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One of the most enjoyable things to do with kids is watching family movies. And I’m sure it’s not just you Momma who enjoys, but your kids love it more!
Now if you’re thinking just what to watch, or still filling up your list with kid-friendly movies, here’s a list of films that I personally love, and which I know your kids will love too!
If you need a page to list down all the movies you want to watch, look no further, this list is yours!
It’s a combination of NON ANIMATED and ANIMATED movies.
Non animated is when the human characters are, well… human. And the animals look like real too. And sometimes they are!
Animated… the humans are like drawings with life in them, and everything else is also like drawings.
You get the difference, right? I’m really not good in definitions.
Ah well… here are our top recommended family movies! Make sure you have some bags of popcorn ready!
1. The Sound of Music (1965)
This was my top favorite movie when I was just a little kid.
I love the songs and the music! I can still hum and sing the songs to myself (especially that Doe a deer part), even up to this day.
And to think that this was based on a true to life story of the von Trapp family. I love that fact!
Of course, I didn’t know that back then. All I knew were the songs and the mischief of the kids, and how Fraulein Maria captivated their hearts, and even that of their widowed Daddy.
2. Chronicles of Narnia movie series
The story tells of the adventure of four siblings in Narnia, a world totally different from ours.
Animals could talk in Narnia. Yep! Just like humans.
There are so many things I love about Narnia! Not so much about the talking animals really, but more about the story.
You’re going to learn a lot from it. I think the biggest one is that – you’ve got to trust God to fight your battles. Because, on your own, you can’t do it.
This is repeatedly demonstrated in the story when every battle is almost lost without Aslan.
The series has three movies, namely:
- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
- Prince Caspian
- The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
I recommend watching all three of these movies as I know your family will love all of them!
Get the complete set at Amazon.
3. Cinderella (2015)
Oh who wouldn’t love Cinderella?!
I tell you, Cinderella was my favorite princess as a kid. And if your daughter loves princesses, she’s going to love her too!
Especially when Cinderella is not a drawing. Because this film is actual live people! And you’re going to love that, especially the ballroom part where she gets to dance with the prince!
4. Garfield
If you want to laugh out loud, this is for you! Oh I’m sure your kids love cats and dogs… so they’re going to love this movie! They’re going to see their cat in Garfield, and their dog in Odie.
We have a very fat cat right now that every time I look at it, I remember Garfield. Color’s not like Garfield, but the size… yeah the fat size definitely resembles Garfield!
I so love how Garfield dances, and moves, and the fact that he’s so lazy and he’s got a rat friend… oh that sure adds to the fun!
There are two movies in the series:
- Garfield: The Movie
- Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties
Get Garfield: The Movie at Amazon.
Get Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties at Amazon
5. 101 Dalmatians
If Garfield is primarily for cat lovers, 101 Dalmatians is for dog lovers.
How would you react when your puppies were kidnapped only for their fur to be used into coats?
Of course you’d be enraged! And you’ll do everything to find your little best friends! That is where this story revolves around. Only that, the dogs in this film are smart enough to thwart their evil kidnappers.
102 Dalmatians is the movie’s sequel. You can also get it at Amazon.
6. Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast was among the fairy tales of our bedtime stories as a kid. Hence, when I learned that they were filming it, I knew it was going to be one of the best family movies ever.
The classic fairy tale comes to life in this movie, with real people! And they are singing too, making it even more interesting.
How the beautiful Belle and the ugly Beast became friends, and even more than that, despite the beast’s form is a lesson in itself. It is worth noting that we should not judge a person by his appearance.
Your kids will also be amazed by the household objects talking, dancing, and singing!
Get Beauty and the Beast at Amazon.
7. Alice in Wonderland
This movie tells the adventures of a young lady named Alice, who falls down a rabbit hole, taking her to a different world.
The place is presently ruled by an oppressive queen – the Red Queen. Alice is foretold to fight the queen’s champion – a monster bird, and thus restore peace to the land.
But how’s she going to do that when Alice have lost her “being Alice” upon growing up?
Get Alice in Wonderland at Amazon.
In the second film, Alice returns to Wonderland and must race through time to save the Mad Hatter’s family and stop the Red Queen from altering the past.
Get Alice through the Looking Glass at Amazon.
8. Meet the Robinsons
The story revolves around a boy Lewis who met a stranger named Wilbur – who claims he came from the future. Lewis is then transported to the future through a time machine.
There he meets Wilbur’s family – the Robinsons… a really weird family. But Lewis will later learn that there is more to them than meets the eye.
I so love the story of this movie! And this is where I got one of my earliest motto in life – Keep moving forward.
Get Meet the Robinsons at Amazon.
9. Ratatouille
What can you say about a rat who cooks? Well… that’s what you’ll see in this film.
The story revolves around a rat and a boy who formed an extraordinary friendship. Our little rat friend wants to make a difference through cooking. And he cooks real good!
The boy, though he works in a restaurant, do not have a single talent in cooking!
Under the instructions of his little rat friend, the boy is able to cook lots of delicious food. But what happens when everybody finds out that the rat is the real cook all along?
10. Prince of Egypt
Prince of Egypt revolves around the story of Moses – how he grew up as a prince. And how his heart changed from that adored and privileged prince to a humble servant of God who would later save the Hebrews from the oppression of the Egyptians.
This movie is one creative way of telling a Biblical story, with singing and music that will surely capture the heart of every member of your family.
More importantly, this is a way to familiarize your kids as early as may be to the stories of the Bible, and young as they are, get them interested in the Bible.
Get Prince of Egypt at Amazon.
11. How to Train Your Dragon
The Vikings’ mortal enemy are the dragons.
But Hiccup, son of the vikings’ chief, befriends a dragon which he named Toothless. This makes him realize that what the villagers knew about dragons are all wrong, and these flying monsters are simply misunderstood creatures.
But how’s he gonna prove that to everyone, and most importantly, to his father?
The story has developed two more films in addition to the first one, making this a three-part movie series.
I haven’t watched Part 3 yet, but having watched the two previous films, I think those are enough to make me say that the third is gonna be worth it too!
Get How to Train Your Dragon 1, 2 and 3, all in one package at Amazon.
12. Frozen
Who doesn’t know Frozen these days, eh?
I remember watching its first film on wide screen, alone. It was those times when I felt like I couldn’t find meaning in my job, and in my life in general. Like I wasn’t where I should be. I cried so hard when Elsa began singing the famous Let It Go song.
Oh well… It’s just me!
This movie is going to show your kids how important it is to have a good relationship with their siblings. Later in their lives, there will be moments when the only one they can count on is a brother or a sister.
Better start creating a strong bond now while they are still kids.
13. Ice Age Movie Series
I remember my Dad recommending its first installment to us back then. He said we would love it.
And we did and had great fun!
The Ice Age story tells of an unusual friendship between a mammoth, a sloth, and a tiger. Though they have their differences, they were able to move past that, choosing to stick together as a herd in the end.
As the herd faced more and more adventures over the next films, their family also grew. And I tell you, your whole family is going to have lots and lots of fun and laughter watching all the Ice Age movies!
The series now has a total of five films.
- Ice Age (2002)
- The Meltdown
- Dawn of the Dinosaurs
- Continental Drift
- Collision Course
Get all these Ice Age movies in one set, at Amazon.
14. Mulan
Mulan is the story of a young lady whose personality just won’t fit to the traditions of her country.
When the Huns attack China, every family is required to enlist a male member to the army. Mulan’s father is forced to take responsibility, as he is the only man in their family. Unfortunately, he is already old and weak.
Mulan can’t bear that her father enlists in the army again, so she takes his place, disguising as a man. And that’s the beginning of her adventures, and of her quest to follow who she really is, even if it is contrary to her country’s long-held tradition.
In my opinion, the theme of this movie is more for teenagers than for kids. But with you by your kids’ side Momma, they will enjoy this movie too! Especially when the characters are singing, and there’s a cricket and a tiny red dragon to add to the fun!
Get Mulan & Mulan II at Amazon.
15. Cars
Your kids will definitely love Lightning McQueen. Not only because he’s a talking car, but he’s fast, relentless, charming, and funny!
There are also life lessons which the movie portrays. Like when your life takes a detour and you think you’re lost, that’s usually an opportunity to know yourself even better.
And when you’re in a competition, it’s normal to strive for the grand prize. But getting to the top is not all that matters. There are more important things than winning.
Those are good lessons that your kids can get from the movie. And you Momma, are going to help them understand that.
There are three installments to this movie – all of which your kids will enjoy!
Get Cars 1 to 3 at Amazon, including Planes I and II in this bundle!
Planes is another movie. If there’s talking cars in cars, then there’s talking planes in Planes!
16. Brave
Brave centers on mother-daughter relationship. If you’re celebrating mother’s day, you definitely have to include this in your to-do list!
Merida is both a princess and an heiress. Being such, she must learn to be a proper queen and get married! But how’s she going to be like that when she always wants to be outside, riding her horse, practicing her exceptional archery skills?
Tensions arise between mother and daughter. Then things begin to spiral out of control when Merida wished something for her mom without knowing its real gravity.
17. Finding Nemo
If Brave centers on mother-daughter relationship, Finding Nemo is all about father-son relationship. And yes, if it’s father’s day, you must include this in your to-do list!
Marlin is a clown fish who is overprotective of his son Nemo. And you can’t blame him. Nemo is all he’s got after having lost his wife and all her other eggs in a barracuda attack.
When Nemo was captured by a diver, Marlin’s world crushed and changed in an instant. You’ll see here how a father would do everything, and fight against all odds for his son.
And what parent would not do as Marlin did when his/her son gets lost?
Get Finding Nemo & Finding Dory in one pack at Amazon.
Finding Dory is the movie’s sequel. This time, it’s Dory who gets lost.
18. Monsters University
Monsters are scary. But not in this movie! Your kids will find them cute and funny! I tell you, there aren’t many family movies where you’ll find funny monsters.
Monsters here have one duty – to learn how to scare kids. Kids’ screams power up their world so being a scarer is the top dream for every monster. And there’s a school for that – Monsters University.
What happens then, when you want to be a scarer, but you just happened to be… not scary?
Get Monsters University & Monsters, Inc. in one package at Amazon.
Monsters, Inc. is the sequel to Monsters University. Our favorite monsters are now working here. And that’s when they discover the biggest twist to the scaring world.
19. Tangled
I loved Rapunzel as a kid, thanks again to bedtime stories. So, when I saw this, I knew it’s going to be included in my list of best family movies!
Tangled is sort of like a remake of Rapunzel, with a little twist. And it’s coupled with singing that your whole family will fall in love with!
Plus… there’s a horse that’s strong, funny, and seems to have a mind of its own – you can’t help yourselves but laugh!
20. The Incredibles
At a time when the public is against Superheroes, Mr. Incredible and his wife Elastigirl, and the other supers, are forced to lie low, hide their identities and blend to the normal world.
But you know that blending to the normal world is just not a thing for supers. Thankfully not, because who doesn’t love superheroes anyway?
Your kids will love this movie! And we’re not just talking about adult superheroes here, but this is about a whole family of superheroes!
Yep! From Dad, to Mom, and to kids!
Get The Incredibles from Amazon.
This family of superheroes returns in another installment.
Get The Incredibles 2 at Amazon.
Enjoy watching with your kids!
Your kids are going to love it when you watch movies with them. So don’t leave them in front of the TV while you go do other stuff. These family movies are best watched together!
Also, your kids may not understand some parts of a film, so you can explain it when they all get that puzzled look.
Most important of all, once you start a routine of watching family movies with your kids, they’re going to look forward to that. And when they have grown up, they’re going to look back at that!
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There are a ton of great movie ideas here! My favorites are Ratatouille, 101 Dalmations, and How to Train Your Dragon. This list will keep any family busy for weeks.