Family Movie Review Sites

Have you ever been excited to see a new trending family movie with the kids, only to be utterly disappointed at the content?

We live in a day and age where we can stream movies and TV shows 24/7. The entertainment industry seems to have no limits when it comes to inappropriate content for us to watch. Movies and TV can be an incredibly powerful influence on our children.

So how do we make a decision about what to watch with our little ones? Movie Reviews!

5 Best Family Movie Review Sites

Whether you’re looking for a family comedy movie, or the best family movies on Netflix, movie reviews are a great tool you can use to help make more informed choices for your family. Most don’t come right out and say whether you should watch a particular movie or not. Instead, they give you the facts and let you make a decision based on your family’s values. (I am not affiliated with any of the following. I’m just sharing because I think these will be valuable resources for you and your family)

Here are 5 of the best movie review sites to help you find great family-friendly movies everyone will enjoy. Not only are they great for finding out what’s in a movie, but they’re also great places to find new movies.

1. Movieguide
   • Moviegiude bases its reviews on a Biblical Christian perspective.
   • You can search for movies by the year, quality, content, or Movieguide score.
   • Reviews are broken down by, What You Need to Know, Content (Worldview, Foul language, Violence, Sex, Alcohol, etc.), and More Detail which gives you a heads-up- warning about things you may want to be aware of.
2. Parent Previews
   • Parent Previews write their movie reviews from the parent’s perspective.
   • Their reviews include:
     • Parent Movie Review
     • Movie Trailer
     • Ratings and Content section, which explains in a few sentences:
       • why the movie is rated as it is
       • what violence, sexual content, profanity and alcohol/ drug use is in the movie for instance: Violence: Slap-stick style violence throughout
     • A Parent’s Guide
     • Recommendations for other similar movies
3. Plugged In
   • Plugged In is run by Focus on the Family, so their movie reviews are done from a Christian perspective.
   • You can search for family movies by genre, MPAA ratings and the content caution level you are looking for.
   • For each movie, Plugged In write-ups feature: Positive Elements, Spiritual Elements, Sexual Content, Violence Content, Crude or Profane Language, Drug and Alcohol Content, and Other Negative Elements. They also review TV, music, games, and books.
4. The Dove Foundation
   • The Dove Foundation bases its reviews on family values. They use content rating grid charts along with Dove seals so you can skim thru reviews quickly. The guidelines for their review system are explained clearly in their Content Rating Descriptions.
   • You can search by categories like Prime Videos, Disney, Netflix, or Animated, Comedy, and Holiday.
5. Kids-in-Mind
   • Kids-in-Mind has a cool slide bar tool you can use to filter content in several areas. You can use it alone or in combination with search words and /or with movie ratings.

Here’s a Couple of Other Places You May Want to Check Out:

1. Common Sense Media
   • This is a very popular movie review site but only gives you 3 Free reviews a month.
   • Common Sense Media shares movie reviews organized by lists for children ages 2 to 18. Each movie includes reviews shared by both parents and children. (They also review TV shows, books, games and apps.)
2. IMDB
   • IMDB is another source for family movie reviews if you have a specific movie in mind and know where to look on their site(otherwise, you may end up seeing too much garbage)
   • On a laptop, if you click on User Reviews, a review page will open with an Opinion section > Explore More> Parent Guide (it’s under Story Line)

Movie Filtering Systems

If you want to take it a step further, for a small fee, you can use a movie filtering system like Clear Play or VidAngel. I am not affiliated with either of these , but have used them both – they give you the ultimate control when watching movies.

Some movies out there have a great storyline but have things thrown in that are not what you want your child (or you) seeing or hearing. These filtering systems let you skip inappropriate content. They both also work with streaming movies from memberships you may already have.

Clear Play lets you stream from Disney Plus, Netflix, HBO, and Amazon. They even have filters you can use with your own DVDs. You can still use their site to see movie review info even without a subscription.

VidAngel lets you stream movies from sources like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Showtime.

Now that you know how to find the best family-friendly movies, you’ll be able to relax and enjoy your next family movie night with no unpleasant surprises.

Be sure to check out:

• Best Board Games for 5-6 Year Olds
• Activities for Preschoolers Instead of Stranger Danger
• Praying for Your Family

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