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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to ask when your DC first watched Star Wars?

75 replies

Waffles80 · 16/08/2019 06:54

My exhausted kids fell asleep at 6.30 last night, which meant at five am start today 😫. We’ve filled the time watching E.T, which they’ve seen before - they’re twins, aged 5.

It made me think (because ET tries to engage with a kid dressed as Yoda during the Halloween scene) when can they watch Star Wars? When did your DC watch the original 1977 one?

Also - while we’re here with many many weeks of summer holiday to keep them entertained at 5am, what other classics could they watch? We’ve done Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Mary Poppins to death!

My Girl? Too sad?

OP posts:
EatenByDinosaurs · 16/08/2019 22:29

More favourites in our house are:

Into The Woods
Epic
The Neverending Story (wish it bloody would end)
Any of the atrocious old Jason and The Argonauts sort of ones

FundamentallyTired · 16/08/2019 22:32

The original ones age 4. They are all PG as far as I know.

ronconcoke · 16/08/2019 22:33

I think DS was 6 when he got both Star Wars trilogies for Christmas and we watched them all together. He's seen a couple of the recent ones (he got upset when Han Solo was killed but it was my first time watching it too so I couldn't warn/fast forward!) but we had to walk out of Solo at the cinema when he was 7/8 as it was too frightening for him. He's never been phased by the Anakin/Darth Vader transformation scene however!

EatenByDinosaurs · 16/08/2019 22:33

I've just checked our box set and Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are PG, and The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi are PG-13.
We are in the US though, and sometimes the ratings are different here.

pikapikachu · 16/08/2019 22:38

1,2,4,5,6 are PG, 3,7,8 are 12A rated.

My kids had watched 4,5,6 by age 4.

ByStarlight · 16/08/2019 23:15

I was nearly 4 when my dad took me to see the original in 1977 at the cinema.
So I made sure that DS had also seen it (and episodes 4 & 5) by the time he was 4. He loved it as much as I did/still do!

Fatted · 16/08/2019 23:24

My eldest was 4 when I was he saw them. He's seen the original trilogy and the new Disney ones.

Tried to watch the prequels with him and it was like pulling teeth. I really can't stand them myself personally either. Although he liked jarjar Hmm

haveuheard · 16/08/2019 23:36

My eldest is currently obsessed with them, he first watched them about a year ago so he would have been just 7. We have said no to the newer ones though as they are 12s. He keeps asking me obscure questions that I can't answer.

He also has lots of the Lego Star Wars cartoons which he thinks are brilliant, they might be a good idea to watch something Star Wars-ish if you think they might be a bit young or might not be that interested in the films.

WindsBeginToSing · 16/08/2019 23:58

I'm always a bit amazed by how young kids are when they watch these kinds of films. Not necessarily because of the violence (though there are some bits like the charred corpses of Luke's family in SW4 or the rather gruesome and frankly tedious lava sequence in SW3 or a couple of the deaths in Jurassic Park that would definitely have been too much for my kids at age 5), but more that so much of the story must just go straight over their heads. I watched Solo with my late primary aged son the other day and he still needed quite a lot of clarification of what was going on with all the plots, characters etc. Yes, I know that kids can just let lots of it wash over them and just enjoy the funny bits or the sword fights or the spaceships or whatever, but it just seems a bit of a waste, particularly as they might then grow out of some films before they're even able to understand them. I know quite a few of DS's friends who already feel at age 8/9 that they're 'too old' for Harry Potter because they started watching the films when they were 4 or 5, whereas actually I think it's only when you hit that sort of age that you can even begin to appreciate the cleverness and humour of the HP books, never mind the intricacies of the plot. Now they're all starting on Twilight and Hunger Games, because they've used up all the stuff that's actually aimed at the age they are now.

Personally, at 5 I'd say that it's just the perfect age for the animated Disney and Pixar classics. Still plenty of emotion and excitement and a bit of scariness, but really simple stories. Jungle Book was the winner for my two at that age. Or try some the younger end of the Studio Ghibli stuff, like Ponyo. Save the other stuff for another couple of years (although actually I think the original Star Wars films are probably on the younger end of some of the things being suggested here - I think mine saw some of those (SW4-6 and 1) around 6 or 7, we've just watched Jurassic Park aged 9/10, and there's no way they're seeing Jaws yet!). Personally if I had 5 year olds I'd still be watching Peppa Pig and DipDap on loop, because they are pure genius and I love them Grin.

EatenByDinosaurs · 17/08/2019 01:30

It depends on the child though, doesn't it WindsBeginToSing, at five DS could explain all the nuances and history of Star Wars universe to me, and didn't need any of the films explained.
He has always been uncannily sharp with nuance and interpersonal relationships though, and very perceptive - must get it from DH, people baffle me Grin

There's nothing to say they can't enjoy Disney, Studio Ghibli, Peppa Pig and Star Wars. I have fairly eclectic tastes in cinema myself, some days I enjoy watching The Princess Bride, other days Alien.

What's more important I think is accepting that all kids are individual and that's why the onus is on the parents to know what's going to bother their DC - its why we absolutely never let the DC watch a film unless either DH or I have seen it first. Which is a bit inconvenient seeing films twice at the cinema tbf.

More important still imho, teaching kids that liking what they like is fine, they don't need to subscribe to the pressure to like "older" films if that isn't what they like.

Coincidentally my DS absolutely loves the Twilight films as he is utterly fascinated by the (unnecessarily complicated - sort yourself out Bella ffs) interpersonal relationships. He also loves the books.

StitchingMoss · 17/08/2019 01:35

EatenByDinosaurs - I’m not sure just leaving it to parents is a good idea though. Many of them allow their kids to be exposed to hugely inappropriate films/tv/video games. Age restrictions are there for a reason and it drives me mad that they’re so widely ignored. (Not talking about Star Wars in this instance although Ep 3 is a 12!).

EatenByDinosaurs · 17/08/2019 01:39

Sorry StitchingMoss I meant within the bounds of the ratings, not letting a seven year old loose on GTA, for example!
Episode 3 is a PG here in the US.

EatenByDinosaurs · 17/08/2019 01:41

Sorry, that didn't make much sense either, I was distracted watching Mark Hamill in season 1 of The Flash Blush

StitchingMoss · 17/08/2019 01:42

Ah I see! Sorry Grin. I’m a teacher so I see the results of these kids being exposed to hugely inappropriate programs and games at a young age so it’s a bit of a soap box! Wish more parents took it seriously Sad

EatenByDinosaurs · 17/08/2019 01:47

No worries, I wasn't clear Grin. Couldn't agree more, DH is military and is obsessively vigilant with not wanting our DC exposed to things they shouldn't be.
As I am too, but no easy feat in today's world, especially when they see things at friend's houses Hmm

user27495824 · 17/08/2019 01:49

My 5 year old loved Honey I Shrunk the Kids recently, also Land Before Time. At the same age my eldest loved Willow, Neverending Story, Wizard of Oz, Labrynth. Younger one I know would find them scary and or boring.

Fucket · 17/08/2019 01:52

The original ones, my kids were 1.3 and 5. There is only so much bloody Disney and ‘let it go’ one can stomach. Ghostbusters is another favourite for them. Let’s be honest these old movies are not very good cgi, so it’s not as real looking as modern movies and the kids know it.

The middle one likes watching old war movies and he is 5. He likes Zulu, I try to explain the historical nature of it. That we were the invaders and the Zulu’s were not the bad guys. He likes history stuff. The other 2 are girls. The youngest likes marvel (I fast forward the bits I don’t want her to see or just stick to ant man or similar) and she likes labrynth. The eldest is much more sensitive so she doesn’t watch these movies so she’ll watch things like Paddington or Matilda. In fact they will all watch Matilda over and over.

Bellossom · 17/08/2019 01:53

none of the star wars are a 12, and they never have been they were all pg until the 12a classification replaced pg and then they are 12a.

My sons watched them all from about 5. We are a big film/sci fi family and he saw the last jedi and solo at the cinema and was fine (he was 5/6 then)

Bellossom · 17/08/2019 01:56

my sons 7 now and enjoys all the marvel movies the only one he didn't like much recently was some bits of venom.

ghostbusters also big hit here

Spiderverse is really good and prob one of my favourite films of last year

the lego movie (and 2) and the lego batman movie were good and maybe a little tamer

user27495824 · 17/08/2019 02:00

@bellossom 12A didn't replace the PG classification, PG still exists. I wonder if that kind of thinking is why so many people take little kids into inappropriate 12A's. Unless I am misunderstanding you.

StitchingMoss · 17/08/2019 02:03

Our DVD copy of Revenge of the Sith clearly states 12. The last 10 minutes are very graphic and disturbing.

Bellossom · 17/08/2019 02:04

it didn't replace it like for like no, but what I mean is there was no 12a when the originals were released or possibly they would have been that

12a doesn't at all mean the film isn't suitable until 12 years old, it's just that until 12 an adult has to decide you can watch it

StitchingMoss · 17/08/2019 02:05

And absolutely the 12a doesn’t mean PG! I do wonder if that’s a widely held (and worrying!) misconception Shock.

Fucket · 17/08/2019 02:05

12A - I thought children could watch at a cinema with an adult.

My 5 yr old is not bothered by 12A but my 7yr old is and tbh I like that parents get to decide.

I won’t let my kids watch Jurassic Park because it would scare all of them but I think that is only PG.

Most parents know their children well enough to know what they will like, be scared of.

Plus if you are at home you can always fast forward the bits you don’t want them to see.

StitchingMoss · 17/08/2019 02:07

it’s a little more than that! It is supposed to guide the parent that it’s not really suitable for v young kids. Otherwise it would be a PG!!