Parents need to know that this documentary prequel to the popular series Meerkat Manor isn't for the faint of heart, as it features upsetting scenes of meerkats being hunted and killed by predators and, in one case, being run over by a truck. In one emotional sequence, a baby meerkat is bitten by a cobra and suffers a sad, slow, labored death. Despite the voice-over narration, kids may be confused by the animal family's infighting. They may also have questions about the mating scenes (though they look more like cuddling than anything else) and resulting litters of pups. Overall, it's pretty intense for very young viewers, but for grade-school kids, it's a great introduction to the realities of life in the wild -- though you'll want to be ready to field queries about nature's "survival of the fittest."

Families can talk about the way things work in the wild. What daily struggles do the meerkats face? How do they work together to ensure the family's survival? How do their individual roles reflect their personal strengths? How does the movie make them seem more like real "characters" than a group of animals? Does that make what happens to them affect you more? Families can also discuss leadership. Why is it important to have leadership within a group? What happens when leadership dissolves? What qualities define a good leader?