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I would like to add my support for Bringing Up Baby. As a fan of Katherine Hepburn and the old screwballs, I think the presence of the leopard makes this a solid choice for introducing the young ones to the old screwball comedies. I also fully endorse the old musicals as family movies--my daugther has loved those since she was very little--she has watched Singin In the Rain as often as some Disney movies.
The classic Pink Panther cartoons. I came across the reasonably priced DVD volumes on Amazon a couple of years ago when my daughter was 8. I remembered watching them when I was little, and thought I'd buy one for my daughter. She immediately loved the episodes, watches them repeatedly and can discuss each episode in detail. And if for nothing else, I think parents will appreciate them for the quiet that is not found in most recent movies. We have the first two volumes; I think the quality of the series started to drop off somewhere after that.
My next family favorite is probably more mainstream, but I don't know if it is generally thought of as a family movie--the version of Pride & Prejudice with Kiera Knightley. I took my now 10 year old daughter to see this in the theater when it was released. She completely enjoyed it (and continues to be very appreciative of the fact that there is only one kiss and it doesn't happen until the very last scene) and did not get restless or bored. We own it on DVD and she often wants to watch it. This is probably for the more literate/precocious, but this is a good movie for introducing children to the "classic literature to film" movie. This version of P&P is more accessible than the revered Colin Firth miniseries, and they recognize Ms. Knightley from the Pirates movies.
And maybe from Bend It Like Beckham--another great movie for older kids and their parents. Might I also suggest, from the same director, Bride & Prejudice for her version of a Bollywood musical?
I'll stop here.
