LilSugar

When the Boob Tube Gets Scary, Leave the Kids Alone

babysugar — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 07:00:00 -0700

One might assume that a child would be less frightened watching something scary if he were in the company of his parents. Not so says a group of Finnish researchers. According to a new study published in the journal Child: Care, Health and Development, children are actually more afraid of the events on the screen when their folks are in their presence. Though they may be cuddled or soothed by dear mom, the tot is more likely to pick up on the hair-raising moments thanks to his parent's facial expressions or physical reactions. Had the tot watched the show alone, he may have skipped right over the apparently shocking scene. So next time you're thinking of cuddling up for a family night of horror flicks, think again.

Will this revelation change your family's viewing habits?

10 Classic Movies For Kids

babysugar — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:00:23 -0700

Before there was Buzz Lightyear or Shrek, there was Mrs. Hannigan and the Cowardly Lion. Movies made for small audiences have come a long way in terms of animation and imagination earning them an entirely separate category at major award shows, but when it comes to the classics, the old artists relied on their voices, costumes, and acting skills to create some irreplaceable masterpieces that every tot should enjoy. Check out the list of these movies, and tell me which one is your (or your child's) favorite.

View Slideshow ›

Check Out the Cool Kid Films That Are Set to Come Out

LilSugar — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 06:00:34 -0700

The Summer blockbuster season is drawing to a close, and with that we say goodbye to the group of flicks designed to give our lil ones a break from the warm weather. While many of us are eagerly anticipating the Fall movie season – including Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Where the Wild Things Are and A Christmas Carol, movie studios are already banking on their 2010 arrivals. Take a look at what will be entertaining our kids next year and let us know which you are most excited about.

View Slideshow ›

All Aboard! Disney's Christmas Carol Train Tour

babysugar — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:00:03 -0700

All aboard the Christmas Carol Express! To promote their upcoming movie, A Christmas Carol, Disney has created a real-life locomotive experience for families that showcases graphic artwork, actor interviews, motion development, historical artifacts, and computer-generated characters from the motion picture.

Last Friday, I took my children out to see the moving exhibit, which stopped in Northern California. The train will make its way to New York before the film opens. A fan of locomotives, my daughter was fired up to set foot on the real deal. To set the mood, Disney provided fake snow flurries in July, which actually felt right for a Bay Area Summer morning. We gave the ticket handler our stubs and embarked on the stationary adventure that caters to kids.

To see what we found, read more.

As if in a museum, we were surrounded by beautiful art and items worthy of glass cases. Straight from the Charles Dickens Museum of London, the author's manuscripts and musical sheets sat untouched for curious eyes to purvey. Flat-screen televisions in gold-colored frames repeatedly played conversations with the film's creator Robert Zemeckis and stars Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, and Colin Firth. As Scrooge, Jim Carrey won't disappoint and the 3D graphics will have audiences cheering. In the next car, we discovered a dummy with motion sensors that explains to viewers how human motion translates into animation. A tad too mature for my daughter's brain, older kids (and adults) will find it fascinating. Along with the texts and illustrations, guests can pour over the costumes adorning busts throughout the railroad experience. Before the exit, kids can entertain themselves by turning their own face into one of the character's by stepping into an HP TouchSmart PC screen and capturing a self-portrait. After a simple click of a button, the tot evolves into Scrooge or Tiny Tim. Not to be forgotten, wee ones can see it again as mom and pop can have the image emailed straight to themselves.

Due out just before Christmas, this train is chugging across the country to provide tots a lil holiday spirit. If the Christmas Carol express is headed in your direction, it's worth the time to check it out. Get there early to avoid waiting in line! Check out the scheduled tour dates.

View 10 Photos ›

My Sister's Keeper: As a Mom What Would You Do?

LilSugar — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:00:09 -0700

My Sister's Keeper is a must see for mothers. Bring a box of tissues and prepare to empty your tear ducts during the entire experience. Unlike most films that escalate this one puts a lump into your throat just moments after starting. Cameron Diaz plays a pretty convincing Sara Fitzgerald, an attorney and mother of two who finds out her young daughter, Kate (Sofia Vassilieva), has cancer and her slightly older son, Jesse (Evan Ellingson), is not a donor match. So to save the child's life, Sara and her husband, Brian (Jason Patric) genetically conceive another baby, Anna (Abigail Breslin).

After eleven years of surgery and of donating body parts to her older sister, Anna hires a lawyer and sues her parents for the right to her own body. Sara is torn between the love she has for all her kids and the need to keep Kate (who needs a kidney) alive. It's hard to digest the tearjerker, and the powerful scenes played out at times with just looks between characters and not feel their pain, their confusion and love, and wonder as a parent what you would do. If you found out your child were terminally ill, would you genetically engineer another to save his or her life?

To see the emotional trailer, read more.

Source: Warner Bros.

10 Hot Summer Movies For Tots

babysugar — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 07:00:00 -0700

Parents of tiny tots may not dare go on a long adventure without bringing along their trusty DVD player. A lengthy airplane ride or a prolonged road trip can go from disastrous to delightful with a simple push of a button. Families flying the friendly skies or cruising the roads should stock up on this Summer's newest releases for wee ones. Some of them may even have mom looking for an extra headset outlet!

View Slideshow ›

What's Your Favorite Adoption Movie?

babysugar — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 16:00:00 -0700

After watching the trailer for the horror flick Orphan the other day, I thought about all the other adoption films that have graced the silver screen. First to come to mind? Annie, of course. Check out some of the other ones that show both bright and dark sides of the subject matter. Source

View Slideshow ›

Is "Orphan" Movie Fair to Those in Foster Care?

babysugar — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 08:00:53 -0700

It can be a cold and cruel world for foster children. While some kids are fortunate enough to find warm, inviting homes and loving families, others spend most of their lives hopping from one home to another without the security of being able to settle down. Will flicks like Warner Brother's horror film, Orphan, scare potential parents from reaching out to take in tots?

The movie about a crazed foster child has previews that include the line: "It must be hard to love an adopted child as much as your own." Sentiments like these in the trailer have people all up in arms - especially the parents and counselors of adopted children. Watch the trailer and see for yourself.

Nursery University: Parents Lose Their Minds Over Preschool

LilSugar — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 10:00:59 -0700

The preschool application process in many major metropolitan cities is comparable to getting into college. Sometimes dubbed the brat race, it doesn’t get more competitive than what goes on in New York City, where some believe that getting into the right nursery school will put their tots on the Ivy League path.

In his new documentary, Nursery University, which hit screens last week, Marc Simon and Matt Makar take an in-depth, satirical and oftentimes sympathetic look at a process that lead to the downfall of one Wall Street’s biggest titans and has parents competing to spend more than $15,000 a year on their two-year-old’s education. The film follows five families as they take the journey – from identifying the right schools, obtaining applications, the child’s interviews and finally their receipt of acceptance letters. Along the way, we meet two preschool directors who scoff at the myths about the process, as well as a “preschool consultant” who charges $4,000 to help families navigate the system.

To see why the film had me both laughing and feeling sorry for the families, and see a trailer, read more.

While some of the profiled families perfectly mirror the caricatures they are modeled after – the family that spends time practicing greetings with their daughter, the clan that claims even a celebrity like Kate Winslet can’t get their daughter into a school and a couple that debates whether saying Spanish is their first language will give their child an advantage – others go through the process in an attempt to truly give their lil ones a better start than they had.

A friend who went through the Manhattan preschool process said the film accurately portrays the frantic pace at which NYC families approach wee education. If you want an inside look at the craziness some parents go through for their offspring, seek out this film, and then go home and thank your lucky stars that you don't have to participate.

Movies With Miya: Monsters vs. Aliens

LilSugar — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 09:00:02 -0700

Dreamworks is releasing their first 3D movie, Monsters vs Aliens, today. Filled with celeb voices from Reese Witherspoon (Susan Murphy / Ginormica) to Seth Rogen (B.O.B.) to Hugh Laurie (Dr. Cockroach Ph.D.), the family film is rated PG and full of appropriate humor that keeps both parents and their kids laughing. The fantastic animation enthralls the audience as 50-foot-tall Ginormica and her monster friends - a blob, a mad scientist cockroach, a fish-ape and an insectosaurus keep the evil aliens from invading earth. Although some scenes skew a bit older than the preschool set, we sat down with one of our favorite lil movie reviewers, Miya, to get her take on the film, read more.

Q: What was your favorite part of the movie?
A: When Blob tries to fight the robot and gets squished by his giant foot. And wearing the cool glasses.

Q: What didn’t you like about the movie?
A: When the evil alien Gallaxhar comes to Earth.

Q: Did any parts scare you?
A: When the monsters and aliens fought in the battleship.

Q: Would you tell your friends to watch it?
A: I think some of my friends (ages 4 and 5) might be sort of scared, but my older friends would like it.

Movie buff Miya, 4, has been watching films since she was old enough to follow the images in the Baby Einstein videos. Her favorite flick is the adored blockbuster, The Little Mermaid. This cute critic hopes to grace the silver screen some day!

Source