Family Movies Featuring Black Characters

Our Family Movie Nights—brought on by COVID-19 lockdown—have been going well. We alternate who gets to pick the movie each week. This past week, which watched Swiss Family Robinson. Surprisingly, the boys loved it. I say “surprisingly” because it’s more than 60 years old, and it’s not a cartoon. I loved the family’s creativity and appreciation for the natural world. The boys cracked up the entire time and were really engaged.

However, watching the movie reminded me of the subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways that the media we consume influences our feelings about ourselves and our perspectives on the world. There were several cringe-worthy aspects of Swiss Family Robinson, including obvious gender stereotypes, the portrayal of wild animals, and the racial and ethnic stereotyping.

Gender Stereotyping

For those of you who haven’t seen the movie, there are very marked gender stereotypes in the movie: the women are very feminine (they love dresses and doing their hair) and they scare easily. The men, on the other hand, are very brave, and they are the brains and brawn behind most of their survival on a deserted island. There are even two different types of males portrayed: one brother is very academic and book-smart. The other brother is more athletic and outdoorsy. He’s more of a “man’s man.” In the end, he is the brother that “gets the girl” that both brothers are interested in.

I didn’t expect anything different from a movie made in the 1960s, but it was a good reminder of what it feels like to be put into boxes based upon your genitalia. I’m so glad that we are growing into a world where there is more acceptance for a variety of genders. I’m a woman who doesn’t like to do my hair or put on makeup. I want my sons to grow up and feel like it’s okay to cry or show emotion or to be the primary caregiver in their family. We’ve come a long way, but there is still room for growth.

Racial & Ethnic Stereotyping

The main characters in this movie are white. They are all portrayed as virtuous and hard-working. They are immigrating to a new country to seek out a better life, and their desire to do so is celebrated.

The only characters who are not white are the pirates. They are portrayed as uncivilized, frightening, and easily out-smarted.

The Portrayal of Wild Animals

There are all sorts of implausible animals in this movie that is supposed to take place on an island: zebras, tigers, elephants, hyenas, giant snakes, etc. The animals are frequently trying to attack the humans or each other. They are frightening and threatening.

Ultimate Messages

In my opinion, the subtle underlying messages in this movie are:

• White people are superior to other groups of people. They are more civilized, and their desire to colonize other lands (where indigenous people already live) is totally virtuous and within their right to do.
• Humans are superior to nature. It is incumbent upon them to bend nature to their own will. Nature is scary and deserves to be conquered.

It’s not hard to see how continual messaging like this would contribute to where we are today. A lot of white people continue to believe they are superior to People of Color. People with “Black-sounding” names are less likely to get called for interviews. Prosecutors file charges against African-Americans for low-level drug offenses more frequently than against whites, even though studies show that white people use illicit drugs at higher rates.

All of this pushed me to interrogate my own movie list that I generated for Friday Movie Nights. I realized I needed to add more options that portray non-white people in a positive light. So here is what I pulled together:

• The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
• Queen of Katwe
• Woodlawn
• The Princess and the Frog
• Akeelah and the Bee
• The Proud Family Movie
• The Color of Friendship
• Cool Runnings
• And the Children Shall Lead
• Black Panther
• Dr. Doolittle
• Annie (the 2014 version)
• Home
• A Wrinkle in Time
• The Wiz
• Are We There Yet?
• Dancing in the Light: The Janet Collins Story
• The Journey of Henry Box Brown
• Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
• Mixed-ish

Credit given to:

• The Voice of Black Cincinnati
• Mixed Up Mama
• The Oprah Magazine