Is there a 'girly' animation film I can buy for DD that won't make this feminist mother spew bile?

[ClairityVerity]

I have finally conceded that I should let DD indulge in pink/ sparkle/ fairy-type things from time to time, safe in the knowledge that she WILL grow out of it. Now that she has healthily embraced her older brother's love of kung fu/ cars/ dinos, I no longer worry about her being sucked full-bodied into a vortex of fluffy pink inspidness which will eat the feistiness from her soul and turn her into some vile, sappy creature like this .

So! All our DVDs so far have been bought with DS's tastes in mind (though he does love a bit of Ben & Holly - HA! So much for his Mr Tough Guy image...). Can anyone recommend an animation film I can buy for DD alone, that won't have me reaching for the incinerator?

TIA!

Faux - only Mulan. He wasn't interested in Brave when it came out, and half-watched Tangled at a friend's house but wasn't interested. I actually think having a sister whom he adores has now made him more open to watching 'girly'-targeted film and TV, so I'm hoping he'll enjoy the films we buy 'for her' as much as she does.

Does your 3yo genuinely want to indulge in pink/sparkle/fairy type films?

I'm still waiting for my 8yo DD to ask for such things.

Shark Boy and Lava Girl was DDs film of choice aged 3.

DS loved Kiki and Totoro at 3, I don't think you need to wait to show them.

Studio Ghibli is absolutely what you want here - as others have said, Ponyo (one male and one female/fish lead! A retelling of the little mermaid story) and My Neighbour Totoro (2 female leads, male 'backup') are a safe 3yo way in - fantastical, childs-eye, and joyous. And with fantastic female characters and a brilliant sense of fun. My ds and dd both adore them, they work perfectly across genders, so your ds absolutely won't feel left out.

Lynette - yes, she bloody does. She's always talking about Tinkerbell and the rest of them - didn't get that crap from ME, that's for sure. Comes of allowing her to mix with other children. Won't make that mistake again.

Definitely Tangled. My tomboy dd loves it and she won't watch any 'princessy' stuff.

Tinkerbell is crap?

DD has never even mentioned Tinkerbell or asked to see a Disney Princess film. After 2 boys I would have quite enjoyed some frilly Disney.

I dunno, just rent a few Disney films and get them over and done with.

Another vote for stuff by studio Ghibli.

Our faves ( dd is 6)

Ponyo
Kiki's delivery service

Our all time favourite is Totoro. We have the soundtrack and we recreate scenes from the film, which is hilarious. Also have lots of lovely totoro toys and household goods. I have Totoro decals on my car.

What about shrek, toy story, incredibles - all have pretty feisty female characters. Epic was pretty good too.

And as dd1 pointed out to me last week, Barbie always saves the day in the barbie films .

"Barbie always saves the day in the barbie films ." ROFL!

Lynette - no idea whether the film of Tinkerbell is actually crap in cinematic terms, but I meant 'crap' in the sense that anything made with coy, sickly, over-feminised female characters immediately goes on my crap heap.

Okay, I'll give Ghibli a try but will keep a Disney lurking in the background just in case.

There was supposed to be a #runsaway comment at the end of my post

Tank girl

Tinkerbell is like a mechanic in the modern films. She has skills, is resourceful, solves engineering problems type of thing. Barbie is usually her own hero in her modern films, even if theyare cheesy.

My neighbour totoro is a firm favourite by DD who is 4. She sadly lives in a world of princesses and butterflies.
We bought it when she was 3 as I couldn't take anymore Tangled and she loved it straight away.
I've just bought Kikis Delivery Service for her Xmas. Must see if I can get the Totoro sound track, I do find myself singing it from time to time

And for the record, Tinkerbell is crap.

Kiki fine for 3 year old DS

When Despicable Me 2 comes out, it's pretty good, the female spy is quite cool and the daughters are strong characters. Also ok for 3 year old DS.

I don't think Tinkerbell is really crap. She's an engineer. She has strong female friendships and learns from her mistakes etc. I was prepared to loathe the Tinkerbell films but they're ok. Certainly no worse than Tangled. And, most of the Barbie films are about girls/women working together to overcome adversity. I still detest them though.

I was determined there would be no sodding princesses or Barbie in this house but we have the lot. I decided it was up to my DD to define her taste, not me. I content myself with harrumphing and pointed comments...

Alien. Thats got a good strong female lead.

What about The Incredibles?
Been a while since I've watched it though so wouldn't like to confirm it's definitely suitable.

Flushed Away
Brave
Mulan
Monsters vs Aliens
The Bee Movie

More votes for Brave, Kiki and Totoro here - I really like both and my 2yo DD loves them to distraction.

She loves Ponyo too, but I'm a bit horrified by the scene where the father is trying to 'squeeze' Ponyo back into fish form. It feels really violent and scary to me - looks like he's throttling her with intent to kill. DP thinks I'm overreacting but it gives me chills. So I don't put Ponyo on voluntarily and I skip through that bit if I'm around when it's on.

The U rated Studio Ghibli are: Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbour Totoro, ponyo, Howl's Moving Castle, Arriety

Other female led U rated animations: The Wild Thornberrys, Lilo and Stitch, Despicable Me has lots of female characters but a male lead, The Secret of N.I.H.M., Hoodwinked, The BFG, The Incredibles has several female charcters but a male lead, The Last Unicorn, A cat in Paris, The Rescuers, Kirikou and the Sorceress.

PG rated films: Coraline, Wreck It Ralph has a male lead but good strong females, Monsters v Aliens, Brave.

Live action films with female leads: Charlotte's Web, The Secret of Moonacre, Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, Mary Poppins, Annie, A Little Princess, The Railway Children, Nim's Island, Matilda, Spy Kids, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Princess Diaries, the Parent Trap, Freaky Friday, Nanny McPhee, National Velvet, The Secret Garden, The Fox and the child, the Secret of Roan Inish, Return to Oz.

Depending on your taste, most Disney princesses from Beauty (and the Beast) onwards make a nod at feminism but some are more acceptable than others. I like the complex mother-daughter relationship in Tangled but generally try and avoid the princess films. Lilo and Stitch is a million times more acceptable.

A Mighty Girl has a good selection of films with female leads, it's worth looking at the Bechdel Test to see if there are lots of female characters, the good thing about Studio Ghibli is the depth of the presence of women in the films.

Studio Ghibli! My dd (and ds) has liked Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro, Ponyo and Arietty since she was 5!

Pocahontas is a good one if your DD wants Disney. In the Disney version she decides to stay even though John Smith wants her to go to England with him.

My DD has a huge Princess obsession, but recently she's gravitated more to the classics like Jungle Book. She also loves Rango but a bit scary for 3 year old depending on child.

Spirited Away and Coraline freak me out! Never mind a 3 year old! Avoid until 10yo!

I didn't realise she was 3 when I recommended Studio Ghibli.

I don't want to upset the apple cart but if I couldn't find something goof for a 3 year old, I wouldn't bother with a film at all. Such small children don't need to be watching films at all. I'd go for something almost gender-free, like Pingu.