Top Ten Favorite Family Films of 2003
Since I don’t live in Los Angeles or New York, I don’t get the opportunity to see any of the big dramatic releases. I have to wait a few weeks, sometimes months, before they are released in my local theater. Family films and blockbuster films are much more accessible at the local theaters. Because of this, I am in a much better position right now to list my favorite films the whole family can enjoy. I’ll be able to list my choices for the best 20003 films, which may include some of these films and may not, sometime in January.
1. Finding Nemo– Disney hit it big with this fantastic tale of a father fish who goes in search of his fish son, Nemo. The animation has advanced since the Little Mermaid swam the sea to success. And Ellen DeGeneres as the absent-minded star fish named Dory took center stage by not only tickling our funny bone but stealing our hearts right only with it. If Dory would have been lost or killed in the process of finding Nemo, the show would have tanked. That is the worth of her impact on that film. Besides, this family favorite was not only a great animated film but one of the best films of the year. (It might even appear on my best of 2003 film list in January.)
2. Whale Rider– Children are resilient. They don’t give up too easily. They adapt. And when they believe in something, they don’t go about it in half-efforts. This is true with one of the most delightful and beautiful characters in film this year– Pai (Keisha Castle_Hughes). Pai believes she is the next chief to lead her Maori tribe despite her grandfather’s, the current chief, disbelief. She conquers this adversarial influence and the cultural norms to become what she knew she was born to become. The mystical elements of this film create a magical and meaningful story that kids of all ages would not easily forget. There are two kinds of treasures–the kind that fills your bank account and the kind that stays nearby to lift your soul at a moment’s remembrance. This film is the latter.
3. Holes– Here is another mystical story about a young man who is wrongly accused of stealing a pair of sneakers and who is forced to serve his time at a boy’s ranch digging holes. But Fate has a way of working things like this out. What seems like a simple storyline becomes an intriguingly complex plot about people who live by their greed and those who live by wanting to do right. Another treasure.
4. Pirates of the Caribbean– Disney must be trying to save a few of their signature park rides in the old parts of their theme park because this year they released this film and the less clever Haunted Mansion. Pirates would not have been half as interesting or clever if it were not for Johnny Depp, who played Captain Jack Sparrow. His effeminate and continually inebriated cariacture of Sparrow was drop-dead entertaining. Even looking at the fellow was enough to raise a smile. Depp’s is one of the most memorable performances of the year. Other than this, the clever visual effects of the cursed pirates turning into live skeletons in the moonlight was intriguing from a storyboard aspect and most successfully realized.
5. Elf – Elf was one of those surprises. I was not expecting to see amazingly recreated sets that echoed or paid homage to all of those Christmas cartoons I grew up on. I was not expecting to care for an elf (Will Ferrill) who was really an adopted child who snuck into Santa’s bag and who could not make it as an elf so he went out in search of his real father who lived in New York City. Blah, blah, blah, mwok, mwok, mwok–I’ve heard it before and bah humbug! But, just like the Winter Warlock, whose icy heart melted when offered a gift, I found my critical attitude turned to sheer childlike happiness and Christmas glee. Regarding Ferrill’s performance-- I appreciated the fact that Ferrill didn’t overdo his performance. He played Buddie like a child rather than like a man trying to act like an elf.
6. Peter Pan– The boy Peter never wants to grow up I’m sure because the future is so uncertain. One can’t possibly imagine what life will bring when they grow up. I’m sure this causes children much apprehension. With this in mind, we have this adaptation of this classic children’s tale that seems to have this notion of uncertainty at its core. It is a darker film, not as light-hearted as the original animated cartoon or the remake Hook. This adaptation plays out like a dream might–with enough disconcerting sights that might quickly turn our dream into a nightmare. The sets, costumes, and photography is rich and beautiful.
7. Freaky Friday– Jamie Lee Curtis is delightful as the forty-plus-aged mother of two, Tess Coleman, who struggles to understand her teenage daughter, Anna. Most everything about this film is cookie-cutout comedy, Disney-style, but the split-persona performances by Curtis make this film entertaining and memorable. The rock band angle was a great boost of interest in this remake also!
8. School of Rock– Jack Black plays a loser rock guitarist, Dewey Finn, who pretends to be substitute teacher in order to get funds to pay his rent. He knows nothing about the subject matter to logistically teach these wealthy, upper-class kids at a prestigious private school. So, what he does do, while he can get away with it, is teach these kids how to rock. Seeing these kids transform and blossom into confident individuals, and perform at a battle of the bands show was delightful. Black is hilarious as always. He can always get me to shudder in embarrassment for him, to pity him. Me thinks this means he is very good at what he does.
9. X-Men 2– All right. So I am stretching the genre with this one. You are thinking if I’m going to include this, I should rather include the far better film Return of the King. My reply is this--Return of the King is not going on this list because it is too violent of a film for kids under the age of 12 or 13, with the scenes of decapitated heads being flung by the enemy and a spider scene that is as intense as any one of those Alien films. X-Men 2 has none of these nightmarish elements, though I don’t recommend it to kids under 8. My young son watched it and enjoyed it. For some reason, I think that kids understand the conflict of this film because they experience types of this conflict at school, i.e., on the playground–that there are people and kids who are different; and that these differences do not make them necessarily bad. The opening narration is one of the best of the year. "Mutants. Since the discovery of their existence, they have been regarded with fear, suspicion, often hatred. Across the planet, debate rages. Are mutants the next link in the evolutionary chain? Or simply a new species of humanity fighting for their share of the world? Either way, it is a historical fact. Sharing the world has never been humanities’ defining attributes." [Emphasis mine.]
10. Big Brother– The concept of this film intrigued me from a mystical standpoint–that we redeem our mistakes only by understanding and/or selflessly loving those we have hurt or offended. We saw this same theme in Freaky Friday–neither Tess nor Anna could re-inhabit their bodies until they understood each other and had learned to be selfless.
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