With a new year brings a fresh new batch of content to the streaming sites, and new (or shifting) titles to choose from for a new-to-your-child movie that just might bring back childhood memories for parents too. Here are a few of the best selections of catalog titles new to the major streaming sites for your next family movie night.
The top choices would have to be on Hulu, with the 1987 beloved “The Princess Bride” (good for kids who are a bit older). Sharing the magic of this Rob Reiner historical fantasy film is a gift, with an all-star packed cast, laughs, adventures, and romance. “As you wish.” For more fantasy, you can’t go wrong with 2001’s “Shrek,” featuring the vocal talents of Mike Myers as the friendly green ogre.
Over on HBO Max, enjoy George Miller’s Oscar-winning 2006 animated film “Happy Feet,” about a tap-dancing penguin named Mumble (plus, Prince won a Golden Globe for the original tune “Song of the Heart”). Or get weird with Tim Burton’s deliciously kooky 2005 take on Roald Dahl’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
On Peacock, buyer beware with the animated tearjerker “The Land Before Time.” If you thought “Bambi” was traumatic, “The Land Before Time,” about a couple of young dinosaurs seeking salvation, is a doozy. Some kids love it! For something much, much sillier, how about the zany 2000 Robert De Niro-starring live-action adaptation of “The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle”?
Disney+ has added the 2008 animated feature “Horton Hears a Who!” featuring the voices of Jim Carrey, Steve Carell and more in this Dr. Seuss adaptation. Carrey also stars in the 2011 live action family film “Mr. Popper’s Penguins,” based on the book by Richard and Florence Atwater. On Friday, Disney+ will be adding the 2017 animated feature “Ferdinand,” for fans of the children’s book about the gentle-natured bull.
