I’m a full blown adult. The days of my youth should be long behind me. Except I still find myself inexplicably drawn to children’s movies. Animated children’s movies to be exact.
Don’t get me wrong, I love movie classics like Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I am also a sucker for a cheesy romcom. But children’s movies tug at my heart strings in ways unlike any other.
I think I’ve cried the most while watching children’s movies. From Coco to Big Hero Six, if it’s animated and probably created by Disney, I’ve cried at least once by the end.
Something I love about children’s movies is the nuances they manage to pack into their storylines. When you remove the adult struggles of getting a job or raging hormones, life certainly seems simpler.
However, we all know that there is no truly “simple” time to live. Who knows this as well? The characters of children’s movies.
Animated movies take complex conflicts and tackle the struggle of conveying these messages to a younger audience. If done well, these stories can facilitate important conversations for their viewers.
Big Hero Six is about finding your own family beyond blood. Inside Out is about the growing changes of puberty and discovering who you are personality wise. Coco is about coming to terms with mortality and family. Encanto is about the pressures of generational trauma. Turning Red is about puberty and no longer fitting family expectations. The list goes on and on.
When I watch these movies, I feel my inner child grow and heal. These stories still have meaning to me even though I am past the target demographic.
And I’m not ashamed of it. I love animated children’s movies. I relate to the characters’ struggles even though I am now older than them. And hey, the occasional musical number doesn’t hurt anyone either.