Honey I Shrunk The Kids parents guide

Honey I Shrunk The Kids Parent Guide

Overall B

Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) has big hopes for his latest project, the Amazing Shrinking Ray. But he ends up with a little problem when his invention accidentally gets used on the kids.

Release date June 23, 1989

Violence B
Sexual Content B
Profanity B+
Substance Use A-

Why is Honey I Shrunk The Kids rated PG? The MPAA rated Honey I Shrunk The Kids PG

Run Time: 93 minutes

Parent Movie Review

Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) has high hopes that his latest project, the Amazing Shrinking Ray, will stand tall in the forest of technological achievements. As plans to dazzle the scientific community at a conference showcasing his creation completely consume the inventor’s time, his wife Diane (Marcia Strassman), and kids Amy (Amy O’Neill) and Nick (Robert Oliveri) feel neglected.

Family frustration is also a problem for the Szalinski’s neighbors. Overbearing Mr. Thompson (Matt Frewer) is constantly criticizing the shortcomings of his son Ron (Jared Rushton), while his youngest child Russ (Thomas Wilson Brown) and wife Mae (Kristine Sutherland) watch helplessly.

Thanks to a chain of unlikely events, all four children end up in front of the shrinking ray and you guessed it—Zzzzapo! One minute they’re ordinary kids getting ready for an excursion to the mall and a fishing trip, the next they’re reduced to the size of lint on the attic floor. But their tiny problem becomes gargantuan when they are accidentally swept up with a broom and thrown out with the trash. Deposited in the back alley, and desperate to get back to the house, the minute youngsters find themselves forced to transverse the super-sized landscape full of lurking garden creepy-crawlies. Although they are not exactly friends at the beginning of their adventure, the foursome has plenty of time to get over their differences while endeavoring to survive. Even a romance begins to bud amongst the giant foliage.

Meanwhile, their puzzled parents are mortified once they figure out why their children have vanished. As the crisis forces them to put their priorities in focus, former mountains become molehills. The adults also have the opportunity to do some growing as they weed out their clashing personalities and work together in a rescue attempt.

Slightly silly and sprinkled with slapstick antics, Honey, I Shrunk The Kids’ only content concerns are a kiss between teens and some tense moments with giant insects. Still, the film reinforces overcoming personal weaknesses, appreciating individual worth, and strengthening family relationships… all good tools for facing the real jungle out there.

Directed by Joe Johnston . Starring Rick Moranis, Marcia Strassman. Running time: 93 minutes. Theatrical release June 23, 1989. Updated

Honey I Shrunk The Kids Parents' Guide

Ron is afraid to tell his father that he has quit the football team, so he claims that he was cut. Instead of lying, how might the teen have expressed his disinterest in the sport? What could Ron’s father have done differently in order to prevent his children from being intimidated by him? How can both adults and children value and show respect for the different interests and talents of each family member?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Honey I Shrunk The Kids movie is August 11, 1995. Here are some details…

Homey I Shrunk the Kids releases to home video (VHS) on 11 August 1989.

Related home video titles:

This film spawned two sequels: Honey I Blew Up The Kid and Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves. Another film that shows the world in miniature is A Bug’s Life. Clockstoppers also features some teens that learn the dangers of playing with Dad’s work.