The Best Movies that Realistically (and sometimes hilariously) Portray Parenting, Ranked!

Everyone knows that babysitting is no easy feat, let alone raising a child (or children) into adulthood. In this list, there are multiple ways in which parenting unfolds: between a dog and its parents, an engaged couple and their in-laws, an incarcertaed father and his son, a homless father and son who struggle to survive and more. Intrigued? Not only are these films entertaining in of themselves, the story about the homelss father (played by Will Smith) and his son is based on a true story. The film has even been nominated for an Oscar! (see #2 on this list) We assure you this list is also family friendly. So for your next family movie night, pull out this list and know that we’ve got you covered.

1

Inside Out

Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind
Pete Docter
2015

Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Riley's guiding emotions— Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness—live in Headquarters, the control centre inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through everyday life and tries to keep things positive, but the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school.

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8.2 IMDB
2

The Pursuit of Happyness

Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Thandie Newton
Gabriele Muccino
2006

A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career.

8 IMDB
3

Wonder

Jacob Tremblay, Owen Wilson, Julia Roberts
Stephen Chbosky
2017

The story of August Pullman – a boy with facial differences – who enters fifth grade, attending a mainstream elementary school for the first time.

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8 IMDB
4

Little Miss Sunshine

Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carell
Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris
2006

A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.

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7.8 IMDB
5

The Blind Side

Quinton Aaron, Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw
John Lee Hancock
2009

The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All American football player and first round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.

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7.6 IMDB
6

The Royal Tenenbaums

Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller
Wes Anderson
2001

Royal Tenenbaum and his wife Etheline had three children and then they separated. All three children are extraordinary --- all geniuses. Virtually all memory of the brilliance of the young Tenenbaums was subsequently erased by two decades of betrayal, failure, and disaster. Most of this was generally considered to be their father's fault. "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the story of the family's sudden, unexpected reunion one recent winter.

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7.6 IMDB
7

My Sister's Keeper

Cameron Diaz, Alec Baldwin, Abigail Breslin
Nick Cassavetes
2009

Sara and Brian live an idyllic life with their young son and daughter. But their family is rocked by sudden, heartbreaking news that forces them to make a difficult and unorthodox choice in order to save their baby girl's life. The parents' desperate decision raises both ethical and moral questions and rips away at the foundation of their relationship. Their actions ultimately set off a court case that threatens to tear the family apart, while revealing surprising truths that challenge everyone's perceptions of love and loyalty and give new meaning to the definition of healing.

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7.4 IMDB
8

Sing

Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane
Garth Jennings
2016

A koala named Buster recruits his best friend to help him drum up business for his theater by hosting a singing competition.

7.1 IMDB
9

Marley & Me

Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, Eric Dane
David Frankel
2008

A newly married couple who, in the process of starting a family, learn many of life's important lessons from their trouble-loving retriever, Marley. Packed with plenty of laughs to lighten the load, the film explores the highs and lows of marriage, maturity and confronting one's own mortality, as seen through the lens of family life with a dog.

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7.1 IMDB
10

Mrs. Doubtfire

Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan
Chris Columbus
1993

Loving but irresponsible dad Daniel Hillard, estranged from his exasperated spouse, is crushed by a court order allowing only weekly visits with his kids. When Daniel learns his ex needs a housekeeper, he gets the job -- disguised as an English nanny. Soon he becomes not only his children's best pal but the kind of parent he should have been from the start.

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7 IMDB
11

Meet the Parents

Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Teri Polo
Jay Roach
2000

Greg Focker is ready to marry his girlfriend, Pam, but before he pops the question, he must win over her formidable father, humorless former CIA agent Jack Byrnes, at the wedding of Pam's sister. As Greg bends over backward to make a good impression, his visit to the Byrnes home turns into a hilarious series of disasters, and everything that can go wrong does, all under Jack's critical, hawklike gaze.

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7 IMDB
12

About a Boy

Hugh Grant, Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette
Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz
2002

Will Freeman is a hip Londoner who one day realizes that his friends are all involved with the responsibilities of married life, which leaves him alone in the cold. Passing himself off as a single father, he starts to meet a string of single mums, confident in his ability to leave them behind when they start to ask for a commitment. But Will's hope of continued bachelorhood is interrupted when he meets 12-year old Marcus, in many ways his complete opposite.

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7 IMDB
13

The Kids Are All Right

Julianne Moore, Annette Bening, Mark Ruffalo
Lisa Cholodenko
2010

Two women, Nic and Jules, brought a son and daughter into the world through artificial insemination. When one of their children reaches age, both kids go behind their mothers' backs to meet with the donor. Life becomes so much more interesting when the father, two mothers and children start to become attached to each other.

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7 IMDB
14

The Family Man

Nicolas Cage, Téa Leoni, Don Cheadle
Brett Ratner
2000

Jack's lavish, fast-paced lifestyle changes one Christmas night when he stumbles into a grocery store holdup and disarms the gunman. The next morning he wakes up in bed lying next to Kate, his college sweetheart he left in order to pursue his career, and to the horrifying discovery that his former life no longer exists. As he stumbles through this alternate suburban universe, Jack finds himself at a crossroad where he must choose between his high-power career and the woman he loves.

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6.8 IMDB
15

Life As We Know It

Katherine Heigl, Josh Duhamel, Josh Lucas
Greg Berlanti
2010

After a distastrous first date for caterer Holly and network sports director Messer, all they have is common is a dislike for each other and their love for their goddaughter Sophie. But when they suddenly become all Sophie has in this world, Holly and Messer must set their differences aside. Juggling careers and social calendars, they'll have to find common ground while living under the same roof.

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6.5 IMDB
16

Riding in Cars with Boys

Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn, Adam Garcia
Penny Marshall
2001

A single mother, with dreams of becoming a writer, has a son at the age of 15 in 1965, and goes through a failed marriage with the drug-addicted father.

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6.5 IMDB
17

Meet the Fockers

Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Robert De Niro
Jay Roach
2004

Hard-to-crack ex-CIA man, Jack Byrnes and his wife, Dina head for the warmer climes of Florida to meet son-in-law-to-be, Greg Focker's parents. Unlike their happily matched offspring, the future in-laws find themselves in a situation of opposites that definitely do not attract.

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6.3 IMDB
18

Bad Moms

Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell
Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
2016

When three overworked and under-appreciated moms are pushed beyond their limits, they ditch their conventional responsibilities for a jolt of long overdue freedom, fun, and comedic self-indulgence.

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6.2 IMDB
19

Parental Guidance

Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Marisa Tomei
Andy Fickman
2012

Artie and Diane agree to look after their three grandkids when their type-A helicopter parents need to leave town for work. Problems arise when the kids' 21st-century behavior collides with Artie and Diane's old-school methods.

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6 IMDB
20

Raising Helen

Kate Hudson, John Corbett, Joan Cusack
Garry Marshall
2004

Helen Harris has a glamorous, big-city life working for one of New York's hottest modeling agencies. But suddenly her free-spirited life gets turned upside down when she must chose between the life she's always loved, and the new loves of her life!

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6 IMDB