Jumanji.
Photo: Courtesy of the Studio
This list is regularly updated as movies rotate on and off of Prime Video. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.
The selection of family films on Amazon Prime’s streaming service leaves a little something to be desired, but that just makes a guide like this even more useful! You have to dig through the titles on Prime Video to find something appropriate for everyone from kindergartener to great grandpa, but there are some titles worth a look, including some family classics that you may have forgotten.
Year: 2021
Runtime: 1 hour, 33 minutes
Directors: Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon
The characters created by Charles Addams will never grow old, even if this recent animated hit isn’t exactly their best outing. There’s still just enough to like in this sequel to the 2019 animated debut of the Addams Family, especially in the voice work by Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron, Nick Kroll, Bill Hader, Wallace Shawn, and many more. This one is about a road trip for the Addams clan and despite being generally ignored during the pandemic, it still made a fortune. They’re going to be making Addams movies forever.
Year: 2011
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Sarah Smith
One of the stronger recent holiday flicks is this film from the geniuses at Aardman Animation. Leaving behind their stop-motion mastery for a CGI adventure, this tells the tale of Arthur Christmas, the least successful son of Santa and how he saves the holiday for a little girl.
Year: 2021
Runtime: 1h 53m
Director: Kay Cannon
Another year, another Cinderella movie. The original one on Prime belongs to pop superstar Camila Cabello, who channeled her fame from the music world into this jukebox musical take on the classic tale. That means familiar hits, intertwined with a few original songs. It’s not the best Cinderella, but it’s not the worst either. Maybe it will be the shoe that fits you.
Year: 2021
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Walt Becker
This adaptation of the children’s book series about the giant dog was originally scheduled for a theatrical release but ended up shuffled onto Paramount+ in late 2021 before also being made available to Prime subscribers. It’s just sweet enough to make this list, thanks in large part to a game cast that includes a fun Tony Hale and Kenan Thompson.
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 27m
Director: Derek Drymon and Jennifer Kluska
The massive blockbuster franchise of Hotel Transylvania films took a surprising turn in early 2022 when the pandemic forced this once-Sony property into a Prime Video exclusive. Likely the final film in this four-movie series, this one sees Dracula (Adam Sandler) becoming a human as his son-in-law (Andy Samberg) becomes a monster. Of course, it’s about what’s on the inside that really counts. Everybody knows that.
Year: 2010
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois
The movies based on the book by Cressida Cowell comprise one of the best trilogies of the 2010s. It all started with this DreamWorks adventure film about a boy (Jay Baruchel) who befriends a dragon named Toothless, despite his people’s fear of the flying creatures. A classic tale of never judging a book by its cover, this a beautiful adventure tale, a movie with equal amounts of heart and spirit.
Year: 2008
Runtime: 1h 26m
Director: Anthony Leondis
History seems to have memory holed this mediocre animated film but the selection of family flicks on Prime Video is pretty dire right now, so forgive us. It does have a pretty killer voice cast that includes John Cusack, Steve Buscemi, Jay Leno, Eddie Izzard, John Cleese, Molly Shannon, and Jennifer Coolidge. Cusack plays the classic title character, who dreams of becoming a mad scientist on his own.
Year: 1946
Runtime: 2h 10m
Director: Frank Capra
One of the most beloved films of all time doesn’t just have to be watched around the holidays. The lessons in this film about what people value in life could be appreciated any time of the year, as could one of the most iconic performances in film history from Jimmy Stewart.
Year: 1995
Runtime: 1h 44m
Director: Joe Johnston
This is not the massively successful reboots with Kevin Hart & Dwayne Johnson, but the underrated original that was loosely based on the kid’s book of the same name and featured a board game come to life. This hit movie features a committed performance from Robin Williams as the boy who gets trapped in the game until he’s released a generation by a couple of kids. Chaos ensues.
Year: 1997
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Gore Verbinski
The great Gore Verbinski directed this 1997 black comedy that works for the whole family. On the surface, it’s the story of two brothers tormented by one small mouse in a house they’ve inherited from their father. It’s filled with great physical humor from Nathan Lane and Lee Evans, who crib their style from classic comedy duos like Laurel & Hardy and Abbott & Costello.
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Rob Minkoff, Mark Koetsier, Chris Bailey
A loose remake of Blazing Saddles, this 2022 CGI animated film barely made any waves when it was released last Summer, but it’s not bad! Michael Cera, Ricky Gervais, Samuel L. Jackson, Michelle Yeoh, and even Mel Brooks himself contribute voice work to the tale of a dog who becomes a samurai to help rescue a cat village from its awful owner.
Year: 2022
Runtime: 2h 2m
Director: David Mickey Evans
With a third film in production, it kind of feels like these films about the fast little blue guy are the first new mega-franchise of the pandemic, right? And something interesting about them is how quickly Paramount has worked to make them available to subscribers. This film jumped from theatres to Paramount+ before it was even on Blu-ray and now it’s on Prime Video too. There’s a reason kids love these movies. Watch for yourself and find out why.
Year: 1973
Runtime: 1h 45m
Director: Martin Ritt
It may not be the kind of family film that Minions fans are looking for, but why not challenge your kids with something more grounded every now and then? Sounder is more than just the story of a dog. It’s a tale of the Deep South during the Great Depression, anchored by stunning performances from Paul Winfield and Cicely Tyson, both of whom earned Oscar nominations for their work here, and the movie was also nominated for Best Picture.
Year: 2007
Runtime: 2h 7m
Director: Matthew Vaughn
The director of The Kingsman may not seem a fit for this guide, but his adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel is a charming romantic fantasy for all ages. Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Sienna Miller, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro, and many more familiar face star in a film that’s modest but sweet, a flick that has developed a cult following since its release.
Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 41m
Director: Jonathan Liebesman
Who could have guessed that the pizza-loving turtles would become such a long-lasting franchise that an animated reboot film called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is hitting theaters later this year. Before then, go back and check out the last reboot attempt in the live-action flick starring Megan Fox, Will Arnett, and the voices of Tony Shalhoub and Johnny Knoxville. It’s a silly movie but it’s just old enough that it might be nostalgic already for the right Prime subscriber.
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