5 Reasons to Take the Kids to See “The Greatest Showman”

I was all in for Frozen and about halfway in for Moana,  but by this point in my mom life I have seen my fill of cartoons. So, when one of my kids suggested we go see The Greatest Showman, I was intrigued. ‘Wait a minute,’ I thought, ‘is that even a movie for kids?’ Turns out, it is. And, it marks a parenting milestone in our family – we all went to the movies AND ENJOYED something that was NOT cartoon. {Sorry, Elsa and Maui.}

In case you haven’t heard, The Greatest Showman depicts the life of P.T. Barnum and his rise from nothing to create the Circus, often considered the birth of show business. Here’s why I think moms and dads should love this movie!

1. It’s rated PG. I usually consult with Plugged in Movie Reviews to see if my family would enjoy movies on the big screen or even TV shows at home. The reviews were mostly positive and I decided that my 8 and 5 year old were old enough to try it out. I only heard one curse word {damn} and the only other thing negative I could really see was a bit of drinking and some fighting. And, as I mentioned before, it’s NOT A CARTOON. So, that automatically elevates it in my book.
2. It’s a action packed and a musical. Meaning… your kids will most likely stay interested because it moves really fast from songs to action. The colors are bright and vivid and beautiful and you just can’t stop looking at all of the things to see. You almost can’t look away. Your kids can’t look away. Hooray for no bathroom breaks just to get up and move around!!
3. There are great life lessons throughout. There are characters such as the bearded lady, world’s fattest man, the dogged face boy and many others. I really hadn’t thought of it before, but the circus gave these “outsiders” an opportunity to belong. It gave them a purpose, created a family for them and made us see that we should see people who are different as important people too {of course}. It teaches about diversity and loving people for WHO they are, not what they look like.
4. The Music. “Let it go, Let it go..” Ok. There is that ONE song from Frozen that everyone has memorized by now. Great news. The Greatest Showman has like 10 songs like this. The ENTIRE soundtrack is awesome. I ended up downloading the songs and my girls sing and perform to them all of the time. I don’t mind listening to them either. I love them actually. I’m amazed these characters sing like they do. Zac Efron, Hugh Jackman and Michelle Williams sound SO GOOD. {Side note, this movie turned us all into Zac Efron fans.}
5. It really happened. Ok, well, it’s based on a true story. Regardless it will take you back to a time when you visited the circus as a kid. The characters are likely and engaging and the plot does not get slow or boring.

Go ahead, take the family to the movies… or at the very least, download the soundtrack ASAP. I promise, you will thank me later. {Your kids will too.}