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5 Children’s Movies to Stream Now
This month’s picks include sequels galore and an animated adventure out of Canada.
‘Despicable Me 4’
It’s tough to imagine that this Illumination franchise will ever stop churning out movies. Children keep watching, so why not continue with Minion mania? This time around, Gru (Steve Carell), supervillain gone good (sort of), is in the witness protection program with his wife, Lucy (Kristen Wiig), and their kids, including his new baby son, Gru Jr.
The actual villain here is Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell), an old boarding school classmate of Gru’s who is out for revenge because Gru once humiliated him. As payback, Maxime schemes to kidnap Gru Jr. and turn him into a cockroach. Maxime and his girlfriend, Valentina (Sofia Vergara), employ an army of roaches as their henchmen in this quest (they also want to conquer the world while they’re at it).
My son, who has seen all of the films, didn’t tire of the Minions humor or Gru’s antics. There’s a surprise bonus scene after the credits, so make sure your little ones stick around. The franchise director and producer Chris Renaud co-directed with Patrick Delage. Ken Daurio and Mike White wrote the script.
‘Kung Fu Panda 4’
Jack Black returns as the voice of Po, the lovable martial arts master at the center of this DreamWorks franchise. Po would rather munch on cookies and dumplings than meditate or find inner peace, but that doesn’t stop his mentor Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) from asking Po to succeed him as spiritual leader.
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