26 Best Family Movies to Watch

A supremely acted drama with Mark Ruffalo and Laura Linney, exploring the complicated nature of siblinghood .

A strange story of love and parenting but the children are half-human, half-wolf. .

Another tremendous family drama from the immaculate filmography of Hirokazu Koreeda .

A child tries to do right by his friend in this moving portrait of life in rural Iran.

You've probably watched and heard about enough Holocaust films to expect a formula, but you might want to put all that aside going into The Boy in Striped Pajamas. Bruno, the son of a WWII Nazi commandant forms an unlikely friendship with a Jewish kid his age in his father's concentration camp. The film is World War II told through Bruno's eyes, and while you might not get why this movie is so highly praised in its first scenes, the twisting and profound second half will have you recommending it to everyone in need of a moving story well executed, or quite simply a good cry.

Japanese mastermind Koreeda's plotless exploration of grief.

A watercolor, paradisal coming-of-age story about a teenage witch in training.

Finds magic in the ordinary every day—and reminds us the most special art is that which comes from the heart.

A Franco-Gaelic animated film nominated for an Academy Award, the Secret of Kells certainly isn't your average Disney fare. Set in 8th century Ireland, it is beautifully animated, taking cues from ancient illuminated manuscripts and Gaelic folk art. Featuring a plot heavily inspired by Irish mythology, it tells the story of the Viking invasion of Ireland and the creation of the Book of Kells, an Irish national treasure. The world of the film pulses with the lush greenery of the island, populated by fairies, giants, magic and mystery.

Nick Offerman with the feels.

An illuminative interpretation of the life of Jiro Horikoshi, a Japanese aviation engineer responsible for many World War II fighter designs, including the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter.

An uplifting true story.

This animated movie is absolutely wonderful. It’s an Irish production, and the drawings/graphics are so beautiful and different from what you usually see in this genre. This alone, along with the music, would be good reasons to watch this.But what really makes this worth your time is the story – it’s about a boy dealing with the loss of his mother. He embarks on an adventure into a parallel world of feelings to save his sister.I found it to be refreshingly original, sometimes quite intense (I cried, but I easily cry), and heartwarming. The details are great. And I love the way the story was interwoven with Irish mythology, making it magical.