John, this is a private example of what a Screenwise page could look like for you.
We made it from one of your lists to show how Screenwise Voices works. Google can't see it, and it isn't listed anywhere on Screenwise. Only people with this link can open it.
Writers in Screenwise Voices publish original essays and lists under their own name, to reach about 2 million parents a month. You can also bring over a post you've already written. It points Google to your original, so your site keeps the search credit.
The NeverEnding Family Movie List: Animated
A list by John Perritt
John Perritt's G/PG family movie list from his Family Movie Night newsletter (johnperritt.substack.com): the animated films, from Snow White (1937) to Migration (2023). John's note: not every film here is an endorsement, so check the content before you press play.
- 1
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Movie · 1938
“Disney's 1938 fairy tale classic that's equal parts animation milestone and nightmare fuel for the unprepared preschooler.”
IMDb 7.6 - 2
Pinocchio
Movie · 1940
“The original cautionary tale where a puppet learns that lying makes your nose grow and skipping school can literally turn you into a donkey.”
- 3
Fantasia
Movie · 1940
“Disney's 1940 classical music spectacular: visually stunning, culturally important, and realistically unwatchable for 90% of modern kids.”
IMDb 7.7RT 95% - 4
Dumbo
Movie · 1941
“The 1941 Disney classic that's equal parts adorable flying elephant and equal parts 'wait, did that really just happen?'”
IMDb 7.2RT 95% - 5
Bambi
Movie · 1942
“Disney's gorgeous nature animation that's traumatized generations with THAT scene—you know the one.”
IMDb 7.3RT 91% - 6
Cinderella
Movie · 1950
“The ultimate rags-to-riches glow-up that still hits, provided your kid can handle 1950s pacing.”
- 7
Sleeping Beauty
Movie · 1959
“Gorgeous 1959 animation showcasing a princess who literally sleeps through her own rescue—stunning to look at, painful to watch by 2025 standards.”
IMDb 7.2RT 90% - 8
One Hundred and One Dalmatians
Movie · 1961
“Pongo and Perdita rescue 99 puppies from a woman who wants to turn them into outerwear—wholesome but slow by 2025 standards.”
IMDb 7.3RT 98% - 9
The Jungle Book
Movie · 1967
“Disney's 1967 classic is charming but shows its age—sweet songs and friendship lessons wrapped in dated animation and some cringey stereotypes.”
IMDb 7.6RT 88% - 10
Robin Hood
Movie · 1973
“The original 'tax the rich' manifesto, but with a charming fox, a thumb-sucking lion, and a killer folk soundtrack.”
- 11
An American Tail
Movie · 1986
“A mouse immigrant's tearjerker journey through 1880s America—beautiful in theory, but slow and scary enough to test modern kids' patience.”
IMDb 6.9RT 76% - 12
The Transformers: The Movie
Movie · 1986
“The 1986 toy commercial that gave Gen X kids their first experience with grief—and it has NOT aged well.”
- 13
The Little Mermaid
Movie · 1989
“The Disney classic where a mermaid trades her voice for legs and a shot at romance—gorgeous animation, iconic songs, questionable life choices.”
IMDb 7.6RT 92% - 14
Beauty and the Beast
Movie · 1991
“Tale as old as time: bookworm falls for angry furry guy with serious anger management issues—but make it a musical masterpiece.”
IMDb 8.0RT 95% - 15
Aladdin
Movie · 1992
“Disney's Renaissance-era magic carpet ride with Robin Williams' manic Genie energy, catchy songs, and a street rat who learns honesty is the best policy (eventually).”
IMDb 8.0RT 96% - 16
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Movie · 1993
“Tim Burton's stop-motion gothic masterpiece where Halloween tries to steal Christmas—visually stunning, genuinely spooky, and surprisingly deep.”
IMDb 7.9RT 95% - 17
The Lion King
Movie · 1994
“The Disney movie that taught a generation what grief feels like—Hamlet with lions, unforgettable songs, and that scene we all still haven't recovered from.”
IMDb 8.5RT 92% - 18
Toy Story
Movie · 1995
“The movie that made you paranoid your toys were judging you—and launched Pixar into the stratosphere.”
IMDb 8.3RT 100% - 19
Space Jam
Movie · 1996
“Michael Jordan teams up with Bugs Bunny in this 90s time capsule that's more Nike commercial than movie—your kids will probably ask to turn it off.”
IMDb 6.5RT 44% - 20
Toy Story 2
Movie · 1999
“The Pixar sequel that somehow matched the original—toys grapple with mortality, loyalty, and whether being loved is worth the risk of loss.”
IMDb 7.9RT 100% - 21
The Iron Giant
Movie · 1999
“A boy befriends a giant robot during the Cold War and teaches him that guns are bad—then the military shows up with all the guns.”
IMDb 8.1RT 96% - 22
Shrek
Movie · 2001
“The ogre that launched a thousand memes teaches kids that true beauty isn't what you see in the mirror—it's about being yourself, farts and all.”
IMDb 7.9RT 88% - 23
Monsters Inc
Movie · 2001
“The Pixar classic where monsters learn kids aren't toxic—they're just misunderstood, and also surprisingly good for business when you make them laugh.”
IMDb 8.1RT 96% - 24
Ice Age
Movie · 2002
“A woolly mammoth, a sloth, and a saber-tooth tiger become unlikely babysitters in this prehistoric buddy comedy that still delivers laughs.”
- 25
Finding Nemo
Movie · 2003
“An anxious clownfish dad crosses the ocean to find his captured son—Pixar's heartwarming adventure that launched a thousand aquarium trips.”
IMDb 8.2RT 99% - 26
The Incredibles
Movie · 2004
“Pixar's superhero family drama that's somehow about midlife crisis, marriage counseling, and saving the world—and it actually works.”
IMDb 8.0 - 27
Shrek 2
Movie · 2004
“The rare sequel that matches the original: Shrek meets the in-laws in a fairy tale rom-com that's still genuinely funny two decades later.”
IMDb 7.4RT 89% - 28
The Polar Express
Movie · 2004
“Tom Hanks plays everyone in this motion-capture Christmas journey that's either magical or nightmare fuel, depending on who you ask.”
IMDb 6.6RT 55% - 29
Madagascar
Movie · 2005
“Zoo animals crash-land in Madagascar and discover that the wild isn't all it's cracked up to be—especially when your best friend wants to eat you.”
IMDb 6.9RT 55% - 30
Cars
Movie · 2006
“A hotshot race car learns to pump the brakes on his ego in this Pixar road trip that's sweet, safe, and maybe a little too in love with car puns.”
IMDb 7.3RT 74% - 31
Ice Age: The Meltdown
Movie · 2006
“The Ice Age gang returns for a forgettable sequel about melting glaciers and middling laughs—it's fine, but nobody's asking for a rewatch.”
- 32
Happy Feet
Movie · 2006
“A tap-dancing penguin who can't sing tries to find his place—it's cute until it gets unexpectedly preachy about overfishing.”
- 33
Ratatouille
Movie · 2007
“A rat with refined taste and big dreams infiltrates a Paris kitchen—it's as delightful and surprisingly profound as it sounds.”
IMDb 8.1RT 96% - 34
Meet the Robinsons
Movie · 2007
“Time-traveling orphan inventor meets his future family and learns that failure is just the first step to success.”
- 35
The Tale of Despereaux
Movie · 2008
“A mouse with big ears and bigger dreams goes on a knight's quest—it's sweet, safe, and thoroughly forgettable.”
IMDb 6.1RT 56% - 36
Kung Fu Panda
Movie · 2008
“A chubby panda discovers he's the Chosen One and has to kung-fu his way into self-acceptance—it's surprisingly deep for a movie about dumplings.”
IMDb 7.6RT 87% - 37
WALL-E
Movie · 2008
“A trash-compacting robot saves humanity and teaches kids more about environmentalism than any documentary ever could—with barely any words.”
IMDb 8.4RT 95% - 38
Bolt
Movie · 2008
“A TV star dog discovers he's not actually a superhero—just a very good boy who needs to find his way home.”
- 39
Madagascar Escape 2 Africa
Movie · 2008
“Zoo animals crash-land in Africa and discover their wild roots—it's fine, your kids will probably enjoy it, you'll survive it.”
IMDb 6.6RT 64% - 40
Up
Movie · 2009
“An elderly widower ties balloons to his house and accidentally brings an overeager kid along—prepare tissues for the first ten minutes.”
IMDb 8.3RT 98% - 41
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Movie · 2009
“The Ice Age crew meets dinosaurs in a visually busy but narratively tired third outing that's fine but far from essential.”
- 42
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs
Movie · 2009
“A nerdy inventor makes it rain cheeseburgers—what could go wrong? Spoiler: giant food chaos, but make it wholesome.”
IMDb 6.9RT 85% - 43
The Princess And The Frog
Movie · 2009
“Disney's last hand-drawn princess tale serves up New Orleans jazz, hard work over wishes, and a villain scary enough to make bedtime interesting.”
IMDb 7.2RT 86% - 44
How to Train Your Dragon
Movie · 2010
“A nerdy Viking befriends a high-speed dragon and accidentally ends a multi-generational war through engineering and empathy.”
- 45
Toy Story 3
Movie · 2010
“Pixar's masterful farewell tour hits every emotional note—just prep the tissues and maybe skip it for the truly sensitive littles.”
IMDb 8.3RT 98% - 46
Tangled
Movie · 2010
“Disney's best modern princess movie—Rapunzel's got a frying pan, trust issues, and 70 feet of magical hair to work through.”
IMDb 7.7RT 89% - 47
Despicable Me
Movie · 2010
“A supervillain adopts three orphans for a heist and accidentally becomes a dad—surprisingly sweet beneath all the fart guns.”
IMDb 7.6RT 80% - 48
The Adventures Of Tintin
Movie · 2011
“Spielberg's motion-capture adventure brings the boy reporter and his dog into a rollicking treasure hunt—think Indiana Jones for the elementary set.”
IMDb 7.3RT 75% - 49
Kung Fu Panda 2
Movie · 2011
“Po levels up from Dragon Warrior to emotionally-intelligent hero who literally kung-fus his childhood trauma into inner peace.”
IMDb 7.3RT 82% - 50
Rango
Movie · 2011
“A chameleon with an identity crisis becomes an accidental Western hero in this visually stunning but tonally weird animated film.”
IMDb 7.3RT 88% - 51
Winnie the Pooh
Movie · 2011
“Disney's 2011 hand-drawn throwback is pure Hundred Acre Wood comfort food—sweet, slow, and possibly too gentle for the Bluey generation.”
IMDb 7.1RT 90% - 52
Wreck It Ralph
Movie · 2012
“A video game villain goes on a genre-hopping quest to prove he's more than his programming—surprisingly deep for a movie about pixels.”
IMDb 7.7RT 87% - 53
Ice Age: Continental Drift
Movie · 2012
“Manny and the gang go full pirate-adventure mode with family lessons, fart jokes, and Scrat's eternal acorn quest—safe but starting to feel tired.”
- 54
The Lorax
Movie · 2012
“Dr. Seuss goes Hollywood with singing, dancing trees and an environmental message that's about as subtle as a chainsaw in a forest.”
IMDb 6.4 - 55
The Croods
Movie · 2013
“A caveman family learns to embrace change when their world literally falls apart—wholesome, colorful, and safely chaotic.”
IMDb 7.1RT 71% - 56
Frozen
Movie · 2013
“Two sisters, ice magic, and a radical message that true love isn't always the prince—it's the people who've known you all along.”
IMDb 7.4RT 89% - 57
Despicable Me 2
Movie · 2013
“Gru trades villainy for spy work while the Minions steal every scene—a safe, silly sequel that entertains without breaking new ground.”
IMDb 7.3RT 75% - 58
Monsters University
Movie · 2013
“Mike and Sulley's college rivalry-to-bromance origin story—Pixar does the underdog sports movie with monsters and heart.”
IMDb 7.2RT 80% - 59
The Lego Movie
Movie · 2014
“A love letter to creativity wrapped in a hilarious, visually stunning adventure that makes you want to dump out every Lego bin in your house.”
IMDb 7.7RT 96% - 60
Penguins of Madagascar
Movie · 2014
“The Madagascar penguins get their own spy-adventure movie—it's harmless fun that kids will forget about by bedtime.”
IMDb 6.6RT 74% - 61
Big Hero 6
Movie · 2014
“Huggable healthcare robot meets teen genius in this STEM-powered, grief-processing superhero origin story set in anime-inspired San Fransokyo.”
IMDb 7.8RT 90% - 62
How To Train Your Dragon 2
Movie · 2014
“Vikings and dragons face war and loss in this visually stunning but emotionally heavier sequel that doesn't pull punches on the grief front.”
IMDb 7.8RT 92% - 63
The Peanuts Movie
Movie · 2015
“Good grief—Charlie Brown's sweet quest for love and Snoopy's aerial adventures make for genuinely wholesome family viewing.”
IMDb 7.0RT 87% - 64
Minions
Movie · 2015
“Yellow chaos agents serve supervillains in this spinoff that's more sugar rush than substance—fun for 20 minutes, exhausting for 90.”
IMDb 6.4RT 55% - 65
Inside Out
Movie · 2015
“Pixar's emotional intelligence masterpiece that'll make you cry and finally understand why your kid melts down over 'nothing.'”
IMDb 8.1RT 98% - 66
Moana
Movie · 2016
“Disney's best non-romance heroine sails the Pacific with a demigod, killer songs, and zero love interest—refreshing.”
IMDb 7.6RT 95% - 67
Finding Dory
Movie · 2016
“Blue tang with short-term memory loss goes on an emotional deep-dive to find her parents—Pixar does disability rep right.”
IMDb 7.2RT 94% - 68
Zootopia
Movie · 2016
“A bunny cop and con-artist fox tackle prejudice in a gorgeous animal metropolis—surprisingly smart for a buddy-cop comedy.”
IMDb 8.0RT 98% - 69
Sing
Movie · 2016
“Illumination's jukebox musical about anthropomorphic animals chasing their dreams—safe, sweet, and utterly predictable.”
IMDb 7.1RT 71% - 70
The LEGO Batman Movie
Movie · 2017
“Batman learns feelings exist while adopting a kid and saving Gotham—all in LEGO form with jokes that'll make parents laugh harder than their kids.”
IMDb 7.3RT 89% - 71
Incredibles 2
Movie · 2018
“Elastigirl saves the world while Mr. Incredible discovers that fighting villains is way easier than helping with math homework.”
IMDb 7.5RT 93% - 72
Spider Man Into The Spider Verse
Movie · 2018
“The Spider-Man movie that proved animated superhero films could be art—visually stunning, emotionally rich, and genuinely cool.”
IMDb 8.4RT 97% - 73
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Movie · 2019
“The Viking-dragon saga sticks the landing with a gorgeous, tearful finale about growing up and letting go.”
IMDb 7.4RT 90% - 74
Frozen Ii
Movie · 2019
“Elsa and Anna venture into enchanted forests for answers—expect stunning visuals, earworm songs, and some surprisingly heavy themes about grief.”
IMDb 6.8RT 77% - 75
The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part
Movie · 2019
“Everything is still pretty awesome: LEGO sequel tackles sibling rivalry with catchy songs, meta-humor, and a whole lot of plastic brick destruction.”
IMDb 6.5RT 84% - 76
Onward
Movie · 2020
“Two elf brothers quest to spend one more day with their dead dad in this Pixar tearjerker disguised as a fantasy road trip.”
IMDb 7.4RT 88% - 77
The Croods: A New Age
Movie · 2020
“Cave family meets suburban cave family in this colorful sequel about learning to get along with your evolutionarily-superior neighbors.”
IMDb 6.9RT 76% - 78
The Mitchells Vs The Machines
Movie · 2021
“A weird, wonderful family road trip meets robot apocalypse—think Spider-Verse energy meets tech-addiction commentary that actually lands.”
- 79
Sing 2
Movie · 2021
“Animated animals stage a big musical comeback—it's colorful, loud, and your kids will probably want the soundtrack on repeat for weeks.”
IMDb 7.3RT 72% - 80
Luca
Movie · 2021
“Two sea monster boys have the summer of their lives on the Italian Riviera—as long as they stay dry and keep their scales hidden.”
IMDb 7.4RT 91% - 81
Encanto
Movie · 2021
“A Colombian family's magic is fading, and the only 'ordinary' kid might be the one to save them—cue the Lin-Manuel Miranda earworms.”
IMDb 7.2 - 82
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Movie · 2022
“A one-inch shell with a googly eye will make you cry in the best way—tender, weird, and utterly lovely.”
- 83
Puss In Boots The Last Wish
Movie · 2022
“A surprisingly deep animated adventure where a swashbuckling cat confronts death itself—literally—and learns what actually matters in life.”
IMDb 7.8 - 84
Spider Man Across The Spider Verse
Movie · 2023
“Visually mind-blowing Spider-Man sequel where Miles fights the entire multiverse to save his dad—and it ends on a cliffhanger.”
IMDb 8.5RT 95% - 85
The Super Mario Bros Movie
Movie · 2023
“Brooklyn plumbers save the Mushroom Kingdom in this colorful, crowd-pleasing adventure that finally gets a Mario movie right.”
- 86
Migration
Movie · 2023
“A Danish farm kid wrestles with Korean heritage and family expectations—thoughtful but slow, like watching crops grow in real time.”
IMDb 6.6RT 73%
Got your own favorites?
Make a list like this in about a minute — we suggest the picks, you choose.
More Lists to Explore
Book Series for Kids Who Hate Reading
by Gretchen Gales · 5 picks
Gretchen Gales's picks from Writing Gales (writinggales.com) for kids who would rather do anything than read, chosen from the series her own students fight over. Percy Jackson is the one she has seen turn a non-reader into a bibliophile, and Ranger in Time, a time-traveling golden retriever, pulls in readers well past its 6-to-10 label.
Sitcoms to Watch With Your Teens
by Sheryl Gould · 41 picks· 1
Shows to watch on the couch together with a teenager, from Moms of Tweens and Teens (momsoftweensandteens.com). It opens with one family's top ten, led by The Office and Parks and Rec, and continues with picks from the site's community of moms, from I Love Lucy to Kids Baking Championship.
Books if you like Dave Eggers
by Dan · 6 picks· 1
Discover moving stories about animals and unique characters that capture the same spirit of wonder, friendship, and philosophical depth found in The Eyes and the Impossible.
Cozy Lap Reads for Wandering Toddlers
by Dan · 5 picks· 1
These engaging, interactive, and gentle picture books are perfect for those fleeting moments when your little one settles in for a story. They are designed to hold attention even when the reading session is cut short.
Gentle Movies for Little Ones
by EllieVi Movies · 28 picks
A collection of calm and heartwarming films perfect for a four-year-old and a toddler to enjoy together. These stories focus on friendship, wonder, and gentle adventures that are safe for the youngest viewers.
STuff that my 14 year old likes
by Janell mom of Jada (age 14 8th grade) · 8 picks
Stuff that we use at home without throwing a thumper tarshion