Parents' Guide to

Savannah Smiles

By Brian Costello, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Slapstick adventure sweet, but treats running away lightly.

Movie PG 1982 105 minutes
Savannah Smiles Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 7+

Based on 1 parent review

adamswifey
adamswifey Adult
December 24, 2015
age 7+

best movie!

this is my all time favorite movie ever. Savannah Smiles is a movie i remember watching as a kid. i remember loving it then and i still own a copy because it's such a good film. for the most part, it's clean. mild language - at most (maybe damn - once). nothing worse than that though. no sex, nudity, blood, etc. some younger kids may be a little saddened by some parts - particularly the end. but they did a nice job of making anything that might appear "scary" into funny instead - slapstick. it is worth saying that the main character is a little girl who runs away and returns unharmed - possibly happier. that isn't the best message to children and when i show it to my kids, i plan to have a talk with them about how unrealistic that is. it's worth a watch. this movie is absolutely charming and a great family film! BTW - the main actress is no longer alive. sadly, she passed away at a young age.

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What's the Story?

Feeling neglected by her parents as they plot her dad's senatorial campaign, 6-year-old Savannah decides to run away from home. She escapes during a game of hide-and-seek with friends in a park by hiding in the backseat of a stolen car driven by Alvie (Mark Miller) and Boots (Donovan Scott), two bumbling escaped convicts. As they hide from the authorities, Savannah charms this wayward pair, and they must decide if their growing love of her playful innocence outweighs their greed for the reward money being offered.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1):
Kids say (1):

It's hard to believe that a film about a little girl running away from home and falling in with two felons could be both wacky and heartwarming, but this one succeeds. Many consider SAVANNAH SMILES to be a classic film of the early 1980s. While it's arguable whether or not the film has stood the test of time, or whether 21st century kids will appreciate a film loved by parents when they were kids, Savannah Smiles is, at its core, a sweet film about how the love of innocent children is more powerful than greed or ambition.

The plot isn't exactly the most original or unpredictable; the characters aren't the deepest; the action not the most realistic; but despite this, Savannah Smiles holds period charm for nostalgic adults, and these adults might just convince their kids to give it a shot. (And they might want to have a conversation about the perils of running away while they're at it.)

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Savannah was inspired to run away, in part, from watching a Little Rascals episode where Alfalfa announces that he wants to run away from home. Has there ever been a time when TV or movies influenced a questionable decision you made? Does it happen often?

  • How realistic is Savannah's story? How would the themes of running away and abduction be treated differently today?

Movie Details

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