Plenty of classic movies for children can take on entirely new meanings when they are rewatched by adults. Movies for children often try to appeal to older audiences too, and this means they are likely to include certain themes that may go over the heads of kids. These movies can contain hidden tragedies when viewed through a more mature lens, especially when audiences are more likely to identify with the adult characters in the story. Filmmakers put themselves into their characters, and this isn’t limited to the children in kids’ movies.
The experience of growing up allows people to better empathize with older characters in movies. Concerns that seem nebulous and unimportant to children can take on a lot of weight for adults, especially parents. Children might not have the emotional range to fully appreciate every aspect of a well-constructed movie. While they are focused on the surface-level elements of adventure or comedy, an adult watching alongside them can pick up on subtler hints. When rewatching formative children’s movies as an adult, it can be shocking what got ignored the first time around.
10 Big (1988)
Big’s approach to aging takes on a new twist
Big features Tom Hanks in one of his best comedic roles, as a young boy named Josh who magically winds up in the body of an adult. There are plenty of knowing winks for the film’s older viewers, especially the heavy use of sexual innuendo. But Big is more than a fun movie about a kid who learns more about the world. It’s also about reconnecting with the simplicity and kindness of youth. Josh’s mother also becomes a more important character when seen from an adult’s point of view. She loses her son, and this mirrors how some parents feel after their children grow up.
9 Home Alone (1990)
The Christmas classic becomes a more horrifying prospect
Director Chris Columbus uses plenty of low angles and wide lenses in Home Alone to give the audience a child’s perspective. This makes the furnace in the basement and the mysterious Old Man Marley much more frightening, but older audiences know that the prospect of leaving a child unattended is much scarier. From Kevin’s perspective, being left home alone is an opportunity to let loose and have fun, but adults are more likely to empathize with his parents. Also, Harry and Marv’s injuries in Home Alone are much less cartoonish and silly when seen through a more pragmatic, mature lens. It’s a wonder either one of them survived.
8 Poltergeist (1988)
Chilling horror that gets better with age
Poltergeist is a great introduction to the horror genre for younger audiences, without being too terrifying or visceral. The story follows a suburban family who are haunted by the supernatural, and audiences can latch on to either the children or the parents. Poltergeist plays with a lot of common childhood fears, like ghosts, darkness, and clowns, but it could be a rare case of a movie being even scarier for adult audiences. Diane and Steve have to fight for their children’s lives while also protecting themselves. The characters are at the forefront of every story beat, and this gives the impression that their actions will ultimately decide if they survive.
7 Jurassic Park (1993)
A film more about parenthood than it is about dinosaurs
Children love Jurassic Park for its vivid portrayal of dinosaurs brought back to life. It’s a dream for many kids to see dinosaurs like this, not just in the pages of a picture book, but adults understand more acutely that the entire theme park is more of a nightmare. Jurassic Park features adults who feel helpless to protect children. In this case, it’s because the threat to them is so enormous, illustrated by the ease with which a Tyrannosaurus rex plucks Gennaro from his hiding spot in a bathroom. Adults are also more likely to identify with the tense relationships between the characters.
6 Finding Nemo (2003)
The depths of a parent’s love
Finding Nemo is about a widowed father who embarks upon a dangerous odyssey to rescue his missing son. Fortunately, the bright colors and variety of sea life make it a fun movie for kids, instead of an aquatic Taken. Children will identify more with Nemo, whose willingness to find freedom from his overbearing father lands him in trouble. But Marlin is the true protagonist. His quest to find Nemo takes on more depth when seen as an adult. Nemo is all he has left after a traumatic event that wiped out his family, and the emotional ending of Finding Nemo isn’t just happy, it’s also an outpouring of relief.
5 Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
An emotionally complex story about divorce
After a bitter divorce, Daniel decides that the best way to spend more time with his children is to use his flair for character work to become their new nanny, an elderly Scottish woman called Mrs. Doubtfire. When seen as an adult, this premise can come across as invasive and creepy. The mother of the children, Miranda, is being deceived into allowing a man into her home whom she had expressly forbidden. Mrs. Doubtfire is unusual for the fact that it discusses the rather taboo topic of divorce, but only adult audiences will see how this situation affects Miranda and Daniel, not just the children.
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4 Lilo & Stitch (2002)
Nani is an unprepared guardian
Money troubles don’t truly make sense to children, but Nani’s search for a job evokes feelings of stress and desperation for adults. Everywhere she goes to look for a potential job, Lilo and Stitch spoil her chances in some way. They don’t mean to, but their childish antics make it clear that they don’t understand the seriousness of the situation. When Nani lashes out at Lilo, it’s only because she is so frustrated with her role as Lilo’s guardian, when she hasn’t even been able to grieve the loss of her parents. Nani must put on a brave face for Lilo, but children could miss the complexity of her emotional state.
3 Freaky Friday (2003)
A movie about a mother and daughter that shifts focus
By design, Freaky Friday is a movie that tries to change people’s perspectives. When Anna and Tess switch bodies, they gain a new understanding for one another. Naturally, whatever side of the story people tend to focus on is dependent on which character they relate to more. Older audiences have the benefit of having lived on both sides of the equation, so the movie’s message is more resonant. Neither Anna nor Tess are bad people, but their problem is that they struggle to empathize with one another and communicate properly. Seeing both sides makes Freaky Friday much more interesting, rather than just understanding Anna’s perspective.
2 Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
A meditation on the fleeting nature of youth
Ferris Bueller decides to skip school for a day, and he drags his friends along on a reckless adventure. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off feeds the adolescent fantasy of gaining freedom and living without consequences, and its caricatured adult characters act as stand-ins for all the pressures young people face to behave themselves and fall in line. But Ferris Bueller’s Day Off has a subtle complexity to it, especially when considering Cameron’s journey from a reserved, depressed teenager to a man who stands up to his father. Despite the fun and games, the movie is tinged with sadness at the passing of youth.
1 Mary Poppins (1964)
Subtle tragedy wrapped up in joyous music
Mary Poppins is a charming sequence of whimsical scenes centered around the Banks children and their new magical nanny. For children, the songs and the colorful, creative adventures are delightful, but adults can see that the story is more about Mr. Banks. The hard-working banker needs Mary Poppins as a reminder of what’s important in life, and he learns to cherish the time he has with his children. Mary Poppins herself is a rather tragic figure when viewed with the wisdom of adulthood. She appears to travel from family to family, spreading joy as she goes but never finding a true home for herself, or a family to call her own.
