At first, I thought the kids over-reacted, and part of me thinks they still did, that though parts of the movie were intense, the kids were just intimidated by a movie theater's surroundings and large, loud sounds. I know I was scared when I saw some movies when I was younger.
Apparently, though, our kids weren't the only ones who thought "Up" was too frigthening. One woman, who has a 6-year-old and 4-year-old like us, had a similar experience, and she had to take her kids to the lobby.
Did anyone else see "Up"? What did you think? And what are some ways to help your kids relax and become more comfortable at the movies?
So go see Up with a 7- and 5-year-old or wait for the DVD?
ReplyDeleteJohn, you forgot to mention that sometimes our "big boys" get scared watching Thomas the Tank Engine... but they can watch "Star Wars" til the cows come home. I am not sure why the Star Wars movies are exempt, but I think they have very vivid imaginations. Plus, Alex is very intuitive and identifies easily with other people. I think he readily puts himself in the protagonist's shoes so when the hero is in trouble (either physically or with an authority figure) he feels it very intensely.
ReplyDeleteIs that enough psycho-bable for you ;)
Thomas the Tank Engine scares the beans out of me too.
ReplyDeleteJohn,I saw "Up" this weekend and LOVED it, but then I'm many many years away from being a small child! The theater I saw it in was huge - it was packed and there were a lot of small children. One thing I noticed was that, especially during the quieter parts of the movie, the children in the audience were restless. I think "Up" is not a movie for children (although there's nothing offensive in it) Its themes of regret and loss, loyalty and friendship, of finding that your life isn't the dream or adventure you'd planned but is exciting and interesting anyway, might be lost on little ones. I did find the mean dogs scary, and several situations were very tense but I'd recommend it highly to adults. That said, more than one film aimed at children scared me silly as a child - "Bambi" gave me nightmares for years - YEARS (the fire) and I've yet to watch "The Wizard of Oz" completely (and it's not the flying monkeys, it's the tornado at the beginning!) It just goes to show you that we all see and react to things differently! Ann
ReplyDeleteCraig wouldn't go with us to see Pinochio as an adult when the girls and I went. Guess the intensity can be rather overwhelming.. Laura on the other hand wept and wept when movies would end as she so loved the characters she didn't want it to be over.
ReplyDeleteZAZA
Thanks for all the comments.
ReplyDeleteI remember I had to leave the theater when I saw "Pete's Dragon" when I was little. Also, my brother and I went beserk when the Jawas shot R2-D2 at the beginning of "Star Wars," which probably scarred my dad and Uncle Paul more than us.
And Bruce, if you're kids liked other Pixar movies, they'd probably be OK, though it does have the adult themes of loss that Ann mentioned.
Finally took the kids to see Up. Jack (7) loved it. Annie (5 1/2) thought it was a horror movie. I had to take her out near the end which really disappointed me because I loved the movie.
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