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Movies for Children

This year marks the 25^th anniversary of the oldest and largest Family Film Festival in the United States. The USA Film Festival recognizes that film is the most easily accessible art form and is a great teaching tool. With a mission to enhance literature, the film festival recognizes family films with an array of activities to entertain folks in the Dallas area.

Some calendars mention “Kid Film Week” but the celebration marking “KidFilm Week” is being held Jan 6-25.   In recognizing the value of family films, I wanted to pass along some resources to locate quality entertainment for the youngsters that grace your life.

The New York Times Essential Library offers “100 Recommended Children’s Movies.”

We all may recognize movie ratings but do we really understand how they are determined and what they mean? The Motion Picture Association of America answers those questions and more. The Internet Movie Database (IMDb)  provides a wealth of information on movies including content, cast, and crew. Search by genre, title, or favorite star. The sidebar also offers links to movies coming out this week, coming out soon and those being released on DVD. Each movie has a page listing various details about the movie and its production. On the sidebar is a link for “Parents Guide” which reveals details that allow adults to make an informed decision about what their kids see. For example, “The Princess Bride” is a personal favorite and one I enjoyed with my children. The parent guide describes any reference to sex, violence, profanity, gore, alcohol, drugs, smoking, as well as scenes that may frighten little ones.

Now that you are armed and prepared, enjoy quality entertainment and celebrate KidFilm Week in your own neighborhood by taking the crew to a theatre or have a movie night at home. An even better idea: read a great book with your family and then watch the movie!

 

Books to Film – Many libraries offer lists of movies based on books and most search engines can help you locate various lists. Wikipedia has two good lists started, even if they are admittedly incomplete.