Favorite Preschooler Movies that Will Have You Laughing, Too!

Recently, I overheard my young sons (ages four and three) quoting scenes from one of their favorite movies. "The champion, the challenger, and the rookie," they said as they lined up their little toy cars of The King, Chick Hicks, and Lightning McQueen. I shook my head - it starts young - quoting movies of their favorite flicks at will. Will their children even understand the references, say 25 years from now? Will their children enjoy and appreciate these movies that my children could spend hours watching?

Who knows, but my children often request the following movies, quoting and acting out scenes, and laughing hysterically at their favorite parts or lines. In speaking with other parents, many of these movies are on their preschooler's favorite list, too, and are movies they don't mind watching a couple of times. However, you may not see these movies listed on a Top 10 listing for family movies or children's movies, as many of these take into consideration children who are as old as twelve. These movies are recommended with the preschool and under crowd in mind.

Thanks to the dawning of the new generation of animated movies, starting with the original "Toy Story," children's movies today try to make sure there is something there for adults to enjoy as well, even if it's being nostalgic. Not only are the movies listed below some of our children's favorite movies, but they are ones my husband and I enjoy, too. We find ourselves chuckling at different lines and scenes right along with our kids!

So, if you are wondering how to pass a rainy afternoon, an evening at home, or a long car ride with the preschool set, try popping one of these movies into the DVD player!

Surf's Up

This movie came out in 2007 and we saw it only after being invited to a friend's birthday party where this movie was the theme and we wanted to know more about this movie featuring penguins. The story follows Cody Maverick, a penguin stuck in Shiverpool, Antartica, who dreams of surfing in the Big Z Memorial Tournament, never knowing that he will actually get to meet Big Z, the hero of his dreams and nearly win the tournament. While some of the innuendoes hopefully go over a preschooler's head, at least our young boys seem to enjoy Cody's antics in trying to learn to surf. They get a kick out of the baby penguins, and yes, they do enjoy the tame potty humor that is in the movie. This is on our list of Top Five because the whole family enjoys watching the movie, the number of times our children giggle at movie scenes and because it is one of our son's most frequently requested movies.

The Pirates Who Don't do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie

This movie came out in 2008 and my husband took my sons to see this movie in the theater. Now available on DVD, I would venture to say my children like this movie better, watching it at home. It follows three landlubbers veggies who work at a pirate-themed dinner theater in modern times who get whisked back a few centuries to help save a prince and princess from real veggie pirates! Through the adventure, the three heroes learn a lot about themselves and how to overcome their shortcomings. The biggest thing my kids like about this movie is the different lines said by the gourd, Sedgwick, and his different inventions to make his life easier. Probably the scene the most laugh at is an extra feature on the DVD where it is an alternate ending, turning the veggies into baby veggies and back again. This made our list purely for the extras that keep our children laughing hysterically.

Horton Hears a Who!

This movie also came out in 2008 and was seen by my children in the theater. This movie kept both of my sons fully entertained for most of the feature. The movie follows one of Dr. Seuss' beloved characters, Horton the elephant, who finds this whole world populated on a tiny, almost invisible dust speck, that lands on a clover. He resolves to protect the Whos and take a clover to a safe place while risking that his other jungle friends in the Jungle of Nool won't understand and will try to stop Horton. As with any good comedy, this movie has slapstick galore, which my boys find hilarious. It also helps that Jim Carrey is in his element, even if it is via voice only.

Cars

This movie came out in 2006 and was one of the first movies our oldest son saw in a movie theater. The movie follows a hot-shot race car on his quest to be the first rookie to win the coveted Piston Cup. He gets delayed when he somehow gets left in a sleepy town off Route 66 while on his way to California for the last big race. While our sons may like the racing the best, they have grown to love all the characters in the movie and the different antics that ensue during Lightning McQueen's stay at Radiator Springs. Sometimes it is the simple things that set the kids laughing, and then laugh harder as they try to imitate the same thing. For example, Mack sticks out his tongue at one point during the trip to California. The boys spend several minutes into the movie sticking out their tongues and laughing all the while.

Toy Story

This modern-day hit and classic that came out in 1995 is still entertaining to young kids and young kids at heart. The story follows a cowboy doll named Woody who becomes jealous of a new toy, a space ranger named Buzz. This movie probably has set the standard for modern-day movies, with tame innuendoes and enough one-line references for adults to enjoy as they watch the movie with their kids. My children are entertained by the various toys and particularly their antics in trying to spy on Andy's birthday party. My sons like the ending where Woody and Buzz are chasing after the moving van and end up shooting off the rocket to ultimately get back to their owner, Andy. Consequently, they also love the sequel.

For additional information about the movies or to find out content-specific information for parents, try going to Internet Movie Database (IMDB) at www.imdb.com. For each movie, there is a link on the sidebar that says "parents guide" under the Awards and Reviews section.

All of these movies are available via www.amazon.com. You may be able to find copies of the more recent movies like "Horton Hears a Who!" in retail stores or sometimes Blockbuster will have some of their pre-viewed movies for sale. The Pirates Who Don't do Anything may best be found at a local Christian retailer like Lifeway Christian Stores.

If you still scratch your head to understand why your preschooler loves a movie on this list, well, do you understand what they find hilarious about shows like "Yo Gabba Gabba?" Just remember that anything and everything can tickle a three-year-old's or four-year-old's funny bone. It may just surprise you - you may find it funny, too!