by M Sinclair Stevens. November 29, 2003.
I don't remember being impressed with very many movies as a small child. I knew my mom loved Shirley Temple movies when she was child, but unless they showed one on TV, there wasn't any chance to see any. My parents took us to the annual Disney flicks, but the only one I really liked was the dark and unpopular "The Sleeping Beauty". ) I saw "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" at the end of term in the second grade; and it haunted me for years. Since I grew up before videotape, most of the movies I saw were on TV. I was always thrilled when the theme for NBC Saturday Night at the Movies appeared on the screen. What I watched over and over depended a lot on late night TV: "The Time Machine", "The Great Escape". But for some reason, I always hated "The Wizard of Oz" as a child. Maybe because they showed it every holiday--as if there weren't any other great children's movies.
When my son was a child, VHS was the new technology. I knew any movie I took him to might end up in the family collection. So I knew it was important to watch only movies that I would enjoy watching over and over. My measure of a bad kid flick is this: if I can't stand watching it over and over as a parent and an adult, why would I want my kid to see it?
Kids movies these days are designed not so much to spark the imagination as to firestorm over it. If you're tired of taking your children to a two-hour ad for the latest franchise, try one of the movies below.
- National Velvet
- The Princess Bride
- The King of Masks
- The Secret of Roan Inish
- Wallace and Gromit: The First Three Adventures
- Babe
- The Miracle Worker (1962)
- Homeward Bound
- Tonari no Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Kiki's Delivery Service
- Back to the Future
- Chicken Run
- The Little Princess (Shirley Temple)
- Toy Story
- Master and Commander
- Bend it Like Beckham
- Whale Rider
- The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad
- The Yellow Submarine
- Anne of Green Gables
- Sleeping Beauty
What movies did you love as a child, movies that you want to share with your children? Or (if you a bit older) what movies did you share with you child that someday you want to share with your grandchildren?
Honorable Mention
- The Wizard of Oz
- Who Framed Roger Rabbit
- Ever After
- Galaxy Quest
- Big
- The Yearling
- Groundhog Day
- The Sound of Music
Comments
My favorites as a child were Abbott & Costello and old Wolfman and Frankenstein movies.
When I was 9 and living in Albuquerque, while my Dad was off fighter-piloting in Viet Nam, we always watched the Saturday afternoon SciFi movie. I like "Mothra", but I was also intrigued by "the Blob" and various "I Was a Teenage..." movies. My very favorites were "King Kong" and "The Creature from the Black Lagoon". After that I noticed a strong tendency to favor the ugly but sweet "monster" over the hunky "good guy".
My kids liked 'Lady and the Tramp' and 'The Dark Crystal.' They liked them so much I pretty sick of them even today. The VCR allows people to have their favorites any time. Sometimes I think it was better to see movies only every now and again. To have the anticipation of seeing 'The Wizard of Oz' only once, and if you missed it 'too bad,' was part of it's charm.
As a child, The Sound Of Music always made me happy. It was shown each year, usually sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Julie Andrews was so cheery and loveable! The family would gather together to watch it--great fun.
As a mom, I think most of the movies made for kids now are horrid. We did have fun at The Elf, though. For the most part, I'd prefer to stay home and watch Charade, The Good The Bad & The Ugly. or Time Bandits with the kids for the millioneth time.
Our other favorites you've already listed, with the exception of Whale Rider...every scene seemed extremely predictable which made it really boring.
Charles--Good point about anticipation. We have certain holiday movies that we always watch which add to the atmosphere. I did take JQS to see the Wizard of Oz once when it played at the Texas Union theater. It was the only time I ever enjoyed it. Maybe because it was uninterrupted and on the big screen And it seemed much more frightening and thrilling. I guess I do think everyone should see it once, but it will never be a personal favorite. TV just ruined it for me.
Katherine--yeah, forgot about "The Sound of Music". It was so popular when I was growing up and the second time we lived in the Philippines, I remember the local theater troupe doing it. There are certain scenes I really love, but it's not really a favorite. The same with "The King of Siam" which I do remember Mom taking me to see the first time we lived in the Philippines. I haven't watched that in years; I need to check it out and see whether or not it aged well.
Sinclair mentions the theme to "NBC Saturday Night at the Movies." Chances are he hasn't heard that theme in decades, as I haven't -- until just a little while ago. At this site there's a miscellaneous sound file, and at 5:45 into it you can hear the theme, preceeded by the standard NBC peacock intro:
www.tangible-technology.com/a_dig/radioretro.html
At 7 years old, in New York, there was a newspaper strike(at least on some major papers).
The dynamation trailer for The 7th Voyage of Sinbad appeared on television, and that was it!
To this day, I can watch this film at least once
a month, and have every form of the original magnificent and quite rare in those days, soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann.
When originally released at the Roxy in Dec of 1958, my dad took me three times. In wider distribution (RK0) i saw it another six times in various theatres in queens and Long Island. And here I am at fifty four, listening to the extended soundtrack as I write. What do you make
of that!!!!