27 October 2021

11 wholesome movies for the whole family

These feel-good family movies to stream include Finding Ohana, The Secret Garden, Happy Feet, Zookeeper and Yes Day. By TVPlus

Not into horror this Halloween? Streaming services are bursting at the seams with fun, family movies to stream that’ll entertain young and old.

1. Zookeeper (Showmax)

An unassuming zookeeper is looking for love in all the right places, but he has zero charm with women thanks to his lack of self-confidence. Help is at hand, though: his furry and feathered friends at the zoo are going to give him all the help they can – literally talking to him – to offer the courtship and mating advice he needs to find love.

2. Richie Rich (Netflix)

This classic movie zooms in on Richie Rich (Macauley Culkin) – the richest boy in the world. And with great wealth comes many, many enemies whose greed is so great that they’ll do anything to steal from a kid. Luckily for Richie, he’s got loads of ingenuity and his trusty personal butler/man servant/bodyguard, Cadbury.

3. The Secret Garden (Showmax)

Based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s century-old story of the same name, a young orphan is sent to live with her mysterious, super-rich uncle in the countryside. While she’s not happy about her new living situation at first, she soon finds adventure on his property when she discovers a magical garden filled with everything that a lonely child could dream of.

4. Finding Ohana (Netflix)

There’s just one good thing about living in Hawaii: everything! For two New York City kids, it also means learning more about their heritage and searching for a secret treasure after they discover their grandfather’s secret, mysterious diary in his art studio. But they’re going to find more than just gold and jewels: they’re going to find their Hawaiian heritage and spirit – aka “Ohana!”.

5. Home (Showmax)

Two unlikely heroes – a bumbling purple alien named Oh and a lost human girl named Tip – go on a journey of adventure to get Tip back home to her mom. The more they try to do the right thing, though, the more trouble they land in… and along the way they end up as besties in this cute animated movie.

6. Yes Day (Netflix)

What could go wrong with saying “yes” to everything your kids demand for 24 hours? Sure, s’mores and pizza for breakfast isn’t exactly healthy… but it won’t kill them. But that’s a gateway and soon one well-meaning suburban couple, who’ve gone from being fun and adventurous to becoming over-protective, discover just how mischievous their three kids are.

7. Happy Feet (Showmax)

The late comedy genius Robin Williams is magical in this star-studded movie about a baby emperor penguin who can’t sing his heartsong to find a mate. But he can dance, and his “happy feet” are going to make him not only famous, but also call out to his one true love as he goes from confused hatchling to “the dancing king of emperor penguins”. Featuring Nicole Kidman, Elijah Wood and also the late Brittany Murphy, to name but a few. Happy Feet 2 is also on Showmax.

8. Wish Dragon (Netflix)

Life is all about dreaming big. And that’s what teenager Din is all about as he goes about his daily life in China. But there’s something missing from his life – his childhood best friend. His solution? He finds a magic, wish-granting dragon who gives him the power of imagination and the key to making his big dreams come true.

9. Bigfoot Family (Showmax)

The now-famous Bigfoot leads a campaign against an evil oil tycoon who wants to destroy their home in Alaska. But when Bigfoot disappears, his son, wife and furry friends – everyone from a raccoon to a moose – set out on a quest to save their fearless huge-footed hero and protect their lives at the same time.

10. Just Add Magic (Amazon Prime Video)

A teen and her two friends want to do something nice for her gran, who can’t talk thanks to a strange illness. While trying to make the old dear something nice to eat, the girls find Granny’s cookbook and discover that the recipes for treats like cake and biscuits are filled with magic… and one of them could give back the old lady’s ability to speak.

11. Despicable Me 1 and Despicable Me 2 (Amazon Prime Video)

The best thing about the world’s most-determined and greatest-ever criminal mastermind, Gru, is that he has a heart as soft as a marshmallow underneath that rough, gruff, tough exterior. For the sequel, the now-good Gru and his adopted girls are recruited by the Anti Villain League to find the person who stole a mysterious mutagen from a secret laboratory, in an adventure that ends with the baddie finding love at a cupcake store in a mall. Featuring the hilarious Steve Carell as Gru.