Alan Charlton offers his ‘strictly personal’ list of films for children

In response to a previous column, a B.C. Catholic reader suggests I might offer a list of films suitable for children. In fact, this is a decidedly daunting task. To begin with, one needs to avoid redundancy.

To suggest films from the Disney studio, such as Frozen or even older productions such as Bambi, is merely to suggest the obvious. This is also true of Pixar productions, especially the brilliant Toy Story series.

Similarly, few children will not have been exposed to The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, the Harry Potter series, or The Sound of Music. What would be appropriate is to suggest films that may have been overlooked or forgotten, even by grandparents and parents.

However, even here there is some difficulty as those guardians, desperate to find something to entertain the children in times of social isolation, clearly wish to show their charges films which may seem to be age-appropriate, but which are not morally so. There is sometimes a difference between what children want to watch and what one wants them to watch. So, for example, I am sure many people would include on a list of children’s films Home Alone – a film I regarded with distaste almost amounting to horror when I reviewed it on its release. I see nothing comical or entertaining in watching a child inflict pain and torture on others, no matter how reprehensible those others may be. However, this may be an unpopular view coming from a person who as a child thought that the traditional Punch and Judy show was horribly violent, a reaction which extended even to the antics of Road Runner and The Three Stooges. 

With these caveats in mind, I have come up with a strictly personal list of films which I would want to show to children, though even here there may be some difficulty in accessibility. Not all of them would be available in the public library, even when the library returns to opening. In fact, some may not be available at all, except by purchase.

First and foremost, I would recommend the 2000 version of The Railway Children, based on Nesbit’s novel of the same name. This delightful, charming, and beautifully mounted film has received universal acclaim. A previous version, not quite as successful, is certainly available online, but the more recent version is preferable. 

And in the vein of films that may ultimately lead children to read the original source novels, the 1946 version of Great Expectations, with Alec Guinness as Fagan, although it is in black and white, remains my favourite of the several film versions of the Dickens novel. While the film version of the musical adaptation, Oliver, can be an engaging introduction to the book, it does present a far too sunny version of a novel based on the poor social conditions of the 19th century. And if one wishes to engage children with Dickens’ novels, the 2002 version of Nicholas Nickleby is also well worth a viewing.

Of other films which are highly appropriate for family viewing, few can equal The Black Stallion. Issued in 1979, it is one of the best films ever made about animals. 

It is a lifetime ago that I watched Lassie Come Home, but this 1943 film remains one of my fondest childhood memories – despite its tear-inciting moments. By contrast, the far more cheerful The Gods Must Be Crazy is a gloriously comical entertainment which might well be just the ticket for all in these rather stressful times. 

Equally entertaining is the Australian Strictly Ballroom, a film not merely about ballroom dancing, but also about challenging traditions, doing so in a vastly entertaining fashion. However, if one does not mind being reminded of sadder things, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a moving film based on the Holocaust, one from which children could learn much. 

In a different vein, but also arising from World War II, Chicken Run is a delightfully entertaining animated film. One will appreciate its story line more if one first sees The Wooden Horse, the 1950 film about men escaping from a prisoner of war camp. 

It may be redundant to suggest WALL-E, as it is relatively recent and well-known, but it certainly teaches a timely lesson on environmental responsibility.

Finally, for children with a less than lengthy attention span, I would recommend the National Film Board’s impressive animated short, What on Earth? a clever comment on our dependence on cars, and the magical, virtually silent The Red Balloon from 1956.

Clearly, the foregoing represent a very personal choice of films which are perhaps generally less often viewed. In all cases, I believe that the films have cinematic merit as well as wide audience appeal. The children will, I am sure, find all of them well worth a visit. And, I believe that the adults will be similarly entertained. Good viewing to all!