Pollyanna
Recommended. Age: 6+. A Catholic review of this movie for parents.
Our review
Pollyanna is an orphan who goes to live with her rich, stern aunt. She plays the Glad Game, which means finding something to be thankful for every day. Her kindness changes the whole town, and the town loves her back when she is badly hurt. A warm, sunny classic about gratitude, and one of the few family films where Scripture changes a man. A stern minister opens his Bible, finds its glad passages and starts preaching joy. Content is as mild as it gets. The film is long, and the fall near the end is sad.
For parents
Rated G (given in 1992; the film came out before the rating system). Common Sense Media says 6+. At 134 minutes it is long for small children. The opening shows boys swimming with no clothes on, seen briefly from behind and in an innocent way. Pollyanna falls from a high tree and is paralyzed. She is sad and afraid, and the film ends in hope as she leaves for surgery. There is no bad language. Two things to add. First, the minister is a Protestant pastor. His turn from angry sermons to the glad passages of Scripture is good, but the answer is not to stop speaking of sin. The Gospel holds mercy and repentance together. Second, the Glad Game is more than positive thinking. It is thanking God, who gives every good thing, even on hard days. Ask: what is the Glad Game? Who changed because of Pollyanna? What can you thank God for today?