5 Hollywood Movies to Watch with Your Children

With the lockdown confining everyone to their homes, families get to spend a substantial amount of time together. To help you pass the time, here are some meaningful movies that the family can watch together.

1. Inside Out (2015)

A highly mature piece of cinema wrapped up in animation and simple dialogues to disguise itself as a children’s movie, Inside Out features five emotions – Joy, Anger, Sadness, Disgust, Fear living as actual living beings inside every person’s brain, with each emotion running the controls whenever its need arises. The extreme level of imagination and deep attention to detail, along with an uproariously funny screenplay make this film a must-watch and shall undoubtedly have a moral impact on your children.

2. Lion (2016)

A touching story of love, separation and attachment, spread across two continents, Lion is one of those rare films which shall tug at the strings of your heart. The plot centers around Saroo, a five-year-old boy residing in the slums of Calcutta who gets separated from his family. He ultimately ends up being adopted by a family in Australia. He grows up with them, but flashes of his previous family still haunt him, and he goes on a quest to find them. The simple dialogue and the sensitive parental relationships showcased make it a perfect dinnertime movie with your kids.

3. Toy Story franchise (1995-2019)

The massively successful Toy Story franchise, chronicling the lives of a group of toys that come alive whenever humans are out of sight, has spanned four movies and been a favorite among both adults and kids alike since the first edition in 1995. The creators manage to effortlessly weave in serious issues like separation and detachment into the movie while simultaneously retaining a friendly and light-hearted mood throughout its length. The scenes and characters shall stay with you long after you’ve finished watching it.

4. Up (2009)

Considered one of the best animated movies ever and showered with multiple accolades when first released in 2009, Up is again, a movie which explores mature and sensitive aspects of life - from old age to divorce from wildlife conservation - all the while retaining a light and fun atmosphere, never making itself too serious or too preachy for the younger generation. Up chronicles the life of a grumpy old widower and an enthusiastic young boy scout who end up going on a life-changing adventure together.

5. Home Alone (1990)

Made three decades ago, Home Alone still manages to glue viewers to the television whenever it’s broadcasted on any channel, in any country. The movie is a hilarious account of a mischievous young boy left alone at home and two burglars who try to break into the house thinking that no one’s present. They find themselves in several unflattering situations as the boy ends up outsmarting every move they make.

Apart from these, there are several other movies which you can watch with your children – Finding Nemo, E.T Extra Terrestrial, Paddington, Frozen, Moana, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Lion King, Monsters Inc., Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, Kung Fu Panda franchise, Cars franchise and the Shrek franchise. These works of cinema shall keep your children hooked to the screen as well as teach them priceless moral values, without directly exposing them to sensitive or violent issues.

Stay Tuned, Stay Relevant!