Common Sense Media Review
By Tracy Moore
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Heavy but often funny movie about grief and afterlife.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Chasing Ghosts
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
When 11-year-old filmmaker Lucas (Toby Nichols) loses his older brother in a car accident, he becomes obsessed with what happens after we die. He films funerals, thinks about death, and asks big questions about what it means to be alive. When one of his videos captures a ghost-like apparition at a funeral and subsequently goes viral, the attention leads him to a friendship with Chris (Tim Meadows), a writer who has had his own brush with death and helps Lucas understand the point of life.
Is It Any Good?
CHASING GHOSTS is a heavy film that won't be easy for any parents to watch, let alone those who have lost a child. Though the brother's death is not shown, his absence hangs over the movie, and some very difficult scenes demonstrate how hard it is to let go of family members we've lost.
But where Chasing Ghosts earns its keep is the way it blends a smart, big-picture sense of humor about being alive with the profound, everyday heaviness of the grieving process. Lucas is a bright, likable kid, and his questions and resilience and creativity in approaching the grieving process are a reminder that everyone must grieve in his own way and that death teaches us all something incredibly powerful about what we should do with our lives, however long they last. Best for kids and families who appreciate quirky humor, offbeat jokes, and existential dilemmas.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Chasing Ghosts show grieving. Do you think it's accurate?
Do you believe in ghosts or the afterlife? Why, or why not?
What can Chasing Ghosts help us understand about grieving and moving on from loss?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : April 21, 2015
- Cast : Tim Meadows , Toby Nichols
- Director : Josh Shreve
- Inclusion Information : Black Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : New Kingdom Films
- Genre : Drama
- Topics : Friendship
- Run time : 92 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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