photo credit: icedsoul photography .:teymur madjderey via photopin cc
We made a great “To Do” list for our Christmas break – all fun items, no work! On our list was to watch the Star Wars movies. Having two boys, I knew Star Wars was an inevitable phase they would go through. But unlike some of the louder, messier, or grosser phases we will encounter, I was good with this one. Having seen all of the old and most of the new movies, I know they are exciting and far more entertaining for adults than some of the kid-specific programming out there!
Our first movie marathon was an overwhelming success! Since our boys are little – 6 and 3 – we knew it was not an option to watch more than one movie in a day. Which is why we picked our long break to tackle the Star Wars movies. We watched one at a time, sometimes even splitting it between evening and morning the next day. We turned the lights out to make our living room into a movie theater. And of course we had lots of blankets, stuffed animals, and snuggling!
Since our first movie marathon was such a success, I made a short list of great movie series that would work well for a marathon.
1. Star Wars. My recommendation is to start with the original three from the 70′s and 80′s. Kids today are so used to movie magic technology, that I wanted them to get into the story of Star Wars first. I knew if they saw the graphics in the newer three first, they would look at the original three as dated and “old.” So while the story goes backwards to view the newer three after the originals, I still like how we ordered them.
2. Toy Story. A classic trio of movies. And that last one is even more of a tear jerker if you have watched them all in a row!
3. Shrek. These movies are loved by boys and girls, but I have to say all the burps, farts, and general grossness is especially fun for boys. Despite the crude humor, the movies really do each have their own worthwhile theme and lesson, and taken all together they provide a lot of opportunity for talking about accepting people for who they are, not judging a book by its cover, and appreciating what you have.
4. Madagascar. For any animal lovers, these are great. We got the third installment for Christmas and while my kiddos have watched it, I have to admit I haven’t seen it yet. But the first two were funny and cute. I love Melvin the giraffe with all of his hypochondriac ailments and the penguins crack me up.
5. Cars. While there are only two Cars movies, you can add in the DVD with Mater’s Tall Tales and make it a true marathon. My boys love Cars and still are into the characters even years after seeing the initial movie. I love Mater’s Tall Tales equally as much as my kids do. We have the story books with them and read them as part of our fairly regular bedtime rotation.
What movies would you add to the list?
You hit the nail on the head with the Star Wars original three!
Hi Lora! My husband had suggesting starting with the new ones so the story would flow better for them, but I was glad we did it this way. Plus I realized as I rewatched the newer ones, the story is much more complex and “older” in those ones, so I think they would have lost before we ever got to the originals. Thanks for stopping by!