I have a friend who has a kid who is 7. He's at the age where he's obviously watching a lot of kids films. I asked her if she's shown him any of the great ones we used to watch when we were kids.
"Oh, no," she said, "They're too scary/violent/adult."
So, that made me think and recall the movies I watched when I was a kid. I was born in 1983.
ET the Extra-Terrestrial, 1982
The Dark Crystal, 1982
The Neverending Story, 1984
Gremlins, 1984
The Goonies, 1985
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, 1985
Labyrinth, 1986
Who Framed Roger Rabbit, 1988
Honey, I Shrunk The Kids, 1989
Home Alone, 1990
The Witches, 1990
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 1990
My Girl, 1991
Some of these, whew, on a second glance now. How did they get by as kids movies? The Neverending Story had a terrifying antagonist, and a death scene that's brutal even for adults to watch. Who Framed Roger Rabbit was chock full of adult references, sexual innuendo, and a terrifying villain transformation (it was also the first film I saw in theater when I was 5 years old). And Gremlins? I can't imagine that film would have garnered a PG rating if released now. Most of these movies had really scary parts and thematic elements that were big for kids to handle, but we all watched them. I mean, come on, My Girl? That was quite a brutal ending.
Today?
Moana, Frozen, Minions, Cars, Finding Nemo, Zootopia.... you get the point. In no way am I trying to pull a "le wrong generation" thing here, but these films are, on the surface, completely appropriate for all ages from like 2 years old and up. They're fantastic films, but there's nothing really horrifying in them, no serious violence, no serious thematic or scary elements. Nothing even remotely close to what came out in the 80s and 90s.
So, why don't we show those classics to our kids today? I mean, I'm sure there are plenty of you replying who are going to say that you have or you're planning on it, but I know a lot of mothers around my age, being that I'm in my mid-30s, and most moms I know would never show their kids anything in that original list. At least not until they were in their pre-teens. It's odd, because I feel like at that point many of those movies aren't going to be enjoyable for them, because, at their heart, they really are kids films. (I actually saw someone ask on Facebook if the other moms thought that Home Alone was appropriate for a 6 year old).
Submitted December 16, 2017 at 12:48PM by liamemsa http://ift.tt/2j4zGVw