Hi everyone, My daughter is having her tenth birthday sleep-over on Saturday night. They want to rent movies among other things. The movies that she and her friends have chosen are not what I would prefer them to watch. Most are rated 'R'. I am looking for some really good movies that they can watch without offending any of the parents. Have any ideas? I would truly appreciate them.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

There's a movie that came out in the 80's called 'Labrynth'.
It stars David Bowie and various muppets. (Not Kermit & Miss Piggy types though).
It's a little scary without all kinds of gore and stuff.

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...When I'm a good dog they sometimes throw me a bone in."

I liked that film....and I have that in my collection.

Another film with puppets was 'The Secret of Nimh'. The puppets were created by Jim Henson. Star Wars trilogy is another as well as the 'Never Ending Story' triology.

Hope this helps !!

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Deciphering the World as I see it !!

Which movies were on the list that your daughter and her friends wanted to watch? If we have an idea about the sort of movies they like, we might be able to suggest appropriate substitutes.

Thank You for your replies. My daughter wanted to watch the exorcist. I don't know if I spelled that right. She wanted the Mummy, the Elm street series and movies like that. My daughter is advanced for her age but the other children coming are not. I suggested Mrs. Doubtfire, What About Bob and Dr. Doolittle. I think these are all quite safe. I don't want a bunch of children in my bed Saturday night or to have to call parents at 1:00am to come get their children because they are scared.

I think I will rent Labrynth tonight and take a peek at it. I loved the Never Ending Story Trilogy.

She has decided that she wants to make potions and do spells. I am not sure how the other parents feel about that. Oddly enough she has been doing this since she was old enough to talk.

Thanks again for your suggestions it helps!!!

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

FWIW, when my daughter was that age I taped a movie off of HBO called "Goonies". I swear, if she watched that movie once she must have watched it at least 20 times.

If you're not familiar with the movie the title might be misleading. The story has to do with a family that lives on the eastern seaboard and is about to be evicted from their house. Before being forced to leave, the kids (both boys and girls) find an old pirate map behind a picture frame in an attic and set off on one last adventure to find the lost treasure. While on this teasure hunt they also encounter and outwit a group of unlikely bank robbers.

It really is a good movie and one that I think kids can identify with. It's one of those stories where the parents couldn't stop their inevitable misfortune so the kids have to do it.

This is a quick synopsis but there really is more to this movie that makes it a good story (and an enjoyable one) for someone your daughter's age. Caroline watched it so much that she could even recite the lines that were delivered in Spanish when the one kid was reading the writing on the treasure map!

Hope this helps.

-JM-

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Growing older but not up…

I know a movie that might be perfect for your daughter's sleep-over.Given the fact that your daughter is into the occult and likes to be scared by a movie, see if you can find "The Witches" with Angelica Houston.It"s a great movie about contemporary witches in England, one of whom wants to turn all of the children in the country into mice.It's based on a Roald Dahl story and it is funny and scary at the same time.This one is rated PG but I think it is fine for a 10 year old (it might frighten a much younger child).If you want to know more about it go to:
http://amazon.com
and under search videos enter the The Witches.They have several reviews to guide you.I personally loved this one.

There are also the old favorites like

The Princess Bride (Very Good)

E.T. (terrific)
Big
Babe
Homeward Bound
The Sound Of Music

Maybe you can convince your daughter to buy a lot of wild shades of nail polish and some inexpensive makeup stuff and let everybody doll themselves up (that is how we "big girls" cast our spells after all).

Tell your daughter that Auntie Chelseabelle doesn't think that The Exorcist sets the right tone for a birthday celebration

Talking of Roald Dahl....Maltida is another film based on his books...It stars Danny de Vito and is very funny.

If that doesn't work.....I think there is a horror version of Grims Fairy Tales...can't remember what it is called.
Only kidding on that last....anyway here's a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to your daughter from Uncle Sypher.

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Deciphering the World as I see it !!

Goonies and Matilda are both good movies. The Little Princess is a SUPER MOVIE--particularly for girls that age.Some more suggestions--Miracle On 34th Street,Home Alone (the first one), Ghostbusters(the first one), Adamms Family Values,and Madeline.
http://amazon.com is a great site to go to just to read reviews on most, if not all, of the movies everyone has suggested.That might save you a lot of time and help you make a selection.

[This message has been edited by chelseabelle (edited 11-11-1999).]

Thanks everyone for all the great movie titles. My daughter went through the messages with me and now wants to rent ALL the movies. We will have a hard time narrowing it down to 2. She sends a special thank you to uncle Sypher for the birthday greeting. So do I sypher, that was soooooooooo sweet.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

Opps I made a slight mistake with one of the titles.The movie which I think is absolutely wonderful is called A Little Princess and not The Little Princess (that one is an old Shirley Temple movie, which is good, but the newer one is much better).A Little Princess is just a wonderous and beautiful film and I do think that your daughter and her friends would enjoy it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!! (10 candles)

I just want to thank everyone who replied to my topic and a special thank-you for the birthday wishes. We ended up getting "Goonies", "Big Daddy", and "My favorite Martian". Send me a special prayer for energy. I will be having 14 ten year olds.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

I just wanted to share that we only watched 'Big Daddy' although I did not think it was appropriate for children as I was told.

They were a very loud and busy crowd.

Right now would not be a good time to post on gun control or euthanasia. I would have to totally agree with both.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

Bless you, dearest Sandalwood! So glad to hear you survived with only flesh wounds. Look at the upside, your daughter won't have another birthday for a year. My guess is that you fared better than most would have. Think of the experience as just one more thing that we do for our children. It sounds like she had a good time and, whether she tells you or not, I'm sure that she appreciated your valiant efforts.
Personally, I thought it was nice that you reviewed the messages together to decide on a movie. At that age, it's sometimes difficult to find ANYTHING that you WANT to do together.
Here's to open communication.
-JM-

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Growing older but not up…

Thank-you JollyMon for your reply. It has made my day a little brighter. Cleaning up the mess help me burn off some of the energy of walking around the evening before and holding my tongue. There was only one incident that I had to put a stop to. Strip Poker!!! Can you believe it!!?. Ten year olds!. Thank goodness they were only a gaggle of girls.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

It's tough being a kid these days; tougher than when I was that age. Maybe that's way they're in such a hurry to grow up. Unfortunately, that's a process that can't be rushed (just look at my "tag line")

The only advice that I can offer, having gone through that stage as well as the teenage years, is stay as close to your kids as possible without imposing your will on them. The trick is to "guide" them along life's path rather than "force" them to follow it. Help them to make the right choices rather than making the choices for them and you can't do that if you can't talk to them. Sometimes you may think you're talking to the wall but, you'd be surprised what they hear and retain.

Whoa, enough! Heavy stuff for this forum and MUCH, MUCH easier said than done. I know I'm not telling you anything that you don't already know so just keep the faith and find joy in each stage they go through. It may seem like childhood will last forever to THEM but it will pass faster than YOU realize.

-JM-

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Growing older but not up…

Much appreciated JollyMon. xoxox.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

I know this is way after the event, but in case there's a future need...
I Also highly recommend "The Princess Bride"
Also "Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory" for children of ALL ages (great performance by Gene Wilder)
The Little Prince
The Secret Garden
War Games
The Breakfast Club*
Ghost*
The Explorers
Stand By Me*
Gremlins
* pre-view for your own tastes...you might fell subject matter is too mature for your child.

You are so right Cohalen, all of the above are good movies. Where were you when I was looking for them? Smile.

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Sandalwood's Cosmic Creations: Working with the magic of love....

[This message has been edited by sandalwood (edited 12-13-1999).]