Nothing is more entertaining than enjoying a good film with your family. However, it is equally difficult to select a movie appropriate for everyone in the family and for the family as a whole. The choice of a wrong movie can spoil the very charm of watching a film with your family and can result in awkward situations. No one wants to watch a movie with their family that has a lot of swearing, bold intimate scenes, violence, graphic content, and a storyline that’s not suitable for the family. Here are some movies approved for family viewing.

1.  Space Jams (1996)

Movie lovers will find the 1996 'Space Jam' a classic and enjoyable movie. This  live-action/animated sports comedy has Michael Jordan at the center of the story with a plot that features a fictional account of what happened between Jordan's initial retirement from the NBA in 1993 and his 1995 comeback, in which Looney Tunes help them to win a basketball match against a group of aliens who plan to enslave them as attractions for their theme park.

Director: Joe Pytka.

Main Cast: Michael Jordan, Brandon Hammond (young Michael Jordan), Wayne Knight (as Stan Podolak, who assists Jordan), Theresa Randle (as Juanita Jordan, Michael's supportive wife), and Bill Murray (as Bill Murray, an actor who is one of Jordan's friends).

Awards and Nominations: At the 1997 ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards, Diane Warren won the Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures (for the song “For You I Will”) and James Newton Howard won the Top Box Office Films. The film also won the Best Individual Achievement: Technical Achievement from the 1997 Annie Awards and Grammy’s Award for Best Song Written Specifically for Motion Picture or for Television for the song “I Believe I Can Fly.” Award nominations include Young Artist’s Best Family Feature- Animation or Special Effects Award and MTV Movie Awards Best Movie Song.

2.  Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

Another one of the best family films is the 2013 'Oz the Great and Powerful'. This fantasy adventure movie is based on L. Frank Baum's early 20th century novel, 'Oz'. The film is backdated to 20 years before the events of the original 1900 novel. It is a prequel to the 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film 'The Wizard of Oz'. The storyline is Oscar Diggs, a deceptive magician who arrives in the Land of Oz and meets three witches: Theodora, Evanora, and Glinda. Once he sets out to the land of Oz, Oscar is then enlisted to restore order in Oz while trying to resolve conflicts with the witches and himself. 

Director: Sam Raimi.

Main Cast: James Franco (as Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmanuel Ambroise Diggs, commonly known as Oz), Michelle Williams (as Glinda, the king’s daughter) and Rachel Weisz (as Evanora, the protector of the Emerald City).

Awards and Nominations: 'Oz the Great and Powerful' was a success. Mila Kunis won the MTV Movie Award for the Best Villain. The movie won the Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Live Action Family Film. It also received several nominations, including Best Fantasy Film, Best Costume, and Best Production Saturn Awards and Best Art Direction and Production Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Visual Effects Satellite Awards.             

3.  The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

This movie is based on C.S. Lewis’ 1952  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader the third novel in C. S. Lewis's 'Chronicles of Narnia'. The movie is the third installment in The Chronicles of Narnia film series franchise. It’s also the last movie in the series and the only film in the series, and the only one not to be co-produced and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.  The movie’s theme is set three years after the events of Prince Caspian and sees the two young siblings, Edmund, and Lucy as they are transported back to Narnia with their cousin Eustace Scrubb.

Director: Michael Apted.

Main Cast:  Skandar Keynes (as Edmund Pevensie) and Georgie Henley (as Lucy Pevensie), Will Poulter (as Eustace Scrubb).

Awards and Nominations: At the 19th Movie Guide Faith and Values Awards, the film won the award for Most Inspiring Movie and the Best Adventure Crystal Dove Seal Award. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association nominated the film for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song ("There's a Place for Us") at the 68th Golden Globe Awards that took place in 2010.  The movie was received many nominations including Saturn Awards for Best Fantasy Film, Best Costume Design, and Best Visual Effects, among other nominations.                   

4.  An Unfinished Life (2005)

This drama film is just one of its kind, full of lessons. It is based on Mark Spragg’s novel 'An Unfinished Life'. The movie is about a gruff Wyoming rancher, who must mend his relationship with his daughter-in-law and his previously unknown-to-him granddaughter. This is shortly after the granddaughter and the destitute daughter-in-law show up unexpectedly at his ranch and ask to stay with him and his disabled best friend and neighbor.

Director: Lasse Hallström.

Main Cast: Robert Redford (as Einar Gilkyson), Jennifer Lopez (as Jean Gilkyson), and Morgan Freeman (as Mitch Bradley).

Awards and Nominations: This film won the Best Makeup Award from the Canadian Network of Makeup Artists (Jayne Dancose), and it won the Genesis Award as Best Feature for 2005.

5.  Red Dog (2011)

This Australian comedy-drama family movie's storyline originated from the true story of the 'Red Dog' written by Louis de Bernieres in2002. It is about the tradition of 'Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)', a legendary true story of the Red Dog who unites a disparate local community while roaming the Australian outback in search of his long-lost master. The Red Dog roams the empty streets of Dampier in search of his owner John, who unknown to the Red Dog, has been killed in a road accident after killing a kangaroo on the night he becomes  engaged to Nancy. This true is engaging about a dog who winds his way into the hearts of everyone he meets, and brings people and communities together, some find love, and others find themselves.

Director: Kriv Stenders.

Main Cast: Koko stars in the film as the Red Dog, Josh Lucas (as John Grant), Rachael Taylor (as Nancy Grey), John Batchelor (as Peeto), and Noah Taylor (as Jack Collins).

Awards and Nominations: 'Red Dog' was nominated in nine categories and won seven, including the Best Feature Film at the 2011 Inside Film Awards. AACTA Awards nominated the Red Dog film for seven awards, and it won one for Best Film. It also won the Heartland Film Festival Grand Prize Best Narrative Feature Award and the Golden Collar Award for Best Dog in a Foreign Film. Koko won this award.               

6.  Lemony Snicket’s a Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

Any best family movie list will include 2004's 'Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events' (commonly known as' A Series of Unfortunate Events'). It is a film adaptation of A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, covering the first three novels: The Bad Beginning (1999), The Reptile Room (1999), and The Wide Window (2000). The movie's plot is about three childre, Violet, Klaus and Sunny, who are orphaned when their house burns down and their parents perish. They are left in the custody of a distant relative, Count Olaf. Sadly, the three orphans soon apparently realize that Count Olaf only cares about their large inheritance.

Director: Brad Silberling.

Main Cast: Jim Carrey (as Count Olaf), Liam Aiken (as Klaus Baudelaire, an intelligent and kind-hearted bibliophile), and Emily Browning (as Violet Baudelaire, a brilliant inventor), Jude Law (Lemony Snicket).

Awards and Nominations: The Academy Awards nominated the moviein four caregories, including Best Original Score, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, and Best Makeup, and the film won the Best Makeup Academy Award. Other nominations included Visual Effects Society Outstanding Performance by an Animated Character in a Live Action Motion Picture Award and Saturn’s Awards for Best Make-up, Best Fantasy Film, and Best DVD Special Edition Release.  

7.  Mr. Bean’s Holiday (2007)

This film is based on the Mr. Bean TV series and is the only standalone sequel to the 1997 'Bean' movie. Hamish McColl and Robin Driscoll, writers of the TV series, wrote the script from Simon McBurney’s story. The plot depicts Mr. Bean who is thrilled to have won a holiday to Cannes in a raffle, but unfortunately, causes a boy to be separated from his mother accidentally.

Director: Steve Bendelackl.

Main Cast: Rowan Atkinson (as Mr. Bean),Emma de Caunes (as Sabine), Max Baldry (as Stepan Dachevsky), and Willem Dafoe.

Awards and Nominations: At the 29^th Young Artist Award in 2008, Max Baldry was nominated for Best Performance in a Feature Film and Best Supporting Young Actor. At the first National Movie Awards in 2007, this movie was nominated as Best Comedy.

Conclusion

Watching films is a delightful experience for families that cherish special moments together Family films help bond families in a mutually enjoyable past time.

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