Home on the Range (PG)

Not a classic, but cute and fun for families.

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About Our Ratings
Common Sense rates it
4
Seen the movie? Review it
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Movie details
  • Studio: Disney, Disney
  • Directed By: Will Finn
  • Cast: Judi Dench, Cuba Gooding Jr.
  • Running Time: 90 minutes
  • Release Date: 04/02/2004
  • Video/DVD Release Date: 09/14/2004
  • Genre: Family and Kids
  • MPAA Rating: PG
  • MPAA Explanation: brief mild rude humor

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that this movie has some peril (no one hurt) and mostly comic action sequences. A roller-coaster-ish ride may be too intense for the youngest children. The movie has brief crude humor, including a quick cross-dressing joke, and some mild language. Some children may be upset by the idea of having a bank foreclose a mortgage and might need to be reassured that their home is safe.

Families can talk about why Mrs. C and Maggie don't get along. How are they different and how are they alike?

Message

Social Behavior:

Strong female characters. Brief mild rude humor.

Consumerism:

Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:

Violence

Characters in some peril.

Sex

Language

Very mild language.

Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Nell Minow

Maggie (voice of Roseanne Barr) is a brassy but warm-hearted cow who arrives at the Patch of Heaven Dairy Farm just as the bank is about to foreclose its mortgage and put it up for sale. Her previous farm was sold after cattle rustler Alameda Slim (voice of Randy Quaid) stole the rest of the herd. Mrs. Calloway (voice of Dame Judi Dench), the highly civilized alpha cow of Patch of Heaven, is offended by Maggie's brash wisecracks, but the other animals are more welcoming. When Maggie comes up with a plan to save the farm, Mrs. Calloway and gentle but tone-deaf Grace (voice of Jennifer Tilly) go along. They meet up with Buck (voice of Cuba Gooding, Jr.), a horse who wants to be a hero, and Lucky Jack, a peg-legged jackrabbit (voice of Charles Haid). The five animals will get in each other's way more often than they help each other, but there are moments of wit and heart and even a thrill or two, along with sparkling musical numbers from Disney's best contemporary composer, Alan Mencken (The Little Mermaid and Aladdin), sung by country stars k.d. lang, Tim McGraw, Bonnie Raitt, and The Bleu Sisters.

Is it any good?

4
I love it when Disney doesn't take itself too seriously. No one tried to reach for the stars or make this into a classic. HOME ON THE RANGE is just a cute little story about some not-so-contented cows who save the day. It modestly aspires to be nothing more than a lot of fun, and it does that job very well.

The style and music of the film harks back to Disney's 1950's featurettes like Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom, Donald in Mathmagic Land, and Pecos Bill. Pearl, the owner of the Patch of Heaven farm (voice of Carole Cook), could be Sluefoot Sue, thirty years later. The characters are vivid, the animation is superb, and the balance between sweet, silly, and exciting is expertly handled.

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Parents and kids say

All Reviews

There are 7 reviews.

Age 8+
0


Posted on 12/06/07 by nospam Adult contributor

not for me

I was very disappointed at the language used. My son watched the movie and started saying shut up and stupid all the time so I decided he wouldnt be watching it. Its not a very good movie anyway. It was kinda lame. It really didnt move me. Also, I think there was too much violence, but it is rated PG....
Age 5+
4


Posted on 07/19/07 by Erindira Adult contributor

Rented it, and never gave it back

We rented this from Blockbuster, and ended up just buying it because we enjoyed it so much. My boys watched it over and over, and laughed every time. It is so nice to have a kid's movie with no death of the mom, or super-scary chase scenes, or other inappropriate material. I thought the whole thing was very delightful, funny, and the soundtrack is great.
Age 5+
4

Posted on 03/25/06 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Very Cute

My kids (5 & 7) have watched this over and over, and they laugh each time.
Age 5+
3


Posted on 11/24/04 by Sotne Adult contributor

A little too much violence

My parents bought this movie for our 4 year old daughter and we watched together on our weekly movie night.<p> It is a cute story, but with a little too much violence, both physical and verbal. I was also dissappointed to see guns in a kids' movie. <p>A lot of it went over my daughter's head but she laughed at the visually funny parts. And we used it as a good starting point for a conversation about hitting and guns. <p>It's an average film, but there are better movies to watch with your kids.
4


Posted on 04/12/04 by rocketgirl Kid contributor, age 10

"Full of fun and laughs"

I really enjoyed seeing this movie with my mom, dad, and 5 year old brother on a Saturday night. One thing that I noticed about it was that no one in the movie really had the complete focus of everyone because you were so wrapped up in action. Each of the charecters were so different that I ended up thinking "how could it get any better?". Although I think that some of the ways that the characters thought ended up being a little too biased, all in all I thought it was a great movie and I would defenetly recomend it as something that could be seen by all ages. Also, as a little bit extra the soundtrack is absolutely fantastic.
4


Posted on 04/12/04 by KoOkYMoNsTa234 Kid contributor, age 13

HOME ON THE RANGE

I recently viewed HOME ON THE RANGE with my brother and dad, and it was very funny. It wasn't a 3 or 4 but 3 1/2 (I put 4). It is off an assembly line of various other Disney movies but it was a joy to watch. (k.d Lang's song is great!!!)
Age 5+
4


Posted on 04/04/04 by lioness57 Adult contributor

Great family movie that spans the sibling gap

We took our 10 year old daughter and 5 year old son to this movie and all of us loved it. Its incredibly well-written, funny, and the animation is a nice departure from the "Pixar-style try to look human" stuff we've come to expect from Toy Story et. al. The animation is painterly and simple. It also doesn't hurt to have k.d. Lang and Bonnie Raitt on the soundtrack (at least for us 40-something moms).

See all 7 reviews >

Adult Reviews

There are 5 reviews.

Age 8+
0


Posted on 12/06/07 by nospam Adult contributor

not for me

I was very disappointed at the language used. My son watched the movie and started saying shut up and stupid all the time so I decided he wouldnt be watching it. Its not a very good movie anyway. It was kinda lame. It really didnt move me. Also, I think there was too much violence, but it is rated PG....
Age 5+
4


Posted on 07/19/07 by Erindira Adult contributor

Rented it, and never gave it back

We rented this from Blockbuster, and ended up just buying it because we enjoyed it so much. My boys watched it over and over, and laughed every time. It is so nice to have a kid's movie with no death of the mom, or super-scary chase scenes, or other inappropriate material. I thought the whole thing was very delightful, funny, and the soundtrack is great.
Age 5+
4

Posted on 03/25/06 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Very Cute

My kids (5 & 7) have watched this over and over, and they laugh each time.
Age 5+
3


Posted on 11/24/04 by Sotne Adult contributor

A little too much violence

My parents bought this movie for our 4 year old daughter and we watched together on our weekly movie night.<p> It is a cute story, but with a little too much violence, both physical and verbal. I was also dissappointed to see guns in a kids' movie. <p>A lot of it went over my daughter's head but she laughed at the visually funny parts. And we used it as a good starting point for a conversation about hitting and guns. <p>It's an average film, but there are better movies to watch with your kids.
Age 5+
4


Posted on 04/04/04 by lioness57 Adult contributor

Great family movie that spans the sibling gap

We took our 10 year old daughter and 5 year old son to this movie and all of us loved it. Its incredibly well-written, funny, and the animation is a nice departure from the "Pixar-style try to look human" stuff we've come to expect from Toy Story et. al. The animation is painterly and simple. It also doesn't hurt to have k.d. Lang and Bonnie Raitt on the soundtrack (at least for us 40-something moms).

Kids Reviews

There are 2 reviews.

4


Posted on 04/12/04 by rocketgirl Kid contributor, age 10

"Full of fun and laughs"

I really enjoyed seeing this movie with my mom, dad, and 5 year old brother on a Saturday night. One thing that I noticed about it was that no one in the movie really had the complete focus of everyone because you were so wrapped up in action. Each of the charecters were so different that I ended up thinking "how could it get any better?". Although I think that some of the ways that the characters thought ended up being a little too biased, all in all I thought it was a great movie and I would defenetly recomend it as something that could be seen by all ages. Also, as a little bit extra the soundtrack is absolutely fantastic.
4


Posted on 04/12/04 by KoOkYMoNsTa234 Kid contributor, age 13

HOME ON THE RANGE

I recently viewed HOME ON THE RANGE with my brother and dad, and it was very funny. It wasn't a 3 or 4 but 3 1/2 (I put 4). It is off an assembly line of various other Disney movies but it was a joy to watch. (k.d Lang's song is great!!!)
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