One of Ayva and my favorite things to do together is go to the movies. It’s been awhile since a family film had been released, and we’ve been jonesing to see something fun on the big screen. Fortunately, we were invited to see a sneak preview of the family film “Escape From Planet Earth” before it was released this week. The movie was really hilarious, although I can’t say that it’s appropriate for preschoolers. First, let me tell you a little bit about the movie, then I’ll tell you why it was a mistake to bring my 3 year old, and who the movie would be well suited for.

“Escape From Planet Earth” is about the blue alien hero, Scorch, from the planet Baab who gets kidnapped while on a mission to the “Dark Planet” Earth. His brother, Gary, formerly his mission control operator, is used to being behind the scenes, but has to jump into action in order to save his estranged brother. Oh, yes. Right before Gary heads out on his Planet Earth adventure, Scorch “fires” him. See, Gary is a thinker who likes to plan things out before he takes action, and Scorch doesn’t like that. Throughout the movie, we see Gary learn to trust himself more and really own the fact that he is a HERO! Key supporting characters include Gary’s son, Kip, and his wife, Kira. Kip is very adventurous, and is really the inspiration for Gary saving Scorch. Kira’s story was very interesting to me. Her character is a stay at home mom who was formerly a pilot. I was really surprised at the major shout outs moms received throughout the film!

So, why wasn’t the movie good for a 3-year-old? Well, there were definitely a lot of fight sequences that could be scary to little ones. Ayva seemed fine during the movie, but of course, she was sitting in my lap being snuggled, and we sleep together every night, so we rarely see nightmares. Even still, there were some scenes that I turned Ayva into me to shield her from the battles on the screen. One of the things I liked about the movie was the language. Even though it’s an animated film, the dialogue was witty and smart, but it was definitely above Ayva’s head. Thank goodness for the sight gags, or I’m not sure Ayva would have enjoyed the movie at all.

That being said, I enjoyed the movie, and I would recommend that parents take the PG rating to heart. Kids ages 10 and above would LOVE this movie because it’s silly and full of jokes that make you laugh out loud.

Have you seen “Escape From Planet Earth”? What did you think?