Best Kids' Movies of 2008
If you've missed out on all of the new kids' movies of the year and need a quick run-down of the best, then you've come to the right place.
By Christopher Healy
- Wall-E
- (Disney, $30)
How do you keep kids and parents equally entertained when the first hour of your movie contains no dialogue? How do you present family audiences with heavy sociopolitical commentary without ever seeming preachy? How do you make people cry at a romance between two machines? Call in the Pixar people. Wall-E is one of the most astonishing pieces of filmmaking, well, ever.—Ages 5 and up
- Kitt Kittredge: An American Girl
- (New Line Cinema, $30)
Everyone who's ever lamented that Hollywood doesn't make family films like it used to owes thanks to the makers of Kitt Kittredge. Unironic yet never saccharine, it's just an all-around good movie—thanks in no small part to future Oscar winner (we assume) Abigail Breslin.—Ages 5 and up
- Enchanted
- Disney, $30)
Spoofing a cinematic genre while still functioning as a genuine example of that genre is quite a tightrope act, but Disney's incredibly likable princess-out-of-water tale pulls it off swimmingly.—Ages 5 and up
- Kung Fu Panda
- (Dreamworks, $25)
What could have easily been nothing more than a cliché-ridden panderfest (Jack Black and martial-arts-fighting animals?) instead turns out to be genuinely funny and genuinely exciting. It looks fantastic, to boot.—Ages 5 and up
- Nim's Island
- (Fox Home Entertainment, $30)
In her second appearance on our countdown, Abigail Breslin takes on her first action-hero role (sort of). Nim's Island scores high its balance: It has just the right amount of adventure to keep kids riveted without sending them to bed with nightmare-ready images.—Ages 5 and up
- The Spiderwick Chronicles
- (Paramount, $35)
Combine the magical mystery of the Harry Potter films with the chilling thrills of, well, Aliens, and you've got a spooky-fun good time. Fair warning, though: Some of these fairyland monsters are genuinely scary.—Ages 8 and up
- Tinkerbell
- (Disney, $30)
Now here's an icon who was more than ready for a makeover. She may look pretty much the same, but this new Tink—who finally has a voice!—is a fully fleshed-out character with deep emotional motivation (and a gorgeous magical forest backdrop).—Ages 3 to 9
- Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who
- (Fox Home Entertainment, $30)
The live-action Seuss vehicles of recent years have left something to be desired, but this animated reworking of the good doctor's classic retains the spirit of the original while at the same time managing to seem current and hip.—Ages 3 and up
- Abby in Wonderland
- (Sesame Workshop, $15)
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A) Abby Cadabby is the best new muppet to join Sesame Street since a certain little red guy. B) This movie special contains writing clever enough to make wistful parents wax nostalgic, thinking, Oh, yeah, this is why I used to love Sesame Street.—Ages 2 to 5
- The Beatrix Potter Collection
- (BBC, $30)
If you've been long estranged from the writings of Ms. Potter, you may falsely remember them as doily-filled Victorian cutesy-fests. These remarkably well-made animated versions will remind you just how exciting they really were.—Ages 3 to 9
