A list of 10 or so movies from the 80’s and 90’s I’m going to try watching with my kids thanks to real social media friends.

If you ever feel like nothing in life online seems real anymore, try and ask for some input on something you really need help with on social media. It feels like the 2019 equivalent to knocking on a neighbor’s door in the good old days to borrow a cup of sugar. It’s one way to really realize that you aren’t totally alone in the vastness of the universe. The people you ‘see’ through pictures, memes, shares and comments will actually try and help you out just like they would if you went over and knocked on their doors.

I’ve had a few experiences lately where some people have forgotten that social media is not a game or a business transaction. I am a real human being writing these blog posts and creating photos for my instagram and I love the social aspect of it all-it’s what keeps me doing what I do and it’s also why if you message me you actually get me and not some virtual assistant. Even more than the trips we’ve taken, or the work I’ve done, I love that I have met so many cool people because of this medium and it’s made the big world feel smaller and more like a community. And it’s so easy to forget that how we behave on social media and how we treat others and how we share information creates a footprint of who we are nowadays-especially in a world where people no longer have time to meet their actual physical neighbors. People are still looking for the connection that we used to have when we grew up and I think that’s why social media became popular in the first place.

And it’s because of my guys real-life social world that they are really into Jurassic Park lately. They wanted to watch Jurassic World: the Fallen Kingdom because a bunch of kids at school had seen it. I didn’t want them to see the newest movie before they watched the original Jurassic Park and when I looked it up, I couldn’t believe that the original Jurassic Park movie is now over 25 years old!

Suddenly the hubby and I start revisiting movies from our own childhoods and while I’m not a big Jurassic Park fan, I remembered how much I loved Hook. So one day we all watched Hook together and I mentioned it on Instagram and asked if anyone else had favorite movies from back in the day. I couldn’t believe how many cool responses I got from people answering my question-there were so many movies I’d forgotten about and some I’d never even seen. So now I have a huge list of 80’s and 90’s movies to watch with my guys. They are 11 years old and at this stage of the game, watching movies together and eating popcorn is one way our family likes to connect-especially after a busy day exploring outside or after work and soccer games. I am so thankful for everyone’s input so I thought I would compile it just in case anyone else out there is into watching 80’s and 90’s movies with their kids too.

A list of 80’s and 90’s movies for kids:

Jurassic Park-this movie first came out in 1993 and it’s still scary by my very wimpy standards and PG-13. I get creeped out by dinosaurs so I only watched the first one with the guys, but the hubby and kids finished the rest of the series and are excited for the new Jurassic World movie next year. I read a few teasers saying that maybe some of the original cast will be back-do you like when you see cast-members from original movies come back years later to do a sequel too? Also, my guys have been obsessed with dinosaurs for the past two years now-is this a current trend with 10/11 year old boys?

Karate Kid -the original Karate Kid movie came out in 1984! So far we have watched the first and second Karate Kid movies now and the guys love Mr. Miyagi and want to catch bugs with chopsticks.

Goonies – this movie came out in 1985 and it’s so very Pacific Northwest. We’ve actually taken the kids to see the Goonies house in Astoria, Oregon on a trip ages ago but they still haven’t watched the Goonies movie yet. Maybe we’ll save it for our next trip to the Oregon Coast.

Back to the Future – apparently this was the “highest grossing movie of 1985” and I think the original is still my favorite of the trilogy. We actually saw the Delorean Time Machine from Back to the Future 3 on a trip to Boston a few years ago at the Museum of Science (It was part of an exhibit called Popnology that has since moved on). We also recently saw a Delorean when we were caught in traffic in the mountains and it reminded us we still haven’t watched these movies with the kids.

Land Before Time – This one came out in 1988. Did anyone else love this one so much too? I can’t wait to watch it with the guys.

Flight of the Navigator – this came out in 1986! I remember it being a little creepy but it was one of my husband’s favorite movies. The kids watched it with him and really enjoyed it too.

Honey I shrunk the kids – I watched this one when I was just about the age my guys are now and I am so scared that with current technology, the kids won’t find this one as cool as we did growing up. I hope this movie is as good as I remember it and I think this is one of my favorites on this list.

Star Wars – we are horrible Seattleites as we’ve only attempted one of these with the guys. I love the Star Wars movie with the Ewoks and I need to find the old Ewoks cartoons too. (PS. I also found Ewoks the Battle for Endor and the Ewok Adventure the Battle for Courage while researching this list!)

People also suggested: Home Alone, Indiana Jones, Jumanji the original from 1995, Adventures in Babysitting and ET.

And a few new-to-me movies that I missed back then but I’m excited to watch now: Batteries Not Included, Heavyweights, and The Wizard.

I added some 80’s and 90’s movie paraphernalia to my Amazon store because of all this research if you’re looking for gifts for classic 80’s and 90’s movie lover gifts too.

And although the Harry Potter series is not part of the 80’s or 90’s movie group, we are frantically watching and reading these because we head to London later this year and the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour is on our list of places we want to see. At age 11, I think being able to see how a movie is made might be just as magical as watching a movie in itself.

Thank you KidtownMelbourne, SF Peninsula Mom, Sylviagaya, Famdiego, AdrianneWilliams, JennaLhatfield, thats.pretty.sweet , perhaps_this_is, allourcolors, theblakelifetravels, Keely_travellovingmum and mommasmosaic for all spontaneously contributing to this list. I am so thankful for the real community you create in the social media world.

(PS. this post contains some affiliate links. Also, if you are looking for a really feel good movie for the whole family from beyond the 80’s and 90’s you might like Marcel the Shell too.)

Terumi

Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys.  She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live.  She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)