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Edison the Man

(1940, Rated NR, Drama, Starring Spencer Tracy, Gene Lockhart, Rita Johnson)

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 8, age appropriate for kids over 10; suggested age 10.

  • Is it any good?

    4.0

  • Common Sense says

    1940 Spencer Tracy biography of the inventor.

Why We Rated This on for Ages 10 and Up

What to watch out for

  • Messages:

    None

  • Violence:

    None

  • Sex:

    None

  • Language:

    None

  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.

  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    None
 

What Parents Need to Know

About Edison the Man

Parents need to know that this kid-friendly movie about Thomas Edison provides kids with an excellent role model -- an American who transformed the world with his mind, whose dream was not to make money, but to make the world easier, more efficient, more comfortable, and safer.

Read our full review by Nell Minow

Did this review help you decide?

Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about what life would be like if we didn't have electricity or any of Edison's inventions? What does it mean to say that success is 99 percent perspiration, 1 percent inspiration? How do we see that in the movie? If you could invent something, what would it be? What inventions since your parents were your age have made the biggest changes in our lives? What inventions do you think will change things for your children?
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