Reel Kids
"Reel Kids" films bring your family unique viewing experiences—children’s film festival selections, classic cinema, and more. Adults will love these films, too, so everybody can enjoy together! Ages best suited for these films vary; please check specific listings for details.
Showtimes
- Thu, Mar 14 2 p.m. FREE
Free admission Facets Kids' Film Network is proud to present 10 amazing multi-cultural, short films from the Chicago International Children's Film Festival that challenge, entertain, and engage children's creativity! Specially selected for children ages five to nine, the Best of the Fest features the 10 short animated and live-action films mentioned below. Domo-Kun and the Egg (Tsuneo Goda, Japan, 2005, 5 mins.) Domo stumbles upon a strange egg at the foot of a large tree. His godfather, Usaji, disapproves of ... more info
Past Films in This Series
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) A handyman (Pat Morita) agrees to teach a bullied boy (Ralph Macchio) karate and shows him that there is more to the martial art than fighting. more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) Remy (Patton Oswalt) loves fine French food. The problem? He happens to be a rat. Remy lives in an expensive French restaurant and wants to become a chef despite the disapproval of his father and brother, who are happy eating garbage. Remy has adventures every day with a rat-despising staff that wants him gone. This family comedy—from Pixar Animation Studios—also features the voices of Brian Dennehy, Ian Holm, Peter O’Toole, and John Ratzenberger. more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) Slapstick comedy and sweet sentiment combine when the Little Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) finds an abandoned baby. Jackie Coogan and Edna Purviance also star. more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) Hayley Mills plays twins who, unknown to their divorced mom and dad (Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith), meet at a summer camp and conspire to bring their parents back together. more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) Thirty years after its release, Bugsy Malone, an adult gangster comedy/musical in which all the roles are played by children, can make you nostalgic for the 1970s and the 1930s at the same time. That this oddity was directed by Alan Parker (Midnight Express), only makes the whole thing more bizarre. Local mob boss Fat Sam (John Cassisi) finds his empire under threat from newcomer Dandy Dan (Martin Lev) who unleashes a new ... more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) Director Steven Spielberg's heartwarming masterpiece is one of the brightest stars in motion picture history. Filled with unparalleled magic and imagination, E.T. follows the moving story of a lost little alien who befriends 10-year-old, Elliot (Henry Thomas). Experience all the mystery and fun of their unforgettable adventure in the beloved movie that captivated audiences around the world. more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) The new boy in town (Chris Makepeace) hires the most feared boy (Adam Baldwin) in school to protect him from bullies lead by the creepy Moody (Matt Dillon). “My Bodyguard is a small treasure, a movie about believable characters in an unusual situation.” —Roger Ebert more info
FREE with museum admission (No tickets required) Presented in 3-D! A spaceship from another world crashes in the Arizona desert that makes an amateur stargazer and a schoolteacher suspect alien influence when the local townsfolk begin to act strange. “It Came from Outer Spaceis a crucial gatefold film . . . It was the first screenplay produced by Ray Bradbury, although Bradbury only turned in a treatment and the finished result was rewritten by Harry Essex.” —Science Fiction, Horror, and ... more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSON (No tickets required) Magic, fantasy, and Celtic mythology come together in this Academy Award-nominated animated feature about the power of imagination and faith to carry humanity through dark times. “The Irish import takes its inspiration from, of all things, the twelfth-century-old Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript transcribed by Celtic monks. The stirring tale, with its startlingly vibrant, mainly hand-drawn animation, serves as a valuable reminder that one doesn't always need 3D to make an image ... more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) A jaded former jockey (Mickey Rooney) helps a young girl (Elizabeth Taylor) train a wild, but gifted horse for the Grand National Sweepstakes—England’s greatest racing event. “Director Clarence Brown certainly knows how to push all the right buttons, crafting a film that is knowingly manipulative and sentimental but none the worse for it and it would be churlish not to be both moved and excited by the film's gripping finale.” —BBC Films more info
FREE WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION (No tickets required) An urbane fox cannot resist returning to his farm raiding ways and then must help his community survive the farmers' retaliation. The animated comedy features the voices of George Clooney, Bill Murray, and Meryl Streep. more info
Enjoy three short animated films that bring storybooks to life! Families with little ones will love these fashionable and fun tales. This film is part of MFAH Family Day: Work It! Fashion in Art. Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed Wilbur is different from the other Naked Mole Rats in his colony, because he wears clothes—and he likes it! But what will happen when Grand-pah—the oldest, wisest, and most-naked Naked Mole Rat ever—discovers Wilbur’s secret? Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed is a gentle ... more info
A New York bookseller (Audrey Hepburn) is offered a modeling contract and a trip to Paris by a fashion photographer (Fred Astaire) after being discovered on a photo shoot. The musical contains the classic Gershwin tunes “S’Wonderful” and “How Long Has This Been Going On?” and features revelry, romance, and runways! This film is part of MFAH Family Day: Work It! Fashion in Art. more info
No film ticket purchase required. Free with general museum admission. As World War I begins, 10-year-old Sara Crewe (Liesel Matthews) is growing up in India. But after she's sent to an English boarding school for safety, her wealthy father goes missing, and she is soon relegated to servitude by the headmistress. Based on the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, A Little Princess is directed by the filmmaker responsible for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. “ . . . another magical family ... more info
I, Crocodile (2001, 9 min.) Author and Illustrator: Fred Marcellino An Egyptian crocodile who catches the fancy of the esteemed Emperor Napoleon becomes an instant celebrity in a fancy fountain in Paris. But when someone in the kitchen starts singing the praises of crocodile pie, the resourceful and very hungry reptile escapes by sewer. Narrated by Tim Curry with music by Raul Malo. followed by Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears (1984, 10 min.) Author: Verna Aardema / Illustrators: Leo and Diane Dillon ... more info
A newly hired security guard (Ben Stiller) at the Museum of Natural History discovers that an ancient curse causes the animals and exhibits on display to come to life at night. The cast of this family-favorite comedy-adventure also includes Carla Gugino, Dick Van Dyke, and Robin Williams. more info
Free with museum admission. A selection of entertaining, thought-provoking, and visually stunning short films for ages 7 to 14. Dot (UK, 2010, 2 min.) Animation, Sumo Science Multiple Oscar®-winning studio Aardman Animations (Wallace & Gromit, Creature Comforts) has created the world's smallest stop-motion character. Dot measures just 9mm tall and was animated using a microscope and tweezers. In this miniature escape adventure, Dot runs away from unraveling thread, jumps over pins, and hitches a ride on the back of a bee... all before ... more info
Free with museum admission. A kaleidoscopic showcase of the best short film and animation from around the world, especially fun for ages 3 to 6. Mi’au Myau (UK, 2009, 1 min.) Animation, Vida Vega In this lovely hand-drawn short animation, a group of birds sit together on a branch, chirping away each in their own native tongue. But when an unexpected visitor comes along, his words are universally understood. All That Cats (Hungary, 2009, 1 min. x 3) Animation, Mátyás Lanczinger In this series of short ... more info
As she approaches the last summer of junior high, fourteen-year-old Shizuku determines to read as many books as possible in preparation for her future career as a writer. After meeting a boy named Seiji, whose taunts clearly indicate that he has a crush on her, Shizuku discovers an antique shop whose array of fantastical items inspires her to start writing a book starring the shop's most intriguing artifact, a top-hatted cat figurine called The Baron. This sensitive teenage love story ... more info
Ponyo is a fish-girl who lives in an underwater castle with her father and several sisters. Wanting to see more of the world, she floats away on the back of a jellyfish and finds herself stranded on the shore of a small fishing village, where she is rescued by a 5-year-old boy named Sosuke. Falling in love with Sosuke, Ponyo determines to transform herself into a human using her father's magic—but the forces she unleashes throw the natural balance out ... more info
This animated cyberpunk/sci-fi story is a visual tour-de-force. Kenji is a teenage math prodigy recruited by his secret crush Natsuki for the ultimate summer job—passing himself off as Natsuki’s boyfriend for four days during her grandmother’s 90th birthday celebration. But when Kenji solves a math riddle sent to his cell phone, he unwittingly breaches the security barricade protecting Oz, a globe-spanning virtual world. Like the Internet as conceived by pop artist Takashi Murakami, Oz is a hallucinatory pixel parade of ... more info
Free admission After high-school student Haru rescues an elegant black cat from being hit by a speeding delivery truck, the awkward teenager finds her locker inundated with gift-wrapped mice and her desk inscribed with crayoned cat hieroglyphs. The feline in question is Lune, Prince of the Cat Kingdom, and Haru is plunged into the cats’ underground realm, where she finds that the hardest part of growing up is staying yourself—quite literally, when her body starts to take on an unmistakably ... more info
Free admission A shy young milliner is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch. At first horrified, she discovers a new zest for adventure. Her only chance for breaking the spell, though, lies with a moody, insecure wizard. “Admirers of [Miyazaki’s] work, which is wildly imaginative, emotionally intense, and surpassingly gentle, will find much to appreciate in this film because it demonstrates, once again, his visual ingenuity and his sensitivity as a storyteller." —New York Times more info
When the Kusakabe family moves to a new home next to a dark forest, sisters Satsuki and Mei discover that both the house and the woods abound with spirits and strange creatures, most notably the massive but good-natured “Totoro,” who befriends the girls and takes them on a series of magical adventures. more info
Looney Tunes
Directed by Various directors
Cartoon compilations featuring Bugs Bunny and Tweety Bird! more info
Inspired by The Arabian Nights, this enchanting fairy tale follows the journey of a handsome prince who is tricked by a wicked sorcerer. Check out the unique silhouette animation! more info
(No tickets required) Start practicing your pose to step onto the red carpet at Aurora’s fourth annual Boot Camp World Premiere. Young filmmakers' visions come to life on screen at the closing event for films made by the students (ages 9–17) enrolled in Aurora’s summer filmmaking boot camps. Friends, fans, and parents are invited to see the work of these future auteurs. Popcorn Kids programming is made possible with support from Hot Topic Foundation; Texas Commission on the Arts; The ... more info
ADMISSION Thursday, December 27: Free (general admission is free on Thursdays) Friday, December 28: Free with general admission MFAH Members always receive free general admission. From Academy Award–nominated director Dominique Monféry comes a sumptuously animated movie about a magic library where all the characters from classic children’s books come alive. Nat has fond memories of his eccentric Aunt Eleanor reading to him from her enormous collection of storybooks, but he's frustrated by his inability to read the books himself. So ... more info
Turtles Can Fly
Lakposhtha parvaz mikonand
2004, in Kurdish with English subtitles
Directed by Bahman Ghobadi
Thirteen-year-old Kak and other refugee children near the Iraqi-Turkish border await their fate on the eve of an American invasion. “I was totally unprepared for the exuberance and unforgettable power of Kurdish director Bohman Ghobadi’s (Time For Drunken Horses) Turtles Can Fly. A joint Iran-Iraq venture, the film is the first narrative film to be shot in Iraq following the fall of Saddam Hussein and is a view of war from the inside of a Kurdish refugee camp close to ... more info