What family films should I watch at the cinema this summer?
The summer holidays are here – or almost here – so naturally there has been an influx of family films coming to cinemas.
But with the cost of cinema tickets (plus all the extras), you probably can’t afford to go and see them all as a family. So which ones should you prioritise?
To help you figure it out, I’ve ranked the four summer family films from best to worst.
Bringing this out a couple of weeks after Toy Story 5 did Minions & Monsters a disservice – it’s a really good, enjoyable film and deserved to make more money. I hope it can do better business across the next six weeks! It is the most creatively inspired outing in the Despicable Me/Minions franchise and those little yellow guys are as hilarious as ever. I may be slightly biased though because as a film nerd, I thoroughly enjoyed spotting all the movie references. These will obviously go over kids’ heads, but there’s enough slapstick, adventure and silly Minion comedy to keep them entertained.
I really liked this fifth Toy Story outing, particularly because it is led by Jessie (Joan Cusack) and soberingly reflects our relationship with technology. Its depiction of human behaviour is well observed and it’s really funny too. But classic characters like Woody (Tom Hanks) don’t have much to do and the central conflict is resolved too quickly and easily (Disney didn’t want to vilify tech too much!) It’s good, but fails to reach the heights of the original trilogy.
What is the point of making a beat-for-beat live-action remake of a film that’s only 10 years old? It’s just the same again, but worse. Nobody is going to choose this over the animation. However, it’s still enjoyable enough to watch. Catherine Laga’aia is a good new Moana, Dwayne Johnson seems to be having a blast and is fun to watch as Maui, and the scenes on Motonui are wonderful. And of course, the songs still soar! I’d advise you to wait for Disney+ for this one (if you have it).
Andy Serkis spent more than 10 years bringing to life his animated version of George Orwell’s 1945 political allegory Animal Farm and it has been slated by critics. It makes significant changes from the novella – there’s a new lead character, a whole new hopeful third act, and it’s more about corruption in general. I don’t mind these changes – they make sense for a young audience and the core message against power, greed and corruption still remains – but I didn’t love the toilet humour, the song choices or the pigs buying cars and other tech. Very bizarre.
The top three are in cinemas now. Animal Farm will be released on 24th July after previews on 18th and 19th July