Handpicked by Our Editors

Matilda
Age 8+
5

Matilda

Why We Recommend It

Clever Matilda handles bullying kids and berating adults with fantastical solutions that bend slightly dark and surreal.

Read our full review
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Common Sense Media's Top-Rated Movies

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WALL-E (2008, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that although this winning Pixar adventure is thoroughly charming and, yes, romantic, the youngest viewers may get a little restless during the atmospheric, virtually dialogue-free first half-hour. They'll still enjoy it, but -- unlike ... read more

Age 5+
WALL-E
5
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March of the Penguins (2005, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that the documentary includes stunning but also occasionally disturbing imagery of penguins walking, mating, and dying. Morgan Freeman narrates as the penguins make their annual march from the Antarctic shore in Antarctica. Some penguins ... read more

Age 6+
March of the Penguins
5
up.jpg
Up (2009, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that this is the second Pixar movie (after The Incredibles) to receive a PG rating, mostly due to a few potentially frightening scenes involving a band of trained talking dogs trying to get rid of the protagonists, some moments where ... read more

Age 6+
Up
5
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The Namesake (2007, Rated PG-13)
Parents Need to Know...

that this mature drama about two generations of a Bengali family living in New York is a great movie to watch with your teens. Like most immigrant narratives, the story includes deaths, births, marriages, break-ups, and other important ... read more

Age 14+
The Namesake
5
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Paranoid Park (2008, Rated R)
Parents Need to Know...

that, despite its focus on skateboarding, this film isn't for kids. It includes a grisly death in which a man falls on train tracks and is cut in half (the imagery is vivid and upsetting). Themes are mature as well, including divorcing ... read more

Age 16+
Paranoid Park
5
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When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2006, Rated NR)
Parents Need to Know...

that this documentary, about Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, is understandably disturbing. There are multiple images of dead, decaying bodies, descriptions of death and suffering during and after the flood, as well as the deaths of ... read more

Age 16+
When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts
5
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Offside (2007, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that this Iranian dramedy explores the gender inequalities that affect that country's young soccer fans. It moves slowly and comes with subtitles, so younger viewers might be bored. But the story -- girls disguise themselves as boys to ... read more

Age 14+
Offside
5
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Millions (2005, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that this is a little salty language in this film, and a child is threatened by a burglar but there is no violence and overall this is a fine film for families. American kids may need help understanding the thick British accents. read more

Age 9+
Millions
5
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Letters from Iwo Jima (2007, Rated R)
Parents Need to Know...

that this war drama deals with a very serious subject: the defeat of soldiers who know they'll die and that their cause is lost. Thanks to that and the fact that it's deliberately paced and spoken entirely in Japanese (with English ... read more

Age 16+
Letters from Iwo Jima
5
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A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (2009, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that this holiday special starring Jim Henson's beloved characters will delight the whole family. The story includes strong positive messages about dependability, friendship, understanding, and respecting others' feelings. There's no iffy ... read more

Age 4+
A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa
5
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Charlotte's Web (2006) (2007, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that the younger crowd will probably be very eager to see this one -- and for good reason. It's unusually respectful of its much-loved source (E.B. White's classic novel) and its young audience. While the movie does refer to the farmer's ... read more

Age 5+
Charlotte's Web (2006)
5
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Thin (2006, Rated R)
Parents Need to Know...

that this documentary, although rated for mature audiences, should be required viewing for girls who've ever had a brush with an eating disorder (or who have friends who have). That said, you must watch with your kids. There's too much ... read more

Age 14+
Thin
5
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War Dance (2008, Rated PG-13)
Parents Need to Know...

that though this film is uplifting, some of the stories told by the children in this movie depict graphic horrors of war. Some speak of murder, some speak of abduction. The film takes place in a refugee camp in Northern Uganda where ... read more

Age 14+
War Dance
5
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Shut Up & Sing (2007, Rated R)
Parents Need to Know...

that most teens probably won't be all that interested in this politically charged documentary, which is too bad, since it deals intelligently with mature themes like the debates over free speech and patriotism. That said, it also features ... read more

Age 14+
Shut Up & Sing
5
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Toy Story 2 (2009, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that this Toy Story sequel is just as delightful as the first movie. The plot again finds the toys banding together to rescue a fellow toy in peril; the fact that characters are separated from their loved ones could scare or upset the ... read more

Age 4+
Toy Story 2
5
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Toy Story (2009, Rated G)
Parents Need to Know...

that there is separation in the movie -- toys are separated from one another and from their owner (but if your kid made it to preschool without an issue, this should be fine). All of the dynamics behind sibling rivalry are here as well, ... read more

Age 4+
Toy Story
5
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The Nightmare Before Christmas (2000, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that this offbeat, stop motion-animated movie is one of the great family films for all ages. That said, it does have scary Halloween creatures in it -- characters take off their own heads and limbs, and there are skeletons, nasty toys, ... read more

Age 7+
The Nightmare Before Christmas
5
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The Black List: Vol. 1 (2009, Rated NR)
Parents Need to Know...

that this thought-provoking documentary -- which features prominent African Americans talking about how they feel about their race and racial identity within a predominantly white culture -- is one to watch and discuss with your teens. ... read more

Age 14+
The Black List: Vol. 1
5
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Mad Hot Ballroom (2005, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that this documentary tracks students from three NYC public schools as they prepare for an annual citywide ballroom dancing competition. that some of the 11- and 12-year-old interviewees discuss the difficulties in their lives and ... read more

Age 8+
Mad Hot Ballroom
5
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Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs and a Baby (2008, Rated PG)
Parents Need to Know...

that, despite its grounding in a well-known fairy tale, this movie is so smartly written that it may be a little intense for the usual fairy tale audience. An adopted baby grows into a typically rebellious teen, with all the normal ... read more

Age 7+
Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs and a Baby
5
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There Will Be Blood (2008, Rated R)
Parents Need to Know...

that most teens probably won't be clamoring to see this slow-moving, somber drama about mature, sometimes abstract themes like capitalism and religion as driving forces in 19th- and early 20th-century America. Violence includes mining and ... read more

Age 16+
There Will Be Blood
5

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