Ask HN: Science fiction movies that are appropriate for 12 year olds?
So, my older son is almost 12, and while he reads a good amount of science fiction (Three-Body Problem, Asimov, Project Hail Mary etc.) - he does not enjoy Science Fiction movies as much.
He found 2001: space odyssey kind of slow and tedious, and I have not introduced him to The Matrix etc., as I think it has some strong adult language and themes.
However, I would like him to be introduced to a world of movies beyond Star Wars and the Marvel Universe. What are some well-made science fiction movies appropriate for 12-year-olds?
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[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 167 ms ] thread* Event Horizon * Terminator 1 & 2
Edit: and to be clear i say that as someone who loves bladerunner. But its a very artsy movie, and it would take a really dedicated 12 year old to appreciate. Not to mention if you think the matrix is not age appropriate...
These should all be suited to a 12 years old, though of course it is up to you:
Back to the future (1, 2 and 3), Time after Time (1979), Gattaca
Depending on the 11-year-old, you might be able to make a case for Seth Macfarlane's The Orville, which can be a bit more hit-and-miss, but does have some truly excellent episodes, particularly in Season 3.
The newer Star Trek series coming out are probably too gritty if the parent is worried about age-appropriateness (I believe Picard has a TV-MA rating?) and unless you really like The Original Series, it's pretty noticeably a product of its age and I personally had trouble staying engaged by it when I was that age.
In the book a team of international people are selected to go (rather than just one) and it ends with them doing science to gather evidence to prove their story (whereas the movie ends with an emotional speech about accepting her story “on faith”)
The book has a lot of characters with weak connections together. The movie has fewer characters, more strongly connected. I think it's one of the few cases where the movie is better than the book—they're still both excellent, however.
Of course all kids are different. I always loved the Back to The Future movies from a young age. Moon is also harder fare while being less violent than The Matrix.
You might also enjoy watching the modern Doctor Who together? Or Star Trek?
As for more books, maybe introduce him to Hitchhikers Guide?
Ex Machina - also great.
Her - different style, but still very good (also with recent LLM developments maybe closer than we think).
The Martian (not as good, but entertaining)
Also I know parents have their preferences, but 12 seems old enough for any of this (if they’re reading Asimov)
I was disappointed in interstellar (but it is a beautiful movie) just dumb in a lot of ways and the “but what above love” subplot really annoyed me.
I’d give gravity an honorable mention. The director’s other movie Children of Men is one of my favorites but doesn’t really qualify as scifi.
For shows, the expanse is probably the best recent thing.
I’m not sure if Super8 qualifies, but I think that’s a generally underrated movie.
Arrival and Children of men are also both in the rare category where the film is better than the source material.
I also forgot about district 9 which I haven’t seen in years, but remember being good.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0470752/parentalguide
I also seem to recall that Her was thematically aimed at adults.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1798709/parentalguide
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1798709/parentalguide
OP should probably consult the IMDB Parents Guide for all of these. Everyone has their own ideas about what's okay for kids and what's not.
Parent can always watch first. 12yo is middle school right? 8th grade? I doubt this would be a 12yr olds first exposure to this kind of thing (and the context of the movie’s story is not a bad place for it).
Rereading the OPs request they mention “adult language” in the matrix so you’re probably right that my recs won’t be a good fit.
Her is a good recommendation but I struggle to imagine a 12 year old identifying well with alienated-middle-aged-man-malaise ;) (although I loved Lost in Translation at 14 or so)
Arrival is a great recommendation. I had some quibbles with its science, but it’s good Sci Fi. Then he can introduce him to Ted Chiang’s other writing
That said, Ex Machina might be a little intense in that regard, even though I seem to remember that the explicity is mostly some nudity. It's a great movie, but probably not the first or fifth I would show a 12-year-old with the above discursive parameters included. The themes of corruption and "fucking around and finding out" are so heavy that you don't want to just leave a child with it.
It could be your tenth pick, though, or perhaps something for 6-18 months on of successfully watching and discussing movies and their depiction of life in an open way.
The Expanse show/books are great
I’m waiting til 13 for Akira
Mine is 11 and matrix, terminator, back to the future, arrival were all too slow. He liked the Jurassic Park books but the movie was “too hokey.”
1984 Nausicaä — The original version released in Japan. The version released to the US market is unkind to the original. The hound dog face mask seen in the anime was appropriate for surviving the pandemic.
A bit too early, IMO, a not because Major's tits, but because besides a nice artwork it would be a dull, slow, non-sensical film with 99% of the plot over the head because 11 y/o doesn't know yet and doesn't know how to process that.
But while we are here, I would advise Violet Evergarden then, it's rough sometimes, but for a kid who already seen GitS I doubt it would be a problem. It's very beautiful both visually and story wise. And watch past the credits, ffs.
Children of Men
Planet of the Apes
So do most adults. That and bladerunner are probably the two slowest sci fi movies in the canon (i love them, but they are high effort watches). Maybe literally anything else.
That said, i'd suggest trying to find out what aspect of the books he reads that he likes and go from there. We all read books for different things, and it helps to know what parts the kid likes.
Maybe the expanse tv show is a safe bet (i thought it was better than the books, but that is just me)
If he really likes the unitended technical consequences aspect of asimov, primer might be good, although the plot is very complicated. Predestination is also good.
Silent Running: hold my beer.
(I say this with love for Silent Running and Blade Runner. I find 2001 to be the hardest one to watch.)
Gattaca, Moon, Gravity, Contact, Space Camp, Andromeda Strain, the original Westworld (1973), the first two Star Trek movies, the STTNG TV series, Another Earth (2011, PG-13), The Man from Earth, Fantastic Voyage, War of the Worlds (1953), The Day the Earth Stood Still, Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
See also: Star Trek the next generation (series)
At 12, I found most horror movies silly or disgusting rather than horrifying. But ALIEN and ALIENS are both great. A few scenes from THE TERMINATOR were disturbing, but it's a good story and TERMINATOR 2 is very good. PREDATOR wasn't for me at 12, but certainly was at 14.
THE TRUMAN SHOW, THE MARTIAN, BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE, THE INVENTION OF LYING are all well-made, entertaining, and should be thought-provoking.