Parents' Guide to

Tommy and the Cool Mule

By Tracy Moore, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Feel-good talking mule movie deals with parental loss.

Movie PG 2009 94 minutes
Tommy and the Cool Mule Poster Image

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

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What's the Story?

Tommy (Grant Barker) has just lost his father, and now his family has to sell their beloved horses to get by. But when he makes a friend in a talking mule, Jackie-A (voiced by Ice-T), he may have a chance at winning a stock competition and a cash prize that will keep their house out of the hands of a scheming local realtor (Kevin Sorbo). But can he fend off the no-good competition that's busy hatching schemes to keep him out of the running?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

TOMMY AND THE COOL MULE has a down-home, simple vibe to it, with kids and parents played by actors who, for the most part, look kid-like and not actor-like. But more importantly, in spite of a premise that involves a head injury and a talking mule, it depicts adolescent concerns and the pressures teens face in a fairly believable and age-appropriate manner. Though it's mostly a boy-centric movie, it shows girls who ride horses well and a sibling who mostly tries to get along with his sister, all with none of the typically underhanded messages about what boys or girls can (or can't) do.

Kids will enjoy the horse-wrangling, conversing, and the realistic portrayals of peer pressure. And parents will appreciate the low-key, but realistic, resolution. It isn't anything groundbreaking, but overall, the movie has a good heart, where no one is ridiculously evil, or cartoonishly pure, and everything turns out just fine.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about peer pressure. Have you ever been pressured to do something by a friend you didn't want to do? How did you handle it? What happened as a result?

  • Go online to talk about the ways military families cope with the absence, or sometimes loss, of a parent due to military service.

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