Since the production of the first film ever by Louis Le Prince in 1888, the film industry has come a long way. Movies on every topic imaginable exists. While there are all those tons of movies out there, not all can be watched with family.  Below is a list of movies that are perfect for family viewing. 

1.  Hook (1991)

This is a fantasy adventure film that was directed by Steven Spielberg. It was written by James V. Hart and Malia Scotch Marmo. It is about Peter Banning (Robin Williams) is a middle-ages lawyer and his young children who are abducted by his old enemy, Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman). To break his children free from Hook’s influence, Peter has to go back to his magical origin where he’s known as Peter Pan. Peter’s past is a complicated one , he left Neverland to start a family life as a normal man. In his shady past, he abandoned the lost boys and Tinkerbell (Julia Roberts) to fend for themselves. That given, Neverland's  new leader Rufio (Dante Basco), Peter’s old gang might not be very happy to see him back in Neverland. 

Director: Steven Spielberg used the script that James V. Hart and Malia Scotch Marmo had penned down to direct the film.

Main Cast: Robin Williams (Peter Banning / Peter Pan), Dustin Hoffman (Captain Hook), Julia Roberts (Tinker Bell), Bob Hoskins (Mr. Smee), Maggie Smith (Granny Wendy) and Dante Basco (Rufio).

Awards and Nominations: This movie received mixed critical reviews which saw it being nominated by many organizations. The Academy Awards nominated it for five awards (Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Original Song, and Best Makeup) while the Saturn Awards nominated it for Best Fantasy Film, but it lost the award to Aladdin,

Cult Following: Although Hook film was a commercial success, the gross was low. Which disappointed many, including director Steven Spielberg. Over time, the movie has steadily gained a cult following. It  even has merchandise, including video games, action figures, and comic book adaptations.

2.  Jumanji (1995)

One of the best family films is the 1995 fantasy adventure 'Jumanji' that is loosely based on Chris Van Allsburg’s children's book, 1981's Jumanji. The 1995 'Jumanji' film is the first installment in the 'Jumanji' film series franchise.

The movie opens in 1969 in Brantford, New Hampshire, where Alan Parrish lives with his parents Sam and Carol-Anne. One day Alan is running from bullies when he ducks into Sam’s shoe workshop to escape. However, later the bullies attack him again and take his bicycle. Alan then hears tribal drumbeats and follows the sound to a construction site where he finds the Jumanji board game that was buried about a hundred years ago and takes it home. Sarah, Alan’s friend, returns the lost bicycle and they play dice on the Jumanji board game, and Alan is literally sucked into the magical game while Sarah runs away screaming. Many supernatural events occur, and Alan is eventually returned home.

Director: Jumanji’s director was Joe Johnston.

Main Cast: the movie had a big cast with many members, including Robin Williams (Alan Parrish), Adam Hann-Byrd (Young Alan), and Bonnie Hunt (Sarah Whittle)

Awards and Nominations: Jumanji film has received many accolades. The movie is a winner of many awards, including Best Family Feature - Action-Adventure Young Artist Award, a Huabiao Films Award for Outstanding Translated Foreign Film, and Saturn’s Best Supporting Actress and Best Visual effects. The nominations were also numerous, including Saturn’s Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Fantasy Film awards. The movie also led to the production of a video game called Jumanji, which resulted in designer, Rachel Lowe, winning a British Game of the Year Award. 

3.  My Girl (1991)

This coming-of-age comedy-drama film depicts an eleven-year-old girl obsessed with death, Vada Sultenfuss (Anna Chlumsky) living in Madison, Pennsylvania. The year is the summer of 1972.  She becomes best friends with Thomas J. Sennett (Macaulay Culkin), a nerdy, unpopular boy of the same age who suffers from various allergies. Before the year end, Vada will have experienced many life changing events.

Director: Laurice Elehwany developed the screenplay that Howard Zieff used for the direction of the film.

Main Cast: Dan Aykroyd (Harry Sultenfuss), Jamie Lee Curtis (Shelly DeVoto), Macaulay Culkin (Thomas J. Sennett), and Anna Chlumsky (Vada Sultenfuss) who was taking part in the motion picture for the first time in her life, formed the movie's principal cast.

Awards and Nominations: Upon its release on 12^th November 1991, My Girl received positive critical reviews. Roger Ebert gave is one of the critics who found the film quite interesting, and assigned it 3.5 stars out of 4, writing: ‘The beauty in this film is in its directness. There are some obligatory scenes. But there are also some very original and touching ones. This is a movie that has its heart in the right place.’ Besides, the film won the Most Promising Young Newcomer Special Award and the MTV Movie + TV Award for Best Kiss. The movie’s award nominations included the Young Artist Best Family Motion Picture Award, Best On-Screen Duo MTV Movie Award, and the Blimp Award for the Favorite Film, among other nominations.

Trivia:  At the end of the film, it gives credit to the Temptations R&B group whose 1964 'My' Girl which formed the basis for the movie’s title. Because of the tremendous success of the film, $121 million gross on a $17 million budget, the production team produced a sequel to 'My Girl' called 'My Girl 2'.

3.  Bean (1997)

This is a comedy film that the British television series 'Mr. Bean' formed the basis for development. It features Mr. Bean, a well-meaning but clumsy and destructive security guard working at the National Gallery in London. His director hates him for sleeping on the job and general incompetence, but cannot fire him because he is protected by the boards chairman. The board instead selects Bean as their representative for the transfer of James McNeill Whistler's 1871 portrait Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1 (also called Whistler's Mother) to the Grierson Art Gallery in Los Angeles following its purchase by philanthropist General Newton.  Grierson's curator David Langley, who is impressed with the false profile of "Dr. Bean," volunteers to accommodate Bean at his house for two months despite the objections o his wife, Alison, his son Kevin and daughter, The clumsy Bean hilariously bungles everything.

Director: Robin Driscoll and Richard Curtis were Mr. Bean's TV Series writers. They still wrote the script that Mel Smith used to direct the Bean film.

Main Cast: Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean) is the movie’s starred actor and works along a big cast to develop the film’s plot. Some of the cast members include Peter MacNicol (David Langley), John Mills (Chairman), and Pamela Reed (Alison Langley).

Awards and Nominations: Bean was a critical success upon release. Its awards winnings include the German Bogey Award in Platin Award and the Golden Screen Award, Germany. The movie also received numerous nominations, including the Stinker Award for Worst Resurrection of a TV Show.

4.  The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)

2008's 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian' is a must-include film on the best family movies list. C. S. Lewis's 1951 'The Caspian Prince'. This movie is about the four Pevensie children as they return to Narnia to help Prince Caspian in his struggle with the ‘secret’ help of Aslan for the throne against his corrupt uncle, King Miraz.

Director: Andrew Adamson is both the co-writer and the director for this film of The Chronicles of Narnia movie franchise.

Main Cast: the film’s principal cast consists of six individuals who reprise their roles from the 2005 prequel. These actors include William Moseley (Peter Pevensie), Anna Popplewell (Susan Pevensie), Skandar Keynes (Edmund Pevensie), and Georgie Henley (Lucy Pevensie).

Awards and Nominations: The Visual Effects Society nominated this film for the Best Visual Effects and Best Compositing while Saturn Awards nominated it for Best Fantasy Film, Best Costumes, Best Make-up, and Best Special Effects. The Young Artists Awards also nominated Henley and Keynes for various awards.

5.  Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

If there is any movie one should watch without fail is the family film entitled Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This 2005 musical fantasy was adapted from Roald Dahl’s 1964 British novel 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. This sequel is about Charlie and how he wins a contest for a tour of the Chocolate Factory alongside four children and a 'special prize at the end. 

Director: Tim Burton direct Charlie and the Chocolate Factory using John August’s screenplay.

Main Cast: Johnny Depp (Willy Wonka) and Freddie Highmore (Charlie Bucket)

Awards and Nominations: Gabriella Pescucci received a Best Costume Award nomination, but lost it. Johnny Depp was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy but lost the nomination. Other nominations included the Best Visual Effects, Costume Design, Makeup & Hair, and Production Design Oscars nominations. Additionally, Saturn Awards nominated the Best Fantasy Film, Music, Performance by a Younger Actor, and Costume Design.

4.  Paddington 2 (2017)

2017's 'Paddington 2' is a movie that will entertain, amuse, and satisfy any family audience. This is a live-action animated comedy that depicts Michael Bond’s Paddington bear. It is a sequel to the 2014 'Paddington' film and is about Paddington as he tries to get a present for his aunt's birthday and the wild adventures around the birthday. Paddington gets the gift, but it goes missing. When this happens, Paddington is arrested and imprisoned for the theft. Paddington and his family have to find the real culprit and prove Paddington's innocence.

Director: Paul King and Simon Farnaby wrote the script for the movie. King used that script to direct the film.

Main Cast: Paddington is the lead character and Ben Whishaw voices Paddington.

Awards and Nominations: Paddington 2 was a critical success. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a whopping approval rating of 100%.  During the 71^st British Academy Film Awards, Paddington 2 received three nominations for Outstanding British Film, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Saturn Awards nominated the movie for Best Fantasy Film, while Empire Awards nominated the movie for the Best British Film.  It also won the London Film Critics' Circle Awards for the Best Supporting Actor (Hugh Grant) and Best British or Irish Actress for Sally Hawkins, and won two Evening Standard British Film Awards for Technical Achievement and Peter Sellers Award for Comedy, among other awards.       

Conclusion 

Not every great movie makes a good family movie. To watch with your family, a movie needs to conform to a number of standards, and finding such a movie is not an easy thing to do. This list was compiled to make it easier to find excellent movies for family movie viewing.

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