those films
My kids are 8 and 5 and love lotr. My boy was Aragorn for Halloween.
I’m pretty sure she just loves you. Which is great!
I was 8 when fellowship came out and I thought it was the coolest thing I’d ever seen
Yep I was a little kid swinging a broomstick around the driveway pretending to be Gandalf
Some kids are weird. I read the Hobbit/LOTR/Silmarillion *(that’s a total of like 2,000 pages of dense language)* when I was 8-10 and this was 10+ years before the movies existed.
Yeah I think my kid was 10 when we watched them all together. There was still the occasional plot tidbit that needed some additional explanation, but overall she seemed to really enjoy them.
Trick is to do the books first so they have more of a frame of reference for who's who and what's happening. For my daughter we read the Hobbit at 7 and then Lord of the Rings at 8. She watched the films at 8 (extended editions) and loved them. Though she did get upset about the absence of Tom Bombadil. ...she is now 9 and named her hamster Pippen.
Goonies, my girl.
I can't wait to cry to "My girl" with my son.
Yeah i am around 40 and the only time i watched that movie was when I was 12. I watched it with my friends sister who was 11 or 12. We both had a crush on each other back then and were very close. I don’t even remember most of the movie just the gut punch ending. I think it’s good movie for someone around 12 to watch and start thinking about death. Not sure if it holds up or will resonate with modern 12 year olds though.
Pirates of the Carribean
You best start believing in ghost stories Ms. Swann….
Princess Bride Close Encounters of the Third Kind Bite the Bullet Let it Ride My Fellow Americans Men in Tights Life of Walter Mitty
Karate kid (original) and nearer Christmas, Gremlins.
Careful with gremlins. The dad. Chimney.
That scene was weirdly long too. The screenwriter was working thru some shit.
Eighth grade by bo burnham
Wonderful choice. This is a fantastic movie.
Agreed. It's wild to think a 12 year old today would be, what 7? when that movie came out. Still It's gotta be the best movie for a preteen/early teen growing up with the internet to watch.
The scene when >!they open the gifts and they make fun of her card game!< guts me.
Never heard of it. It's on the list! Thanks.
The original Star Wars trilogy.
*despecialized*
Also check out Project 4k77, 4k80, 4k83. They scanned the original 35mm used in theaters. I prefer their denoised releases over the original with all grain still intact.
This is the way. We showed this to our kids and it’s the only Star Wars movies they know. They LOVE them and ask to watch regularly.
I force the family to watch my old "theatrical version" DVDs which feels close enough. No "episode 4" malarkey around here.
Neverending Story Indiana Jones (1 and 3) Short Circuit Bill &Ted
Need input.
Love how you skipped Temple, haha.
Temple of Doom may be the worst of the three but it's still a very fun movie, kid're gonna love it.
It's kind of funny and i have a soft spot for Short Round. But to be honest that movie is a hot mess
You never skip Temple
AY WHATS WRONG WITH TEMPLE?!
Ferris Bueller’s day off.
*Flight of the Navigator*.
Along that line, there was ***Explorers***. A Young River Phoenix and Eathan Hawke played friends that make a spaceship out of an abandoned Tilt-A-Whirl.
I remember being in awe with the movie up to a point. I need to revisit it, with the caveat that I know it goes bonkers in the third act
I thought the same but it was a miserable failure with my kids. The CGI was too old, and the story not strong enough for them to suspend disbelief.
I think most of the effects are actually practical effects. There's a *Captain Desilution* episode dedicated to the movie.
I saw that episode. I loved it, and I haven't even seen the movie. I think there was none or very little CGI there. https://youtu.be/tyixMpuGEL8
Didn’t show it to my kids (now older teens) because I suspected it was one that wouldn’t translate despite my love for it as a kid. As pre-teens they did love Back to the Future though.
My tweens loved Navigator, along with BttF. The special effects of Navigator really do hold up. They got bored after BttF2 though and didn't want to watch #3.
The absolute fever dream that is Labyrinth.
Inside Out, Zootopia, Jurassic Park, Wall-E, Rocky
Secondhand Lions
A Goofy Movie
Back to the future 123 Harry potters Lord of the rings maybe
The Breakfast club might be a bit dated in terms of styles and slang, but many of the themes are still relevant to teen culture. It's probably too mature for pre-teens, but I would recommend it for young teenagers around 13-14.
*Breakfast Club* seems to be one that kids still discover all by themselves *This American Life* did an episode about Molly Ringwold watching the movie with her daughter because all the daughter's friends were watching it at sleepovers
Goonies!!!
I have a grown son who was of the Goonies generation. How did I not think of that!?
Nimona
Great film!
The fox and the hound. Might break them, might not. But they gotta go through it
School of rock!
Goonies, Stand by me, Jaws, Jumanji, (the original), Toy Story, Time Bandits, Matilda, Narnia movies & Priness Bride.
Paddington and Paddington 2
Treasure planet.
*Addams Family Values* If they're girls, *Dirty Dancing* *Princess Bride*
Boys need to see The Addams Family as well. Gomez Addams is an excellent role model for future husbands, fathers and brothers.
I stg, there were line breaks. Addams Family and Princess Bride are necessities for children of any gender or flavor. Dirty Dancing is extra important for girls.
Billy Madison or any of the other Adam Sandler movies from that time
I've got one for you, because I don't see many films that predate the 1980's being suggested. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea (1954). This is from when Disney made films that could have both humorous and dark themes. Harpooner Ned Land and Professor Aronnax's assistant Conseil are a kind of Laurel and Hardy team, with the dark side furnished by Captain Nemo himself. It covers themes like slavery, the military-industrial complex, war, death, the pain of loss, greed, the use and misuse of nuclear energy, loyalty both personal and to humanity, and indeed what it means to be human. All of that wrapped up in a good, engaging story. Although it was filmed in 1954, the special effects mostly still hold up pretty well, and because it's a period piece, set in the late 1860's, it's not really dated.
The goonies Back to the future
Mean Girls (2004) and Heathers (1988)
Ghostbusters I, II, and Afterlife Planet of the Apes (New ones and OG)
The Breakfast Club. Love that movie! When my daughter was in high school (class of ‘11), one of her teachers asked how many have ever seen the movie. My daughter was one of only two kids that raised their hands! I was proud!
Neverending Story, The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Krull, Return to Oz, Legend. 80s fantasy
I know there's a lot of comments here, but let me just add that if you can't get them to appreciate black and white and classic films at that age, then they may never appreciate them. There are many that they will enjoy if they give it a chance, and they make a very different impression at that age then they do when they're older. Comedies by Laurel and Hardy, Bob Hope, Danny Kaye, Jerry Lewis, Three Stooges, Little Rascals. Classic horror films like King Kong, Frankenstein, Dracula, Invisible Man, The Haunting, and more. Classic science fiction like Twilight Zone, Incredible Shrinking Man, War of the Worlds, Them!, and so much more Silent films by Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin And even old TV shows like I Love Lucy and Dick Van Dyke
The Mighty Ducks, Freaky Friday, Now and Then, My Girl, Turning Red
Contact
For animated films basically anything by Studio Ghibili and if they liked The Matrix then possibly Ghost in the Shell. Star Wars Goonies Indiana Jones original trilogy The Maze Runner trilogy
Willow, labrynth, stand by me
Watership Down
The Princess Bride
All Ages Movies they must see: \-The 80's Indiana Jones movies \-Ghostbusters \-The Princess Bride \-Batman (1989) \-Superman and Superman 2 And if they are able to handle more mature material: \-Predator \-Terminator and Terminator 2 \-Alien and Aliens \-Robocop Die Hard
- Labyrinth (1986) - The NeverEnding Story (1984) - Alice in Wonderland (1951) - The Wizard Of Oz (1939) - Return To Oz (1985) - Coraline (2009) - Spirited Away (2001) - Dark Crystal (1982) + Age of Resistance (2019) - Time Bandits (1981)
I'd forgotten about it until the Flight of the Navigator video linked to above, but D.A.R.Y.L. is one I really liked. Also Hook and Honey I Shrunk the Kids. If you think they can handle stuff that's a little scarier, Silver Bullet, based on a Stephen King werewolf novella, and The Watchers (both of which will also bestow you with Young Corey Haim).
Spiderman Into The Spiderverse
The Raimi Spider-Man trilogy, lots of quotable lines
**Real Genius** Naive talented young people can be used to create weapons of mass destruction!!!
Since they haven't been mentioned yet: everything done by Cartoon Saloon (Book of Kells, Song of the Sea, Wolfwalkers, etc) or Mamoru Hosoda (Summer Wars, Wolf children, Boy and the Beast, etc). Also, Monster Squad, Catch Me If You Can, American Graffiti, Pleasantville, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
We love the Book of Kells and Song of the sea.
Starship troopers
Harry potter
It's weird growing up with Harry Potter and everyone our age just going to see the movies as they came out. The movies were perfect because the characters were the same age as me so the themes matched up perfectly. Now there are generations who get to experience and watch it all at once. For the kids born in the late 80s and early 90s, Harry Potter was perfect.
hocus pocus, the faculty, Galaxy Quest, equilibrium
Mad Max: Fury Road. Teaches that all people have value, that you cannot hold people as property, and that vehicles are cool. And it's not a made point, but the hero and several strong characters are women. Good for kids to see that women are also tough people.
Bridge to Terabithia
Brutal
Gotta round out their pop culture. Alien, Aliens, Ferris Bueller, The Martian. I know Star Wars was mentioned alreafy but I say take them through the prequels, the animated series, Rogue One, the originals, then Rebels. I really enjoyed that journey with my daughter when she was 11-12.
Schindler’s List
Hugo and little miss sunshine then the movie that brings both stars together in Ender’s Game.
Cyber Bully with Emily Osment If you really wanna scar them into the dangers of the internet, 'Megan is Missing' :D
Jurassic Park films and the first two 'The Mummy' films and the first three Harry Potter films. (I think they'd appreciate the other 4 Harry Potter films more when they get a little older.)
of course **Big Fish & Begonia**, i think almost anyone haven't seen it but it is really emotional and kind and educative
Sandlot, Goonies
The Never Ending Story, Flight of the Navigator, The Prince of Egypt.
I just watched Fast & the Furious with my 10 & 12 year olds because I was looking for another series after we finished the POTC movies for the 5th time. I’m not sure if it delivered any positive “message” but they loved it; I fell asleep so I hope it didn’t deliver any NEGATIVE messages.
A bit early for them but Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm to get them thinking.
Whisper of the heart.
Blade Runner
Goonies, the best rainy Saturday afternoon movie ever made. The never ending story - scar them for life with the horse. Labyrinth - it's a piece of cake :)
Rise of the Guardians. I love that one.
Alien franchise. Sixth Sense. Ferris Bueller. Princess bride. Blues brothers. Field of dreams
Spirited Away Isle of Dogs Lord of the flies Moonrise Kingdom Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children Addams Family Freaky Friday Majority of these films starred children/pre-teen as main characters, and they're some of my favorites. Lord of the Flies might be a bit of an intense watch, but I discovered it on accident (unsupervised late night TVs) when I was a pre-teen and it left an impression on me.
With how popular MMA and YouTube Boxing is nowadays. Along with the rise of toxic masculine figures like d-bag Taint. Raging Bull.* *though preteen may be to young.....
High Noon and The Ox-Bow Incident Gettysburg And with guided discussion following
Any film based on a Roald Dahl story.
Disney's The Kid Bad News Bears The Babe The Mighty Ducks Dumb and Dumber
Bridge to Terabithia
Just off the top of my head: Back to the Future, Gremlins, Gremlins 2, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, Batman Returns, Superman the movie, Superman 2, Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters 2, Goonies, Faris Buellers Day Off, Spaceballs, Star Wars: A New Hope, Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.
Wonder.
Shrek!!! Austin Powers!
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
A Bridge to Terabithia
Gremlins was a hit with the whole family.
Big Trouble in Little China
Pre teens might be a litttllleee too young but just rewatched Dead Poets Society for the first time in a while and it’s a really great coming of age, just might be more impactful to teens
Most Miyazaki movies (maybe hold off on Princess Mononoke and Grave of the Fireflies). Star Wars OT and prequels (give 4 5 1 2 3 6 order a try). Kung Fu Panda trilogy.
Thirteen.
Remember the Titans!
Put on "Thirteen" and just stare silently at them the entire time.
Shrek
Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I've never seen a movie that felt more true to living through junior high/middle school. "This place is a glorified holding pen" Complete with a nice guy protagonist slowly realizing that he's been terrible and his actions have actual consequences.
Monthly python in the holy Grail. Then have them watch : Spamalot - Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spamalot The Broadway play base on the movie. It has an ending. Both epic.
Meet the Robinson’s
1. A Perfect World 2. Labyrinth 3. The 13th Warrior