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For my son (6), I'd like to put together a library of television series and movies that portray gifted children in a positive light. Fiction and non-fiction if I can find that range.
Could you recommend titles?
I don't recall much about the series, but Doogie Howser comes to mind. It was running when I was a late teen and I honestly didn't watch it much, so don't know if it qualifies. I'm hoping to avoid excessive distortion/stereotyping if possible!
Last edited by Ametrine; 06/03/1308:33 AM. Reason: paragraph mishap
As a kid, I loved the movie Space Camp. It was so reassuring to see an obviously gifted character with a perfect 1600 on the SAT who was also a normal teenage girl. The movie is probably better suited to a tween girl than a six-year-old boy though.
I'm really not concerned with the sex of the child or the age, so that's one for the list.
Of course, any R-rated movies will have to wait for emotional maturity to catch up, but I'd still like to compile the full gamut of choices from child-level through adult now.
Beauty and the Beast Billy Elliot Dead Poets Society Empire of the Sun Finding Forrester Good Will Hunting Matilda How to Train your Dragon A Little Princess
Tons of others. I actually think almost every good story/film features a character who is gifted.
Jodie Foster ....Little Man Tate...but watch it because I forget the actual plot.
Oooh - what about her other movie, Contact? Love that film I'm pretty sure it's all kid friendly, but maybe screen it first.
My all time favourite, although it wouldn't make your list because it's just so, so sad, is "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." What a fantastic portrayal Thomas Horn did of a 9 year old gifted boy with Asperger's (albeit a tormented one... trying to hold on to his father's memory).
Yeah... (sigh). Don't put that on your list for a 6 year old... it's too sad. If you haven't seen it yet, though, it's a must-see.
As a chess aficionado, one of my faves. Lovely portrayal of a young chess prodigy and the adult pressures and issues he faces as he develops his talent.
My all time favourite, although it wouldn't make your list because it's just so, so sad, is "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." What a fantastic portrayal Thomas Horn did of a 9 year old gifted boy with Asperger's (albeit a tormented one... trying to hold on to his father's memory).
Yeah... (sigh). Don't put that on your list for a 6 year old... it's too sad. If you haven't seen it yet, though, it's a must-see.
I just saw that recently (without DS in the room) and felt the same way you did about it. It made me cry. Perhaps it's one for DS later.
We just watched "Whisper of the Heart" (from Studio Ghibli) and it seems very relevant to raising a gifted child. The two main characters are both gifted, although in different ways, and both have different approaches to their giftedness.
While I think my kids didn't see the movie as deeply as I did, they still enjoyed it.
And while I'm here, I also highly recommend "Kiki's Delivery Service" (another Studio Ghibli movie). The main character is a young witch who is trying to find her place in the world.
I so agree about Extremely Loud etc. It was so incredibly moving, and I thought the actor was amazing. I even came here to post about it at the time! I still don't think dd12 is ready for it though--I think she would be a wreck. I did not enjoy the book as much as the movie.
DS had/sometimes still does have issues with sound. Unlike the boy in the movie, he would cover his ears at seemingly insignificant sounds as if they were "extremely loud".
As a baby, he'd cry for no apparent reason. Nothing would comfort him and even colic "remedies" were useless.
Later, when he was older, I asked him about that and if he remembered crying so much. He said he did. He said he didn't like all the talking around him!
I don't know if it was because he had highly sensitive hearing or if it was because he knew others were communicating without his understanding-he didn't elaborate-and I'm honestly not entirely sure he understood the fantastic thing he just said.
All I do know is I didn't know he was gifted when he was an infant and so had no idea he could even conceive what talking was.
I also loved Space Camp and recently got it from the library to watch with DS4.5. He enjoyed the concept, but a big part of it is the romance stuff between some of the characters. Those parts were pretty boring and uninteresting to the kiddo.
DS does love Matilda and Paranormal. He also likes Dr. Who and I've recently shown him a few Buffy the Vampire Slayers (he likes scary things.).
The movie Real Genius had a big impact on me as a kid. I thought Val Kilmer's character was awesome for being smart, funny, and wild.
In a somewhat similar theme, Grease 2 portrays a geeky academic who transforms himself into a biker, eventually winning over his crush and gaining acceptance of the T-Birds (motorcycle gang).
I also LOVED Real Genius. Those-- THOSE were 'my' people. LOL.
Star Trek, TNG is very appealing.
MacGyver. I love MacGyver, even if the science involved is totally bogus in some instances... part of the fun is discussing what totally would NOT work that way. He's like an American version of Doctor Who. Only not a 900 year old alien, and the bad guys aren't aliens, either.
As a chess aficionado, one of my faves. Lovely portrayal of a young chess prodigy and the adult pressures and issues he faces as he develops his talent.
I think that any parent of a HG/+ child must see this film.
This movie has more to do with my parenting of my daughter than most parenting books have.
This one may sound weird, but it does show gifted adults (both sexes) in a favorable way, and my DD8 requested to watch this movie a second time in less than a week:
