Grandparents Day marks the celebration of our beloved grandparents who love us unconditionally, pamper us and who are also our biggest mentors. Movies about grandparents are especially interesting to watch, and we can always relate and compare real-life instances with the stories on screen. Hollywood surely has its list of iconic grandparents, with stories that are heart-warming as well as our ultimate comfort watch. Portraying the beautiful relationship that grandparents and grandchildren share, let us explore some of the favourite grandparents on screen.
Grandparents' characters in Hollywood movies we love
1. Little Miss Sunshine - Edwin Hoover
Little Miss Sunshine is definitely one of the first few films that come to mind when we talk about comfort movies. It is a humorous road film, which revolves around the story of a family who travels across the country when their seven-year-old daughter decides to participate in a beauty pageant. The story portrays a beautiful relationship between the grandfather and granddaughter in a dysfunctional family drama. The relationship between the two is quite unique since Olive, the granddaughter, is an unusual, artistic little girl, but the grandfather is quite grumpy. A very special film indeed, the film shows how the older and younger generations can be very similar, and that as elders we should not question their choices.
2. The Princess Diaries - Julie Andrews
Princess Diaries portrays a wonderful relationship between a grandmother and a granddaughter. The story is an interesting one about a clumsy and shy teenager who discovers that she is actually the princess of Genovia. She thus meets her estranged grandmother and grooms herself to behave like royalty. Their relationship isn't as smooth in the beginning, but they soon realise that they are much alike.
3. The Farewell - Zhao Shu-Zhen
A Chinese family decides to keep the news of their grandmother’s diagnosis of terminal cancer from her in order to organise a wedding before her death. The granddaughter, Billi is a writer who has always been close to her grandmother, Nai Nai. Billi is really unhappy with the family’s decision to keep the grandmother’s illness a secret. However, she is asked to keep her distance from her Nai Nai, but the wedding acts as an excuse for her to travel to China and be with her grandmother. She intends to spend more time with Nai Nai, but instead, Nai Nai tells her that she should be more interested in living her own life. The film is quirky and heartwarming and has received great acclamation.
4. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - David Kelly
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is the adaptation of one of the most celebrated children’s books by Roald Dahl of the same name. The story follows five children who have been invited to a marvellous and wonderful chocolate factory. One among these five children will win the Golden ticket. Charlie is one of the kids, who comes from a very deprived household but his grandfather Joe, who is bedridden tells Charlie about the time when he used to work in the chocolate factory himself. He tells Charlie the story of Willy Wonka, the owner of the chocolate factory and the various secrets surrounding the workers at the factory.
5. Everything is Illuminated - Boris Lyoskin
Everything is Illuminated is a remarkable film which portrays the story of a young man who sets out on a journey with his grandfather to a Ukrainian village in order to find a woman who had saved his grandfather’s life during World War II. On their quest, they are helped by an unusual local, Alex. The film is extremely emotional and heartbreaking.
6. A Child’s Christmas in Wales - Denholm Elliott
One of the most beautiful portrayals of the grandfather-grandson relationship, this film is heartwarming and emotional. The story tells the story of Thomas, a young boy who is looking forward to his holidays, but soon gets disappointed when it starts raining instead of snowing. His disappointment, however, is soon gone when his grandfather gifts a snow globe to him and recounts personal stories from his own childhood.