Because of Winn-Dixie (PG, 2005)

common sense media says

A girl and a dog educate a small southern town.


parents & educators say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this heartwarming movie has brief mild swearing, some rude schoolyard insults, and brief poop humor. Characters refer to alcoholism, parental desertion, time spent in jail, and the (offscreen) death of a character's sibling.

Positive messages: A strength of the movie is the friendships between people of different ages and backgrounds.
Violence & scariness: Mild peril, no one hurt, references to absent mother and death of sibling.
Sexy stuff: Not applicable.
Language: Mild swearing, rude schoolyard insults.
Consumerism: Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: References to alcoholism and drinking.

More on Because of Winn-Dixie

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
Families can talk about why Winn-Dixie was so important to Opal. They could also discuss the importance of the way Opal listens to the stories Miss Franny and Gloria tell her. If you had to choose ten things to describe each member of the family, what would they be? What do you think of Gloria's way of recognizing her mistakes? Why did Opal worry that it was her fault that her mother left? Why was it important that the candy was sweet and sad? Do the people in your community know each other's sorrows? How do you learn what your one important thing is?

What's the story?

What's the story?
Opal (Annasophia Robb) and her worried, distracted preacher father (Jeff Daniels) have just moved to tiny Naomi, Florida. At the grocery store, Opal meets a troublemaking stray dog causing chaos, claims him as hers, and names him Winn-Dixie after the store. Her dad and the landlord say "No!" But Winn-Dixie wants to stay with Opal and help her make some new friends. Soon, Opal has a job working the pet store and befriends the town librarian (Eva Marie Saint), a reclusive woman (Cecily Tyson), and some local kids. As Opal becomes more confident, she finds the courage to ask the Preacher about her mother. Because of Winn-Dixie, she has developed the maturity to begin to understand the answers. And because of Winn-Dixie, the small town of Naomi becomes once again a place where people know each other's sorrows and reach out to each other.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
While appealing, this story is also heavy-handed and full of clichés, and characters with names like "Sweetie Pie" and "Dunlap Dewberry." Annasophia Robb turns in an uncertain performance as Opal, but strong appearances by top talent in the adult roles and graceful evocation of a gently rural community by director Wayne Wang keep it for the most part more sweet than sugary.

The best moments are not the revelations or the coming-of-age turning points or the dog-causes-trouble slapstick but the small, quiet scenes of people connecting to each other. The film is gently touching when Opal tells the librarian and the recluse that she wants to hear their stories and then listens attentively and when Otis plays his guitar for the animals. Those are the moments that truly convey the magic of Winn-Dixie.

Movie themes & details

Movie Details
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
Director: Wayne Wang
Cast: AnnaSophia Robb, Harland Williams, Jeff Daniels
Genre: Family and Kids
Run time: 85 minutes
Theatrical release: February 18, 2005
DVD release: August 9, 2005
MPAA Rating: PG
MPAA explanation: thematic elements and brief mild language.

This review was written by Nell Minow
 
 

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What parents & educators say

7

Most useful reviews by all members

jayman1004
kid, 11 years old
 
Great adaption of the book.
Greatest adaption of a book until Percy Jackson!

lexalolu
teen, 14 years old
 
great book butchered in terrible movie!
I read this book thinking it was wonderful, and, expecting it to be as powerful and wallop-packing, set out to see the movie. Boy, was I wrong! The movie was TERRIBLE. The storyline was butchered into a watered down canned thing, therefore seeming in my mind like one of those "Christian movies", designed only to teach kids a lesson,so the story is barely there. Not to mention the acting was atrocious. I don't reccomend this movie to ANYONE!

 
i laughed
This movie was cute opel is a good actress

robinpeggy
parent of 12 year old
 
closer to G than PG
My 6 year old loved this, and my 11 year old liked it (and probably would have admitted to more if he weren't concerned about appearing un-hip). I wept copiously. I thought the girl playing Opal was terrific. Lots of good message, and we had a great ride-home conversation.

Americangirlfo ...
teen, 14 years old
 
"He's My Dog"-Opal
Wonderful Movie great actors nothing to complain about 5 out of 5

dgdsccbasdcfhw ...
kid, 10 years old
 
8 And Up
Some parts of this movie may scare little kids like when they meet the blind lady, or when the librarian tells the story of the bear breaking in. But over all it's a happy movie.

yihua
kid, 13 years old
 
good for all kids
Cute but kind of boring if you watch it too many times

fiver125
teen, 16 years old
 
Good
good

ohya
parent of 14 year old
 
crap

Pit bull loverr
kid, 12 years old
 
Well Because of Winne-Dixxie -Opal
10 year old Opal is a new kid at some small town. She has no friends. Her dad is the precher there and that is why she moves many times, but one day she went to the market store that's call Winne-Dixxie. There she finds a dog that smiles? Yes Dear Winne-Dixxie. After finding Winne-Dixxie she learns 10 things about her mother that left when she was only 2 years old. She also finds many friends and learns also the true meaning of friend ship and life lesons. It is is a great movie! i loved it! READ THE BOOK FIRST BECAUSE THERE ARE SOME MISSING PARTS AND ITS BETTER!

Gertie1999
kid, 12 years old
 
"I Think People Forgot To Share The Joy"-Opal
This Is A great Movie! Its cute, Educational, And th outfits are cute! And its very accurate to the book. I definitely Recommend this movie and the book to anyone!

RRRReviewer
kid, 11 years old
 
Perfect for animal lovers!
I really really love it because I love dogs. She works hard to keep her dog.

BFF GIRL THATS ...
teen, 14 years old
 
great movie
A great mvovie. The movie is about a young girls mother who leaves her and her father and then the little finds a dog and names it winn dixie. I think the story was grand and the content was age a[ropreat for a PG rateing. There is some swearing and two boys constintly insult a girl. For vilonce is that there is little peril and the story talks about deaths a people who were loved.

tiffinya
parent
 
good adaptation of book

golden retriever7
kid, 12 years old
 
Not as Good as the Book.

kellystp
parent of 7 and 11 year old
 
Indy film for kids

 
As a teacher, I feel this book and movie have lots of important issues. In my classroom, year after year, it brings rich discussions on things like alcoholism, single aprent familes, loss and longing. My students LOVE this book and movie!

qtnn
parent of 10 and 11 year old
 

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ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age