Make Time For Movies

Best Family-Friendly Movies You've Never Seen (at least not for a while):

Mouse Hunt - Two brothers (Nathan Lane and British comedian Lee Evans) inherit a dilapidated old mansion from their father and soon discover its worth millions. However, a tenacious little mouse is about to ruin all of their plans to restore and sell the place. This is one of my favorite movies, and one that few people have heard of (it came out in 1998 by DreamWorks). It features brilliant physical comedy (slapstick), and a brief, but memorable, appearance by Christopher Walken as an exterminator. Rated PG. There is a bit of violence and my kids used to get "worried" on occasion about the mouse's well-being (but everything turns out fine). I sometimes skip the opening scene where the Mayor eats and then throws up a cockroach, and you may want to as well. But this is a hilarious, charming movie that we watch over and over again.

Annie - One of my favorites from when I was a little girl! I was not looking forward to watching it again, though, figuring it was cheesy, obnoxious and out-of-date. However, I found myself cracking up and of course, singing along with the kids. There are a few fast-forward musical numbers (like "Let's Go to the Movies"). But all in all, it sucks us all in every time and I've found so many new things that I like about it (now that I get the adult humor). The best thing about the movie by far is the wonderful performance by Carol Burnett, one of my favorite comedians of all time. Her interpretation of Miss Hanigan's lines and every move she makes is nothing short of hilarious. I had forgot just how good she is! There are also some great lines about Democrats and Republicans (remember when Daddy Warbucks and Annie go to visit Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt?), and they were surprising fitting for today's times. Remember who plays Daddy Warbucks in the movie? If you said Telly Savales, you are just remembering the bald head. Daddy Warbucks is played by a bald but beautiful Albert Finney actually. (Some of his most recent and memorable roles were in Erin Brokovich and Big Fish, and he recently passed away. What a loss.) The scene between Burnett and Finney is heaven. I recommend that you give this movie a fresh look, and introduce it to your kids. Rated PG. (The scene on the bridge at the end is a bit scary.)

The Adventures of Milo and Otis - I hope everyone knows this 1986-89 film (it took four years to complete), directed by Masanori Hata and narrated by the late Dudley Moore. There are no people in this movie, no talking animals, no animation - just a bunch of real animals, namely a cat and a pug, who go on an adventure. Moore creates the voices for all of the animals in the movie, and they are sweet and funny. The cinematography and animals in the movie are incredible. Rated G.

Babe - The animals do talk and there are people in this 1995 film, but it's simply wonderful and has a very poignant message about self worth and acceptance (summed up by the main character in one memorable line - "That'll do, Pig"). It's easy to forget that this family film was nominated for six Academy Awards, including best picture, director (Chris Noonan, who recently directed the movie Mrs. Potter about Beatrix Potter), screenplay, and won the Oscar for its visual effects - that is, until you watch it again. Rated G.

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World - This 1963 movie is a marathon (2 hours and 41 minutes)! But it contains some of the funniest performances and slapstick scenes ever filmed. (In fact, my acting professor in college used scenes from the movie to demonstrate "clowning" and physical comedy at its best.) I'm waiting until my son is just a bit older and able to watch at least parts of it, and hoping he won't try to imitate many of the scenes. The cast list is unbelievable: Spencer Tracy, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Mickey Rooney, Jonathan Winters, Don Knotts, Jerry Lewis, and on and on and on. Watch this soon - with your friends, with your kids or alone. You can't help but laugh, I promise. Rated G.

What's Up, Doc? - Another classic screwball comedy, this one starring a very young, very adorable Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, and Madeline Kahn, and the streets of San Francisco.  It's no wonder that I love this movie so much - it was written by Buck Henry (The Graduate, To Die For, etc).  Here's just a sample of the dialogue:  "My name is Howard Bannister and I'm from Ames, Iowa. It all started when I bumped my head in the taxicab on my way in from the airport. I went to the drugstore for some aspirin and he tried to charge me for a radio because she said her husband would pay for it. But I didn't of course. Anyway, she ripped my jacket and then Eunice, my fiancé, came along. But she kept calling me Steve. Not my fiancé, my wife, or rather the one who isn't my wife."  My husband couldn't understand why I rented this to watch with the kids, but I knew that Hayden would love the physical comedy (and he did).

The NeverEnding Story - I thought this movie was the coolest thing since Twinkies when I first saw it back in high school (I know, I'm dating myself by saying that). This 1984 film was directed and co-written by Wolfgang Petersen (The Perfect Storm) and is perfect for all of those Harry Potter/Artemis Fowl fans out there. It features a young boy who finds a mysterious book, and discovers as he reads it, that he is altering the fate of its characters (the warrior Atreyu, the Empress, racing snails, luckdragons, elves, etc.). Rated PG. (Note:  I think some of the characters or scenes of danger may be too much for children under the age of 6 or 7.)