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8 Great Movie Review Sites For Parents With Kids In Mind

Fancy an evening watching movies as a family? Let's explore a few of the best movie review sites for kids so that you can choose the best go-to site for your family's needs.

You're ready to put The Wolverine into the DVD player, then suddenly you wonder if this movie will be a problem for your 8-year-old. Well, will it?

If you're a parent with a family who loves movies, you've probably realised that you need to be able to get some reliable information on those movies before you show them to the family. But navigating the various movie sites to find child-friendly titles can be a chore.

Today we'll explore a few of the best movie review sites for kids so that you can choose the best go-to site for your family's needs. We'll also show you the best ways to get drip-fed some useful information about new movie releases too. Then you can line up your Netflix list and get watching!

Common Sense Media

The Common Sense Media site has a unique way of showcasing their film reviews. Latest releases are shown in a list just with a poster, quick one-sentence blurb, age rating, and star rating. If you click through, you get to see a short video review of the film, featuring a few short clips from the film with a voice-over review. This really is great, as you can see for yourself the sorts of characters that are in the film. The reviews are also very comprehensive, letting you know if there is any educational value as well as covering the usual parental worries - and they're not afraid to tell you if they just don't like it much! If you can't watch the video for whatever reason, you can usually click through again to a text version.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eQ3UqV4cs4

The site is easy to browse with best of lists and the like. They also cover books, games, music, and more. Common Sense Media can be followed on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube , or via their mobile apps .

Plugged In is a family review site for movies, TV series, games, books, and music. It is seriously well worth a visit if you want to be certain about the suitability of any given entertainment for your child.

The reviews are very detailed, and categorised into positive elements, violent content, sexual content, and more. Their summary icons are limited in order to be simple to understand. This site is available to follow on Facebook, Twitter, or via their Focus On The Family apps.

Movie Guide

Movie Guide is focused on movies and reviews in general, and doesn't set out to have family-focused reviews. However, it has summary pages with information that families would need to make a decision. Each review page has an easy-to-read chart showing language, violence, sex, and nudity levels. It also starts the review with a very brief paragraph on potential issues families might have with the film content.

Follow Movie Guide reviews via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, RSS, or on YouTube .

Kids In Mind

Kids In Mind have very wordy reviews, focusing on three major areas of concern for parents: Sex & Nudity, Violence & Gore, and Profanity. Each film has an easy-reference chart showing the severity of content in these areas, but the review proper has a lot more information available.

Follow Kids In Mind on Facebook or via their iPhone or iPad app. Also, iPad users should check out our guide to  watching videos on the iPad  and Android users should read up on our list of  tablets you would let your kids use .

Box Office Mom

The Box Office Mom site appeals to parents as it gets straight to the answers you really want to know. In the full review, each of the following points is also elaborated on, so you can find out more detail if you're still unsure.

Each film has entries for:

• Rating (Her star-rating guide)
• Release Date
• MPAA Rating
• Best Age Group
• Sexual Content
• Violent Content
• Crude or Profane Language
• Drugs and Alcohol Content
• Will it Appeal to Kids/Teens?

She seems to cover any and all movies that teenagers will bug their parents about. So, there are a few R rated movies in the mix, some of which get a big NO, while others could possibly be viewed by mature 17-year-olds.

You can also browse the site by genre, box-office favourites, or DVD favourites. If you want updates on her new reviews, you can subscribe using RSS, Facebook, and Twitter.

Kids Pick Flicks

The Kids Pick Flicks site has a good point: Why should kids care what a 50-year-old man has to say about movies? To turn that around, they offer a site full of reviews by kids and teenagers.

This, I feel, is an awesome way to find out for sure if your kids will even be interested in certain films. It's also a good way to get your kids interested in reading about movies -- or maybe even reviewing them themselves. In fact, many of the teenage writers on this site seem to have a real talent for writing movie reviews, and could easily line up a good career in it later, I'm sure.

The site is searchable or browsable by DVD reviews or more recent movie reviews. It's worth adding to your RSS feeds.

Raising Children Movie Reviews

The Raising Children site has a lot more than movie reviews, but their movie review section is definitely worth a mention. When browsing their list of movies, you can see prominent icons which let you know what sort of movie it is and what age groups it is recommended for.

The symbols make it easy to see:

• Frightening scenes
• Inappropriate language
• Disturbing, upsetting or confusing scenes
• Sexual references or sex scenes
• Violence or scary scenes
• Age recommendations: Not recommended for / parental guidance recommended for / or suitable for.

As Raising children is an Australian site, all recommendations have been made in conjunction with the Australian Council on Children and the Media. Obviously, clicking through to the film will give you more information on the story, themes, violence, disturbing scenes, sex scenes, product placement, coarse language and ideas to discuss with your children. The last section could be really valuable as a learning tool for your family.

The Dove Foundation

The Dove Foundation covers both movies and books, aiming to showcase the sorts of things that are good for family viewing. Each review comes with a small graph that shows the severity of each of the major worry points for parents: Sex, language, violence, drugs, nudity or other issues. The reviews themselves are brief and focus on what may be worrisome for the parents. The site looks a little outdated, but the content is still very good!

Movies With Kids

As a parent, I wholeheartedly recommend using all of these sites to make decisions. Some of them will obviously gel more with your family's needs more than others, but each of them offer great information about the films out today. I suggest downloading all of the apps and following all of the Facebook pages, as this way you'll get a drip-feed of useful information about the latest films and will have an app on hand to check when you need it.

If your kids also like to play Roblox, make sure you help them stay away from free Robux scams , too.

Image Credits: Little girl Via Shutterstock

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Chicken for linda, common sense media reviewers.

Offbeat animated comedy has language, intense moments.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

While ultimately lighthearted in nature, the film

Paulette admits to being wrong for punishing Linda

All characters are color-blocked in ways that repr

While violence isn't the main focus, there are sev

Characters kiss, hug, and flirt. One character has

Infrequent mild language (in English subtitles for

Glasses of wine present in multiple scenes; visual

Parents need to know that Chicken for Linda! is a French animated comedy from directors Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach ( The Girl Without Hands ) about the outrageous series of events surrounding a little girl's innocent request for her mother to cook her a nostalgic meal. Main character Linda …

Positive Messages

While ultimately lighthearted in nature, the film tackles serious topics including the importance of keeping promises (and apologizing for mistakes); dealing with death, grief, and loss; the importance of healing broken family relationships; and compassion, curiosity, and perseverance.

Positive Role Models

Paulette admits to being wrong for punishing Linda unjustly and apologizes for her actions, with feelings of mom guilt. She tries to keep her promise to make a nostalgic meal for her daughter at all costs to make it up to her. In doing so, Paulette wrongly steals a chicken -- but she feels bad about it and ultimately apologizes and pays for the chicken. Paulette and Linda have a complicated relationship but ultimately persevere through a series of antics that bring them closer together.

Diverse Representations

All characters are color-blocked in ways that represent different/individual color shades and body types. Main characters are female; female and male characters are portrayed as having equal agency. This animated film is dubbed in French and subtitled in English for U.S. release; filmmakers and voice cast members are primarily French.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

While violence isn't the main focus, there are several iffy/alarming moments. A handgun is fired; no one is injured, but a window is broken. A frustrated mother drags her child out of the house by the arms. Inferred slap of child in the face (not shown), with multiple verbal discussions occurring after. Characters resist arrest by police and flee the scene. One character is shown handcuffed. Multiple discussions of cutting off the heads of animals and people, as well as multiple verbal descriptions of killing a chicken, including allusions to suffocation by a bag on its head, wringing its neck, and cutting off its head. Multiple animals are thrown: a cat across a kitchen for eating something it wasn't supposed to and a chicken out of a multiple-story-building window. Sounds of a cat vomiting; person's hand is seen in the cat vomit. Images of a man lying dead on the floor and on a plate during a musical number. One woman slaps another woman on the head and back multiple times. A child is put to bed in a dark room that's a bit scary for her. Linda's father dies when she's young, and the loss affects her and her mother.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Characters kiss, hug, and flirt. One character has his uniform ripped off -- he's left wearing only underwear -- and is seen in multiple scenes. Top of a character's bottom (including the crack) is shown exposed when he pulls down his underwear in search of an item. One character is seen sitting on the toilet with underwear down past the knees.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Infrequent mild language (in English subtitles for U.S. release) includes "dumb-ass," "dammit," "damn," and "sucks," plus "shut up," "hate," "kill," "dead," "butt," "devil," and "wacko."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Glasses of wine present in multiple scenes; visuals and sounds of a champagne bottle being opened and poured. One scene of an adult drinking from a glass.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Chicken for Linda! is a French animated comedy from directors Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach ( The Girl Without Hands ) about the outrageous series of events surrounding a little girl's innocent request for her mother to cook her a nostalgic meal. Main character Linda (voiced by Mélinée Leclerc) and her mother have a complicated relationship, but the movie is lighthearted overall. That said, amid the childhood mischief and whimsy are serious topics such as love, loss, and daily life struggles. Expect some slapstick antics and physical comedy, along with a general sense of chaos and unruliness -- but it's all expressed with real emotions. A handgun is fired (no one is harmed), a person is handcuffed, and a mother drags her daughter out of the house by the arms (it's also implied that she slaps her). There are verbal and visual references to death, animal cruelty, and resistance to authority -- but it's all underlined with humor. Characters are shown in their underwear and on the toilet, again for comic effect. A cat vomits, animals are thrown across the room, and there are multiple verbal descriptions of killing a chicken. Adults pour and drink wine/champagne. Infrequent mild language includes "dumb-ass," "dammit," "damn," and "sucks," plus "shut up," "hate," "butt," etc. Characters demonstrate perseverance, curiosity, and compassion, as well as humility and childlike wonder. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

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What's the Story?

In CHICKEN FOR LINDA! guilt-ridden mom Paulette (voiced by Clotilde Hesme ) promises to cook a meal of chicken and peppers to make up for wrongly punishing her daughter, Linda (Mélinée Leclerc). But with a general strike closing down all of the stores in their area, Linda's innocent request for a meal that reminds her of her late father turns into a crazy series of antics as Paulette goes to great lengths to keep her promise.

Is It Any Good?

Blending serious topics with childhood mischief and whimsy, this bright, lighthearted French animated comedy is imaginative and fun while still being rooted in the real world. As directed by Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach ( The Girl Without Hands ), Chicken for Linda! is a satire that uses slapstick humor and songs to tackle deep issues and broken relationships through real emotions -- ultimately celebrating the inner child in all of us.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how grief and loss of a loved one affect family dynamics. Why do you think that Paulette and Linda struggled with their relationship as mom and daughter in Chicken for Linda! ?

Paulette experiences mom guilt for wrongly punishing her daughter. Do you think that Paulette did the right thing to keep her promise? What would you have done?

Chicken for Linda! has recurring themes of resisting authority, encouraging chaos, and promoting anarchy. Can these themes be seen positively in today's world? Why, or why not?

How do characters demonstrate compassion , curiosity , and perseverance ? Why are these important character strengths?

Movie Details

• In theaters : April 5, 2024
• Cast : Mélinée Leclerc , Clotilde Hesme , Laetitia Casta
• Directors : Chiara Malta , Sébastien Laudenbach
• Inclusion Information : Female directors, Female actors
• Studio : GKIDS
• Genre : Family and Kids
• Character Strengths : Compassion , Curiosity , Perseverance
• Run time : 76 minutes
• MPAA rating : NR
• Last updated : April 3, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

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Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

What to watch with your kids: ‘Ernest & Celestine’ and more

Ernest & celestine: a trip to gibberitia (tv-pg).

Charming sequel about friendship, art has occasional peril.

“ Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia ” is the sequel to the Oscar-nominated French animated movie “ Ernest & Celestine .” Like the original, the movie follows unlikely best friends Ernest (voiced by Lambert Wilson in the original French and Andrew Kishino in the English dub), a bear, and Celestine (Pauline Brunner/Ashley Boettcher), a mouse. This time around, they end up resisting an unjust anti-music law in Ernest’s homeland.

Expect occasional insult language (“silly, ” “dumb,” “coward,” “you’re a pain”) and a few scary moments when law enforcement officials pursue the main characters and arrest Ernest and other musicians. In one scene, little Celestine is in danger — exposed to the snowy and windy elements — and both she and Ernest tumble down a mountain but are fine. The story centers on discrimination, but instead of species-based prejudice, it explores the suppression of the arts (in this case, music) and the unjust idea that kids must follow in their parents’ footsteps. Overall, it’s a celebration of friendship, family and art. (79 minutes)

The Hill (PG)

Fact-based sports drama highlights the power of faith.

“ The Hill ” is a Christian sports drama based on the true story of Rickey Hill (Colin Ford), who defied the odds to play baseball professionally. Faith is central to the story: Rickey’s father, Pastor Hill (Dennis Quaid), is a Southern Baptist pastor in small-town Texas in the 1960s, and the Bible is frequently quoted, interpreted and discussed. Characters often smoke and spit tobacco, and someone who’s drunk gets into a fistfight when he’s stopped from driving. Infrequent language includes words like “crap” and “damnedest,” as well as ableist insults (“gimp”).

Ricky is the target of bullying and gets hit hard with a baseball. Corporal punishment is threatened, and spousal abuse is indicated via a woman’s black eye. The main characters’ portrayals offer food for thought or discussion: Rickey demonstrates that while you may “only need faith the size of a mustard seed” to do the impossible, achievement requires perseverance. Pastor Hill may be a good man and loving father, but his arc also shows that parents need to be open to listening to their kids about the ways they’d like to be supported. (126 minutes)

Gran Turismo (PG-13)

Intense crashes in exhilarating game-based racing flick.

“ Gran Turismo ” is director Neill Blomkamp’s exciting, fact-based action drama about gamer-turned-professional racecar driver Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe). While kids might use Jann’s true story to counter parental arguments against playing tons of video games, he’s clearly a positive role model: He exemplifies perseverance, gratitude and humility.

Expect to see intense crashes on the racetrack, including some scenes shown from a first-person point of view. Brand names (especially cars and alcohol) are everywhere, and champagne is positioned as a drink for winners. Characters kiss and use strong language (“bulls---,” “goddamn,” a use of “f--- it,” etc.). There’s a strong message about success requiring commitment, and watching the movie’s events unfold might help kids believe that, with conviction, even their loftiest dream could come true. (135 minutes)

Ahsoka (TV-14)

First female-led Star Wars series has sci-fi violence.

“ Ahsoka ” is a series set in the Star Wars universe. Former Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), who originally debuted as an animated character in “ Star Wars: The Clone Wars ,” and her crew are on a mission to face the evil Grand Admiral Thrawn. Expect some sci-fi violence, including light saber battles, guns, explosions and hand-to-hand combat. The main characters in this series are female, a Star Wars first, and they demonstrate lots of courage and teamwork. (Eight roughly hour-long episodes)

Available on Disney Plus.

Common Sense Media helps families make smart media choices. Go to commonsense.org for age-based and educational ratings and reviews for movies, games, apps, shows, websites and books.

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What to watch with your kids: ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ and more

‘ghostbusters: frozen empire’ (pg-13).

Ghoulish reboot sequel has lots going on; language, scares.

“Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” is the sequel to the 2021 reboot, bringing together Ghostbusters new and old (even Bill Murray!) to fight an icy supernatural baddie. Some of the frights here are creepier and ickier than in previous iterations, including a scary, glowing-eyed ghoul who can freeze and shatter humans; a true “phantom limb”; suicidal mini-Stay Puft Marshmallow men; and an adorable spook that projectile-vomits. Characters are frequently in peril, proton pack weapons are used and there’s property damage galore (plus jump scares). Expect a few suggestive jokes, including older teens repeatedly referring to a secret room as a “sex dungeon.” Language includes “a--hole,” “son of a b----,” “s---,” “damn” and one reference to “the f-word.” One scene is set inside a smoke and vape shop, and an adult takes a swig from a bottle of alcohol. Amid all the ghostly mayhem are clear messages about family, belonging, teamwork, curiosity and perseverance. And the target audience of older tweens and teens is likely to enjoy the movie’s focus on 15-year-old Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and the other smart, capable teen characters. (115 minutes)

Available in theaters.

‘The Casagrandes Movie’ (TV-Y7)

Fast-paced movie based on TV series has cartoon violence.

The TV series spinoff “The Casagrandes Movie” follows the Mexican American Casagrandes family as they travel to Mexico to visit family and celebrate ancient traditions. Two intersecting storylines involve confident tween girls pushing for more independence in ways that put themselves and their parents in harm’s way. Despite perilous situations — falls, crashes, earthquakes, fiery creatures on the attack, and kids and beloved family members in jeopardy — the characters all emerge just fine (except the villains, who melt and disintegrate). Characters mix English words with some Spanish and Purépecha (an Indigenous language). Expect to hear variations on “butt” and “poop,” as well as “heck,” “jeez” and “jerk.” Messages include the idea that, in generation after generation, moms must learn to let their daughters grow up — within proper limits — when they show they’re ready. (84 minutes)

Available on Netflix.

‘R oad House’ (R)

Remake of cult classic has violent fights, strong language.

“Road House” is a remake of the 1980s cult classic with Jake Gyllenhaal taking over for Patrick Swayze as Dalton (now an ex-UFC fighter), who is hired as a bouncer at a Florida Keys bar. Expect plenty of fights and brawls with punches, kicks, head-butts and stabbings. Bones are broken, and there are bloody injuries. Someone is eaten by a crocodile — they’re seen being dragged underwater — and another has their neck snapped. Characters are hit with bottles and clubs, and multiple scenes show people being repeatedly punched in the head. In one early scene, Dalton contemplates suicide: He parks his car on a railroad crossing but changes his mind at the last second. Real-life UFC fighter Conor McGregor co-stars as hired muscle Knox. He makes his entrance naked, though only his butt is seen. Expect lots of strong language, too, including “c---sucker,” “d---head,” “s---,” “son of a b----” and multiple variants of “f---.” There’s plenty of drinking, given the movie’s bar setting, and customers get involved in drunken altercations. Drugs and drug smuggling are mentioned. (121 minutes)

Available on Prime Video.

‘X-Men ’97’ (TV-PG)

Stellar retro animated action-adventure has violence.

“X-Men ’97” is an animated action show that continues the adventures of the 1990s cartoon “X-Men: The Animated Series.” Expect lots of fast-paced action and violence, including big guns, explosions and fistfighting. The X-Men, including Jean Grey (voiced by Jennifer Hale) and Cyclops (Ray Chase), have powers that can cause destruction and death, but the show’s violence is cartoonish overall. There’s also some disturbing dream imagery of a giant skull-like creature, Master Mold, and a villain’s head is set on fire. Language includes “pissed,” “dirtbag,” “freak,” “crap” and “dang.” The theme of discrimination against mutants is frequently addressed. The X-Men are serious about teamwork and care for one another as a family. (10 episodes)

Available on Disney Plus.

Common Sense Media helps families make smart media choices. Go to commonsense.org for age-based and educational ratings and reviews for movies, games, apps, TV shows, websites and books.

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How to Date Billy Walsh review – another offensively boring streaming-service mess

Even with floor-level expectations, this romcom is incoherent and grating, mistaking teen camp for charm

A t this point, I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had to start a review by suggesting the streaming business has lowered our standards. The expectation, now, is cheap-looking, derivative and disposable – and the aim is purely consumable. At best, these B-tier streaming movies are fun, kicky, or knowingly smooth-brain. At worst, they’re offensive to your time.

How to Date Billy Walsh, a new teen movie from Prime Video, falls on the latter end of that spectrum. The England-set romcom from veteran TV director Alex Pillai, whose credits include Riverdale, Bridgerton and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, commits the cardinal sin in this content glut: it is boring, and its glaring flaws – from tone to shot choice to premise – only serve to underscore its failings, and not in a fun, Madame Web way. Even with diminished expectations, it grates.

Most of its issues boil down to a fundamental lack of charm, despite its strenuous efforts to force it through fourth-wall breaks by protagonist Archie (Heartstopper’s Sebastian Croft), who suffers from lifelong cowardice to tell Amelia (Bridgerton’s Charithra Chandran ), his best friend since birth, that he loves her. The script, by Alexander J Farrell and Greer Ellison (Hope Street, Butterfly Kisses), tries to be punchy with this material, peppering their friendship with bonding over farts, sex toys and a joke about his dick size, that come off, well, limply. Because movie logic, he’s rich and lives in what appears to be an amateur planetarium, she lost her mom to cancer, and both are losers at a school populated by the most thinly-drawn side characters possible – blond mean girl with eyebrows (Daisy Jelley), flamboyant gay boy with phone (Nael Ameen), a foul-mouthed headteacher (Guz Khan), and Archie’s loyal driver William (Nick Frost).

The film opens with a dirt-smudged, partially shaven-headed Archie hijacking Heathbrook Academy’s summer ball for a grand speech; it then flashes back to his plan, at the beginning of term, to tell Amelia he loves her while they watch their favourite classic horror film (they’re quirky!). Said plan is thwarted by the arrival of a handsome, motorcycle-riding, attention-grabbing American transfer student named Billy Walsh (Cobra Kai’s Tanner Buchanan). The title is a bit of a misnomer, as the film is barely concerned with Walsh (a mostly vacant nice guy with a winsome smile) nor the hijinks required for Amelia to get his attention. It’s more preoccupied with Archie’s state of mind as he scrambles to keep Amelia close and sabotage her puppy-eyed interest in Billy through increasingly indefensible means. Namely, by pretending to be an 80-year-old “love doctor” whom Amelia calls for (very bad) advice. (She got the idea from Archie’s bitter turned horny parents, if you can believe.)

This contrivance, via an AI digital-ageing app rendered in cheap sci-fi aesthetics, lands Archie in Dear Evan Hansen territory of objectionability and makes for unfavourable comparison to the amateur teen sex therapist in Netflix’s far superior Sex Education, also set in an English school milieu. It’s also a disservice to Chandran, who initially plays Amelia as smart and grounded, with the character saddled with sense-defying and humiliating behaviour and beholden to the needs of plot.

This summary makes the film sound more coherent than it is, as there is little rhythm to the scenes, the characters’ emotional logic or the tone, which shoots for heightened teen camp – mean girls throwing insults and milkshakes, choreographed group dances at the ball, a chorus of extremely cheap-looking “OMG” and laughing emojis on the screen – and lands somewhere between sincere, arch and comical, with the seamlessness of sandpaper. It’s a weird facsimile of a movie – plot with no momentum, plenty of character facts without substance, a pastiche of better movie moments and classic romcom notes. Even for lowered expectations or couch-day fluff, this is a skip.

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Let’s set the scene…..

You’ve picked the movie, you’ve popped the popcorn, everyone’s comfy. You pop in the movie and things are going well. You’re laughing and smiling and enjoying family time. And then it happens, that scene you forgot about, or those words that made you cringe.

Oh, shoot! Wasn’t this supposed to be a kid’s movie? How could I forget about this?! You cover the kid’s eyes while your spouse fumbles around trying to turn it off, or fast-forward, or even just hope the electricity goes out. Give us a break, right?!

You’ve been there, I know you have because I’ve been there too! But, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret that I’ve been carrying around for a while. With a simple click, you won’t have to worry anymore if the movie is kid-friendly, or stands up to your convictions.

You’re New BFF

These movie review sites for Christian parents will be your BFF when it comes to your next family movie night! I can almost guarantee that you’ll find family-friendly movie reviews on the show of your choice via one of these sites.

I do find it interesting that not one of these websites will give you a definitive “do not watch” or “definitely watch” at the end of the review. To make your decision, you will still need to gather information from the reviews and make a judgment call based on your family values and expectations.

You might find it helpful to look at more than one site to get a more well-rounded perspective! Fortunately, most of these websites use headings and organize the posts so you can quickly scan for the content that matters most, such as sexual content, profanity, violence, or nudity. 

I’ve put this list in order of preference, so I recommend you start at the top of the list for the best information and then work your way down when you can’t find what you need. If you need to make a fast decision the DOVE site has the most concise information. But if it’s the details you are looking for, I’d go with Plugged In first every time.

I don’t know how many times we’ve pulled out a movie we watched ourselves as kids and remembered fondly, only to get ten minutes into the movie and turn it off in shock. Growing up, growing in faith, and having children of our own certainly changes how we view content. For this reason, I’m glad we have sites that review older movies and not just the most current content.

8 Movie Review Sites for Christian Parents

This one is, by far, my favorite review site to check in on. I’ve used it numerous times, and not just for kids’ movies. We even check videos out for ourselves using this site too! It never fails to disappoint us with accuracy or detail, the writers at Focus on the Family really do a great job! If you have tweens, it would be perfectly safe to have them read the Plugged In review for the video in question before they ask you for permission. This will give your teens an excellent overview of things to watch for and also save you significant time as they will do the narrowing down for you. 

Common Sense Media 

This next movie review site is my second favorite. Like Plugged In, Common Sense Media is incredibly thorough and provides independent reviews based upon age, ratings, and other pertinent information you’ll definitely want to know about. This site was started to help parents navigate the digital age and protect their children from the unknown effects of too much media. If you can’t find what you are looking for on PluggedIn, you will find all the recent movies reviewed here!

Kinds In Mind

With a scaled rating of Sex/Nudity, Violence/Gore, and Language, the system works pretty well for this company. While I was hoping that this movie review site was geared mainly towards Christian parents, they do state that they are independent of all political and religious viewpoints.

I didn’t even know that Dove had their own movie review system. But, they’ve got a pretty good thing going here. I don’t find that it’s as detailed as some of the others here, but it could definitely get the job done if you need just a little snippet of information so you can make a quick decision.

Movie Guide

This is not your old-fashioned movie guide (like I was thinking it was) it actually is very informative and ranks at the top of the list for me! While the site doesn’t have much information about its roots, the site has a ton of movie reviews that are available!

Raising Children

I had never heard of this site until I started doing a little more digging on movie review sites for Christian parents. While this one is not Christian based, and not as detailed in the information, it does cover its bases- so we’ll still list it as a good option for movie review sites for parents.

Box Office Mom

She’s a great movie buff, but I do feel as though it’s a little less informative and a little more dependent on her own opinions when it comes to how her movies are rated. Yet, you may enjoy that real-life review about it. I also love throwing her in here to support another mom blogger!

Parent Previews

Parent Previews is just, well, okay . The problem is that with some of their movie reviews they have a disclaimer that they have not actually viewed the movie yet and the information is gathered from an outside source. No thanks.

Looking for more than just a review site?

If you’re looking for clean entertainment and want specific recommendations, you can check out these posts: Best Clean Shows on Netflix, Clean TV Shows on Amazon Prime , and Faith & Family Movies that you absolutely need to see too!

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All of these sites are different, so it really depends on your personal preference as to which site you’ll refer to when looking for a family-friendly movie review. The top two listed are my favorites, but you may be happy with what another site has to offer!

How do you do your due diligence when choosing what movies are “good enough” for your children?

Just a heads up to be wary of Common Sense Media. They seem good on the surface but in their About Us they are all about the cult of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), which means their staff is woke. And woke and Christianity do not mix.

I have yet to find just ONE site that has the backbone to give the most basic information about whether a movie (any movie searched for) has anything GAY in it! If a site does not include this information on any given search then it is not REALLY a site worth searching and it is a phony moral search site (not Christian, not Godly or morally family friendly by any standard, period)! You can’t leave something like this out of your ratings and be legitimately moral! And you can’t con God by pretending to be Christian friendly and God Revering!

Jane Doe, you are 1OO% correct! My family and I are SICK AND TIRED of all the GAY stuff.

Amen to this, sister!!

Personally with my kid I haven’t shown her anything newer than 1995 or so that I haven’t pre-screened first just to make sure there’s no gay and no anti-men messages in it. But it’s hard when everyone wants to watch the latest stuff.

Be wary of Common Sense Media – I used to use them all the time and loved the detail they provided about what to expect in a movie… until I took my 5 year old to a movie that ended up having a gay kissing scene in it. Common Sense Media does not specify when there are any LGBTQ+ characters or scenes in movies.

Agreed. I read another review where all the parent reviews regarding the lgbtq content were removed by other upset parents who thought they were offensive. I wrote saying how unbalanced this was and that the point of the parent reviews were for parents to see a well rounded review of what is in the show and that if those views were removed based on other parents opinions, that was unfair and one sided.

I’m so sorry you got fooled by them. I almost was too. On the surface they seem really good but thankfully I thought to look at their About Us section and saw they had a page about “Diversity and Inclusion”, which is code for the modern day woke cult. Now I know I won’t be trusting them at all.

We love plugged in! We also use Down The Hobbit Hole Blogs reviews because they have reliable age suggestions and parental warnings. We’re foster parents, so there are a lot of weird things that would make us say yes or no to a movie.

I would like to add one more to your list ChristianAnswers.net/spotlight

I have a bookmark folder on my computer & my phone and add Christian movie review sites as I find them. On my computer and phone I open all the sites in the folder as tabs and search each for movies at the store (the firewall at Dollar General explicitly blocks access to PluggedIn.com) to avoid getting unsuitable movies.

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