A dad on our forum related how he had made a video of his own son and baby to give to him for Father’s Day. Isn’t that about the best present you can get as a dad? These fatherhood years go by so quickly and all we all love to try to recapture the feelings we had through them. Videos made in iMovie or in Adobe’s Video Editing suite for PC can be the best Father’s Day gift of all.

Here is the video HDFree gave to his son and sent us:

Though I’m not a big country fan and I find “Let them be Little” by Billy Dean a little sugary sweet, it’s hard not to get a little teary listening to the lyrics that talk about how short childhood is.

We made a list of other good home movie songs, some of which, I’ve put below, but visit the link to see the rest. If you have other suggestions, add them to the comments section.

Some of those other suggestions:

Birth

Forever Young - Bob Dylan – I first heard this as a background music in an Apple ad explaining the joys of iMovie. It’s a wonderful song, full of wonderful wishes for a new born.

Where do the Childen Play by Cat Stevens – puts parenting versus other grand projects in perspective, and makes a darn nice soundtrack.

LongMayYou Run by Neil Young – If you like the raspy voice of a young Neil Young, and also edit out a few lyrics, (“back in ’62 when I last saw you alive”) this has a good beat and mood.

May you Never by Eric Clapton

Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole – very soothing variation on the old standard, and if not overused, less clichéd than other more popular versions.

Crawling Babies

La Donna e Mobile - You’ll instantly recognize La donna è mobile (”Woman is fickle”) as the misogynistic song from Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Rigoletto (1851), Though you don’t need to consider that last part. Just use it as backdrop to a baby (preferably female) cruising around the house and you have instant soundtrack magic.

Everyday People by Sly

Family Stone Sweet Child of Mine by Sheryl Crow

Baby or Little Girls

Tupelo honey by Van Morrison by “She’s as sweet as Tupelo Honey” is all you need to know.

Blue Sky by The Allman Brothers

Rock-a-Hula Baby by Elvis Presley

My kids, at five and nine, certainly aren’t going to be munching popcorn and tossing back Raisinets while watching this film any time soon. Parents might be tempted to bring kids used to a certain amount of violence on TV and video games to a movie like this. However, Angels and Demons is a movie for older kids, 16 and up.

Reviews have been mixed on this movie and we’d have to agree that it’s only so-so, especially in relationship to the earlier Da Vinci Code, which successfully brought the blockbuster book to life. In Angels and Demons, Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) goes deep into the world of the Illuminati, an underground organization that threatens the Catholic church. Once again, Langdon goes on a ticking-time-bomb journey as he follows ancient clues through the hidden sites of Rome. He is joined by a love interest, the beautiful Vittoria Vetra (Ayelet Zurer) though there are no sexual overtones to this relationship.

Dads who haven’t read the book might enjoy this film more than its predecessor, especially since there has been far less hype for Angels and Demons. Even the Catholic Church has had little to say about the movie, underlining its weaker story line and premise. This movie is a lot more fluff and adventure than it is heretical or destabilizing to the dogma of the Church.

At the same time, dads should be aware of a significant amount of violence, including some gruesome deaths. This is the kind of film that would give kids, and some adults, nightmares after a viewing. At the same time, sexual themes are not an issue at all, nor is there very much profanity.

Ghost Town is a very funny movie. If you like Ricky Gervais’ brand of dry, self-deprecating humor (he was the original Michael Scott in the British version of “The Office”), you’re bound to enjoy his character. This is the the story of a socially awkward dentist who has a near-death experience that allows him to act as a bridge between the living and the dead. Just the fact that he can see many people around us who are actually dead creates a lot of confusion and funny situations, as does the fact that they are dressed (or undressed) as they were at the time of their death. Also starring Greg Kinnear and Tea Leoni, Ghost Town has an upbeat hopeful story line, despite the deathly subject matter.

While there isn’t any real sex or violence in this film, one of the main characters is open about his infidelity, there are some direct sexual references, as well as some infrequent profanity (f**k and s**t) , making this movie inappropriate for kids younger than twelve.

For some reason, perhaps because of the title, I thought Eagle Eye was a simple film about a drone surveillance airplane gone mad. There is a drone plane or two, but the movie is so much more than that. Directed by D. J. Caruso from a story by Steven Spielberg, and starring Shia Laboeuf (Transformers) and Michelle Monaghan (Mission Impossible 3), Eagle Eye is a high tech conspiracy movie that plays on your worst fears about how computers track our everyday move. It pits two unwitting innocents against the Department of Homeland Security when they are set up to be the agents of an assassination plot. Without giving too much away, this movie draws on the best of 2001, The Parallax View, and War Games.

The pyrotechnics here are stunning with some new car chase scene ideas you have definitely not seen before. A chase scene in the baggage handling routing system of an airport will have you twisting and turning as the main characters ride conveyor belts like a beaten up piece of old uggage. This is a movie that will keep your attention just because it does a few things not seen before

Dads will enjoy this action thriller, but Eagle Eye is not a movie for young kids. There is no sex and very little profanity, but there is a tremendous amount of chaotic violence and heart-pounding chase sequences. The plot action also involves death threats on a mom and her son if she doesn’t participate in the action.

Just in time to help you maximize the few minutes left before Christmas, here are the top 16 holiday movies captured in their most famous scenes.

This is just enough of a dose of some of them to make you fondly remember your first viewing and save you from a trip to the video store. Many of them, in my opinion, are a bit too cloying for re-viewing again now. And for cynics, read today’s excellent article in the New York Times on the sad dismal life of George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life. The writer, Wendell Jamieson, opines that the world would have actually been a better more prosperous place without George, citing his felony theft, upstate New York economic trends, and the dismal conformist life that George in which George is forced to find meaning. If you’re mumbling “bah” around this time of year, this is a fun article to read.

As I mentioned in a previous post, our family enjoyed the short 22 minutes Shrek the Halls for its brevity, slapstick and adult humor, and insight on the real meaning of Christmas (as Donkey says, “It’s not Christmas until somebody cries.”).

But back to the video. You may want to send this one from Grandparents.com on to friends and family.

Merry Merry.

We introduced our eight year old early to musical and romantic comedies and she quickly replaced Disney with great directors like William Wyler, Vincente Minnelli, and George Cukor. We may be creating an incurable romantic, but these movies have the big advantage of having no profanity and in general, very few “questionable” situations.” And if they do, they are usually so subtle, that kids don’t even notice them.

Two of her favorites, Roman Holiday and Sabrina, just came out in new DVD

“Roman Holiday - The Centennial Collection” (William Wyler)

“Sabrina - The Centennial Collection” (Billy Wilder)

What is it about the Shrek franchise that makes both kids and dads laugh out loud? All the Shreks have been good, mostly clean, family fare that work on both adult and kid levels. My kids and I watched Shrek the Halls last night and both my four-year old boy and eight year-old girl laughed through the whole thing. At one point, I even had tears in my eyes I was laughing so hard.

Clocking in at 22 minutes, this video is a a very short diversion that may even become a classic about the holiday season like “It’s a Wonderful LIfe” or The Grinch. At least you can tell yourselves that when you take a break from wrapping presents to indulge for a few minutes. The movie’s premise is simple: this is Shrek’s first Christmas and he wants to make it perfect for his new family. And when he says family, he’s not talking about Donkey, Puss ‘n Boots, and all the other fairy tale creatures (Three little pigs, Gingerbread man) who live down the lane. Shrek has to find the real way to celebrate Christmas which, as some character says, isn’t something you follow a cook book recipe to do. Shrek’s Christmas involves the whole extended swamp family and ultimately involves family fighting and bickering. As Donkey says, “My mama always said, ‘Christmas ain’t Christmas until someone cries.” Many adults will find that this is the line that resonates the most for them out of the entire 22 minutes.

At $20 for this video, you may want to buy it bundled with Shrek 3, which may end up even costing less.

If you’re a suburban dad, maybe those two ideas sounds familiar. This new shows sounds like they’ve been spying on my life.
Two different minds, one body. So which one of these two personalities leads the more complicated life: the covert operative and contract killer who speaks 13 languages, runs a four-minute mile and is trained to kill with his bare hands, or the efficiency expert who lives a humdrum life in the suburbs with a devoted wife, two kids, a dog and a minivan?[From Suburban dad and spy: Christian Slater stars as both]

Nim’s Island is out on DVD and it’s a good movie for dads and kids. With some interesting graphics and a fantastical series of events, kids and dads should stay entertained throughout this 90 minute adventure.

Abigail Breslin, from Definitely, Maybe, plays 11 year old Nim. She is trapped on a South Pacific island when her scientist father leaves her for two days and then runs into a massive storm. Her only lifeline is an agorophobic adventure story writer (Jody Foster) living in San Francisco.

When her island comes under siege from a cruise ship itching to spoil her deserted island, she calls her for help. The story then follows their parallel adventures as Nim fights off the tourists and Alex fights her fears to rescue her email friend.

The one problem I had with the film was the beginning where, as in movie after movie, we learn that the mother has died very early in the girl’s life. I know Disney always likes to make their characters tougher through this adversity, but they overuse this plot device in my opinion.

Definitely Maybe (Universal Studios)

I have a major problem with the PG warning. It provides so little guidance for parents as to what actually is in a movie. I will let my 8 year-old daughter watch many PG-rated movies, especially if we’re on a plane or even if the theme looks romantic but somewhat adult. At this age, she pretty much ignores what she doesn’t understand, though that is changing very quickly. There is so little time these days, that often, as parents, you end up watching a movie with your child rather than pre-screening it to make sure it’s right. I’m not saying this is the optimum strategy, but sometimes it just happens. Last night, I got a major dose of why you always need to screen a movie, check our ratings, or go to CommonsenseMedia.org to get the complete scoop on a movie.

Definitely, Maybe is definitely a movie on which I should have done more research. While the plot idea seems like it would be cute: early middle-age man tells ten year old daughter how he met her mother and fell in love, their conversations are way too frank both for the main child character and for a little girl my daughter’s age. Within literally five minutes of the start of the film, the dad picks up his daughter at the first day of sex education at her school. Immediately, dialogue refers to “putting a penis in a vagina.” My daughter knows what these words mean, but I don’t think she’s yet heard them in this context, and I certainly didn’t want her to hear about them in this movie. We skipped ahead to the next scene, but it just went downhill from there. The movie was over in fifteen minutes.

Other difficult content includes more sex talk, reference to a threesome, lesbian affairs, and some in-bed kissing though no nudity. It’s just not good content for little kids, though nothing wilder than most teenagers have been exposed to on regular television.

All in all, a seemingly cute film for my wife and I to watch later, but not recommended for kids under about twelve.