Summary

• Disney movies help families learn and grow together by portraying helpful, sympathetic parents and teaching valuable lessons through charming characters.
• Inside Out reminds us it's okay to be sad and shares the importance of processing emotions during life events, resonating with parents and children.
• Turning Red explores the journey of women taking charge of their family's safety and portrays a mother-daughter relationship amidst puberty and traditions.

Though many parents originally subscribed to Disney+ with the intention of their children having control of the remote, there are dozens of movies that are meant for the whole family. Some movies are full of nostalgia, several musicals will have fans singing along at the top of their lungs, and then there are new original movies that help teach lessons in a fun and fresh way.

Since the days of 2D movies, Disney has come a long way with how it incorporates parents. Rather than the standard wicked step-mother or the absent parents, the writers, artists, and producers within Walt Disney Studios have created many films that portray helpful and sympathetic parents, or flawed ones that learn valuable lessons about themselves. Children around the world are learning how to better cope with their emotions and daily problems through the conflicts and resolutions that charming characters undergo in many Disney films. While you are gathered with your family this Mother's Day, check out the best movies to watch on Disney+ after a well-deserved meal and day of fun.

8 Inside Out

Growing up is never easy, and emotions are often hard to control when you don't know exactly how to express yourself. Inside Out personifies the emotions of a young girl, Riley, when she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country with her parents. Instead of following a traditional storyline that focuses on Riley making friends and learning to cope with the change, Inside Out focuses on what is happening inside of Riley's mind and how she is processing the world around her.

It's Okay to Be Sad

This film has fans questioning themselves about how they allow their emotions to take over in certain situations, as well as how events cause us to feel different things. For Riley, with the help of her loving parents, she learns a lot about herself and how to process her emotions during life events. Inside Out ultimately reminds us that it's okay to be sad, and that if you are, maybe it's something you can share with your mother. A sequel to the movie is on its way.

7 The Incredibles 2

Superhero movies are not new by any means, but when the film focuses on a single family of superheroes that deals with standard sibling quarrels as well as trying to keep their city safe, an interesting storyline emerges. In The Incredibles, each family member has a superpower that matches how they feel within the family. Then the baby, Jack-Jack, like most babies, is unpredictable as ever. It shows us that every family member has their own type of superpower that the others don't have, and each one is strengthened by the other.

What We Take for Granted About Moms

The Incredibles 2, however, is a wonderful movie about the ways we take mothers for granted. When the matriarch of the family, Helen (played by Holly Hunter), begins taking on jobs of her own to help the family and the public trust of superheroes, Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) is forced to be a stay-at-home dad. As a result, he learns just how much his wife does for the family without him or the kids ever realizing.

Related: Best Non-Marvel or DC Superhero Movies, Ranked

6 Encanto

This animated musical takes family obligations and acceptance to a whole new level. In Encanto, a quirky family made up of members with different abilities lives in a magical realm. There is one young woman, Mirabel, who does not happen to have any magical gifts, though she is a descendant of the matriarch, Alma Madrigal. For this, she is often made to feel like an outcast. Mirabel, however, is the only one to see her family's house literally cracking under the pressure of her grandmother's expectations.

What We Inherit from Our Mothers and Grandmothers

Through a unique journey and hard conversations, Mirabel and her family are able to restore not only their home, but also their love for one another. Encanto is a toe-tapping, beautifully animated, and surprisingly deep meditation on generational trauma and the ways our parents and grandparents have shaped the present.

5 The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea

It is seldom for a Disney princess to become a mom, but it is even rarer for the princess' child to grow up and find their own way into shenanigans. In The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea, Ariel's teenage daughter, Melody, has been kept away from the ocean due to Ursula's vengeful sister threatening to harm the child. Like most teenagers, her mother included, Melody is rebellious when told she cannot do something. Ariel forbids Melody from going into the ocean, so, naturally, she steals a boat and seeks out answers.

A Surprising Sequel Where the Little Mermaid Becomes the Mother

This movie complements its predecessor, The Little Mermaid, by showing how Ariel, now in the parental role, handles the troubles of rebellion with her own teenage daughter. Taken together, the two movies make a great study in maturity, showing how Ariel has grown up to raise a daughter who has the same adventurous impulses as her when she was a child, and how Ariel draws on how she was parented to try and help Melody.

4 The Parent Trap

Lindsay Lohan stars as her own twin in the cheeky romantic comedy, The Parent Trap. Twin girls, Hallie and Annie, were separated at birth; one grew up living with her father on a vineyard in California, and the other lives in London with her fashion designer mother. When the two meet at summer camp, they plot to switch places and get to know the other parent. Knowing the adults will eventually figure out what happened, they will have to meet up.

Learning About Your Parents

The girls desperately hope sparks will fly and the romance between the two will be rekindled. However, plans like these are usually spoiled by a wicked woman, and in this movie, she wears Chanel. Innocence, romantic ploys, and some great supporting characters will have you doubled over laughing with this movie. While the movie is more about parenting in general, Emma Thompson is wonderful as the girls' mother.

3 Freaky Friday

Raising teenagers is a job by itself, but when Tess Coleman wakes up one morning to find that she and her rebellious teenage daughter have switched bodies, a real nightmare ensues. The two do their best to keep their switch a secret as they go about the other's daily life. For the mom and soon-to-be bride, that means reliving high school and dealing with bullies as well as boy. As for her daughter, Anna, she decides to give her mother's body a makeover and speak her mind on certain topics. For the two to switch back, they have to selflessly see the struggles the other deals with from a new perspective.

What It's Like to Be a Mom

Freaky Friday will have anyone laughing and cringing while remembering what it is like to be an angsty teenager going through the motions of high school or a set-in-their-ways parent who will simply not budge. Really, the whole body swap idea is a lesson in empathy, showing the characters what it's like to literally be in the other person's shoes. Maybe every mother and child needs a freaky Friday.

2 Turning Red

Though the film received some backlash for hidden messages, Turning Red is about women taking control and being in charge of their family's safety, and this is done in the cutest way possible. Mei Lee discovers that when her emotions are heightened, she turns into a giant red panda. When her emotions settle, she returns to her normal human form. At first, Mei tries to hide this from everyone, but her mother discovers her secret and explains that her transformation is a gift passed down to the women in the family. Mei then tries to be a normal girl, but with an overprotective mother and friends that know her secret, things get difficult.

A Girl Learns About Womanhood from Her Mother

Turning Red is an allegory for puberty and menstruation, a difficult but important time for mothers and daughters. This film not only shows how relationships can improve through communication and change in perspective, but it beautifully blends the traditions within Chinese culture and modern-day family roles.

Related: Turning Red Was About Periods and Puberty, and it Was Glorious

1 Brave

Merida is a princess with a fiery attitude to match her unruly red hair in the awesome Disney movie, Brave. Merida and her mother, Queen Elinor, do not see eye-to-eye on how a princess should behave. Instead of wanting to wear the pretty dresses, keep her composure, and marry a suitable prince, Merida wants to be her own woman and do things on her own terms.

A Mother and Daughter Adventure

As most fairytales go, a simple naive wish turns into a curse, and the queen gets turned into a bear. Merida finds that instead of constantly fighting with her mother, she is put in a position to defend her from the rest of the bear-hunting town. Through their adventures together, they learn a lot about one another. This Disney animated movie will remind you that it is important to look at things from different perspectives to find solutions and acceptance, a frequent them of parent-child movies, and this one is an absolute blast.