The best (cinematic) films for tweens
Finding films for tweens (ages 10-13) can be difficult, with animations and kids’ films feeling childish but more weighty dramas, and many of the ‘classics,’ too grown-up and often classified as 15s. So here are my top 5 cinematic films for tweens.
1. Hugo
Scorcese’s only family friendly feature is a beautifully designed and exuberant love letter to the beginnings of cinema. It opens with a breathtaking arial shot of Paris, with the camera swooping down to a bustling railway station, luring us into the hypnotic, dreamy world of 1920s France. Looking out over the whimsical characters in the station is Hugo, a Dickensian orphan who lives amongst the whirring, ticking maze of the station’s clock system. From his life peering out from between cogs and clockwork, he soon finds himself entangled in the affairs of the mysterious owner of a toy store, and immersed in a world of film. The whirrs of the clocks begin to be mirrored in the mechanical sprockety hum of the movie projector.
“Look around. This is where [dreams] are made” a twizzly-moustached George Melies tells an excited young boy visiting his “enchanted castle” of a film studio. Scorcese constructs a similarly magical world in Hugo; it blew my mind when I watched it at 12, with swooping shots swirving through cogs and enticing me into a dream-world of cinema.
2. Hidden Figures
This fast-paced, empowering film tells the true story of three African American women pushing past bias and prejudice and accomplishing scientific breakthrough, sending astronaut John Glenn (the first American to orbit the Earth) into space in 1962.
Octavia Spencer’s Dorothy Vaughan faces much discrimination from the appalling monolith of white men she works alongside at Nasa. Despite this, her powerful intellect far surpasses those of her haughty colleagues and she becomes instrumental in the success of Nasa’s mission. Taraji P Henson and Janelle Monáe play Katherine and Mary Jackson, who were similarly influential in the launch programme. The film at times lacks a little subtlety, with some obvious choices and power-walking plot tropes. But the verve of the story-telling is irresistible; the message important; and the sassy, smart and slickly dressed trio are ultimately great fun to spend time with.
3. Rear Window
James Stewart’s photographer, Jeff, provides the lens through which Hitchcock unveils a voyeur’s dream to the audience in this masterful murder mystery flick. Confined to his New York apartment with a broken leg, Jeff is left to nosily peer out at his neighbours, when he notices an unusual disappearance of a woman from the plethora of characters who occupy the opposite building. He becomes enticed by the behaviour of Mr Thorwald, the husband of the nagging wife who has suddenly vacated her home, and invites the glamorous Grace Kelly (who has been pursuing the initially reluctant Jeff) to accompany him in playing detective.
The many compelling, witty inhabitants of the apartment block are just as captivating as the riveting mystery plot itself - the couple who sleep out on their balcony to keep cool and lower their dog down to the garden in a basket; the dancer who prances around her room with a chicken wing in hand; the lonely composer who sits in his apartment with his only whiskey and his piano for company. The film is at once both a brilliantly gripping thriller and a playful voyeuristic indulgence - it is a treat for a tween.
4. Queen Of Katwe
Queen of Katwe surely earns its place alongside Netflix’s recent miniseries The Queen’s Gambit in its rare ability to make chess, a relatively uncinematic game, successfully gripping on screen. However, while The Queen’s Gambit used melodramatic backstory to lurch the story from episode to episode, Queen of Katwe adopts more nuance when approaching the tale of Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga) - who doubtless faces a myriad more glass ceilings than Anya Taylor-Joy’s Beth Harmon.
Phiona is a pre teen living in a Ugandan shanty town, whose life prospects seem to pick up considerably after she finds she has an unexpected knack for seeing eight moves ahead. Although the ‘rising-star’ model is well worn and in some scenes predictable (perhaps there are a few too many chess-inspired metaphorical affirmations), Mira Nair’s picture is fresh and tells its story with verve that will engage a tween audience. Its authenticity to its setting and characters is a similarly welcome swerve from the mainstream - urban Africa is rarely this intimately drawn.
5. The Personal History Of David Copperfield
Dickens’ brilliantly drawn, quirky characters have long provided entertainment and escapism for children on the big screen (see Carol Reed’s Oliver! or The Muppet Christmas Carol). Armando Iannucci is the latest director to breath new life into a Dickensian classic, masterfully conjuring up the whimsy and eccentricity from the pages of David Copperfield.
The wide-ranging collection of misfits and monsters from the novel are joyously performed by a star-studded cast - Tilda Swinton is perfect as Betsey Trotwood, thwhacking donkeys off her field, while Ben Whishaw is hilariously excruciating as the parasitic Uriah Heep who at one point creates many a grimace when indulging in his mother’s disgusting, stodgy looking “heavy cake.” And, of course, Dev Patel is endearing and electric in the central role. There is a fresh new edge to the adaptation; bright colour grading breaks away from the traditional drab palettes often adopted in more serious, true-to-life retellings of Dickens’ works.
And the rest…
Here are the films that didn’t make the cut but are still brilliant gems to watch before turning 15.
Cinematic classics:
Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
The 400 Blows (1960)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
The Secret Garden (1993 version)
Feminist features:
Hanna (2011)
Little Women (2019)
Misbehaviour (2020)
Recent releases:
The Old Man and the Gun (2018)
First Cow (2020)
Emma. (2020)
Cruella (2021)