Celebrate the release of Despicable Me 4 by exploring our curated collection of superhero films and resources. Whether you crave epic battles, heartfelt tales, or pure super-powered fun, we've got something for everyone!
Despicable Me 4
very mild comic violence, threat, language, rude humour
Comic escapades ensue when a family goes on the run after their criminal nemesis breaks out of jail. In line with previous films, action sequences are highly fantastical and packed with funny moments, keeping the tone light.
violence
Scenes of comic violence include undetailed fights, which include punches and kicks. A villain is briefly tasered whilst being arrested. A villain repeatedly stamps on a characters hand to try and force him to release his grip on a girder and fall from height. However, the man is saved when his young child intervenes and bites the villain's ear. A child stamps on a karate teacher's toe after the man intimidates the child's sibling.
threat and horror
A villainous character transforms into a cockroach, and spikes emerge from his arms. In a hair salon, a character's hair briefly catches fire before it is extinguished. A karate teacher briefly intimidates child pupils; however, one of the pupils intervenes and puts a stop to this. There are also comic chase scenes.
language
Very mild bad language includes infrequent uses of 'jerk' and 'God'.
rude humour
There is a comic scene in which a baby urinates. A creature burps after swallowing a bomb which explodes inside it in comic undetailed fashion.
The Incredibles
mild violence, threat
A family of superheroes is given a secret assignment to save the world. Violence and threat are very mild and occur in a fantastical animated context that is unlikely to upset even younger viewers.
violence
There are scenes in which the superhero family engage in fights with villains, including punches and the firing of fantasy weapons, as well as a fight with a robot which attacks with pincers.
threat and horror
There are chase sequences, a scene in which a character is zapped with electricity, and threat to the family as missiles are fired at a plane. However, the overall tone is light and exciting and any threat is broken up with humour.
language
Language is very mild and limited to uses of "My God" and 'jeez'. There is a brief joke, which is not explained, about why a character couldn't have 'BS' written on his top.
sex
There are some very mild comic sex references, including to getting married and then "getting busy" and a reference to X-ray vision being used by a 'peeping tom'.
injury detail
A man is seen in hospital in bandages after he's been smashed through a series of walls by a superhero.
suicide and self-harm
A man jumps off a building, in an apparent attempt to take his own life, but is saved by a superhero.
alcohol and smoking
There is limited sight of smoking and drinking by adult characters.
Paw Patrol The Mighty Movie
very mild threat, violence, rude humour, upsetting scenes
The Paw Patrol team acquire superpowers as they attempt to save the world from a meteor attack in this adventure-filled animated film where scenes of fantastical threat will be familiar to young fans of the television series.
violence
There are moments of very mild, fantastical violence as characters are trapped and knocked about by energy blasts, but no serious harm is caused and comedy helps to soften the impact in these scenes.
threat and horror
Characters are endangered by fire, meteors crashing to the ground, a gigantic figure pounding through a city and about to stamp on people, and a plane flying out of control. These scenes are not sustained and their intensity is lightened by comic respite and a focus on heroic characters displaying teamwork, courage and resourcefulness.
rude humour
A character in a jail cell tells a fellow inmate, "I have a little surprise for you in the toilet", and then shows her a hole he's made at the bottom of the bowl that leads to an escape tunnel. An animal character makes a joke about punishing someone with its unpleasant dog breath, and other characters blow raspberries at one another.
theme
A dog character talks sadly about always being the smallest one in a group and feeling left out. However, her friends reassure her of her worth and that they care for her, which encourages her to show bravery when it is most needed.
Spider-man: Across The Spider-verse
mild threat, violence, injury detail, language
Animated sequel in which Miles Morales delves deeper into the mysteries of the Spider-verse. Like its predecessor, action scenes are fast-paced and full on, but overall the tone of the film is upbeat and warm-hearted.
violence
There are frequent action sequences which feature characters fighting one another; punches and kicks are thrown as well as occasional chokeholds.
threat and horror
There are frequent scenes of prolonged threat in which Spider-heroes fight each other and villains, as well as rescue people from dangerous situations such as falling debris. A character is tied up against their will and threatened by another; the scene is brief but fairly intense and tonally dark. There is a brief scene of gun threat.
language
Mild terms include use of 'ass', 'crap' and 'bloody, as well as other terms such as 'butt', 'God', 'hell', 'jeez' and 'shot'.
sex
A man covered in dots makes references to his 'holes'. A woman describes her husband as being 'hot'. There are also several references to a teenage boy and girl fancying each other.
rude humour
A boy is caught doing his zip up. There is a very brief shot of a fantastical character patting their bottom.
drugs
A man exclaims "What does he do? Deal drugs?".
injury detail
After fighting, characters are shown with cuts and bruises.
theme
There are references to death and bereavement, as well as occasional references to mental health. Neither issue is dwelt upon and both themes are handled sensitively.
flashing/flickering lights
This work contains flashing images which may affect viewers who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy.
Big Hero 6
mild threat, scary scenes
BIG HERO 6 is an animated adventure about a young science genius who uses his friendship with a special robot to hunt down the man responsible for causing a devastating fire that threatened the city.
threat and horror
There are a lot of prolonged fight sequences between various robotic entities and between the heroes and the main villain. Nobody ever gets hurt in these fights, but there is a lot of destruction wrought and the scenes are very noisy. Some of the images of the villain, as he summons up his huge army of microbots, are a little scary.
The film also contains a narrative thread dealing with bereavement which is shown to be the principal motivating factor for the main character.
Megamind
mild language, comic fight scenes
The supervillain Megamind finally defeats his nemesis, the superhero Metro Man. But without a hero, he loses all purpose and must find a new meaning to his life.
violence
Scenes include superhero characters punching each other but without any resulting signs of injury, and buildings being destroyed by laser blasts.
language
There is infrequent use of mild bad language ('crap') and milder terms ('butt', 'God').
There are scenes depicting a woman being threatened by the protagonist, such as crocodiles snapping at her feet or a rotating saw blade being placed near her head. However, she seems unaffected by the threats. Infrequent very mild innuendo includes a woman being referred to as a "temptress". During the end credits, a man emerges from an old tumble dryer spinning around slowly but otherwise unharmed. The work does not encourage dangerous behaviour by showing the man getting inside the dryer or recommending that others do so.
Superman Returns
moderate violence
After five years in space, Superman returns to Earth to find the villainous Lex Luthor against threatening humanity. Scenes of moderate violence and threat may be too intense for younger children.
violence
There are some fight sequences, featuring punches and other blows. The strongest scenes show a woman being thrown to the ground by a villain, banging her head, and Superman being beaten up by villains when his superpowers are removed.
threat and horror
There are a number of scenes in which people are threatened, including a scene in which Superman intervenes in the robbing of a bank and scenes in which he saves passengers from a plane and a ship in distress.
language
There is some mild bad language, including 'piss' and 'crap, and an unfinished use of 'shit'.
sex
There is some mild sexual innuendo, for example when people misunderstand a reference to a female journalist having already 'done' Superman, and when a woman is dismissed as a 'hooker'.
injury detail
There is brief sight of an injury to Superman after he is stabbed with a shard of Kryptonite, although it is not gory.
alcohol and smoking
Superman stops a woman from smoking. A villain smokes a cigar.
The Dark Knight
strong fantasy violence and sustained threat
Batman must defend Gotham City from a criminal mastermind known as The Joker. In spite of the superhero context, the film has a dark tone with moments of implied strong violence in a real world setting.
Why not check out the film's case study in the education resources section of our website?
violence
Scenes of violence include shootings, stabbings and hand-to-hand combat, although there is little bloody detail. The violence often occurs in realistic settings, such as a bank heist. There are occasional sadistic moments, such as the main villain smashing a henchman's head down onto a pencil, implying that the pencil has been embedded in his head. No visual detail is seen. In another scene, Batman beats up the villain, and in a further scene a man is dropped from a height, causing his ankles to break.
threat and horror
There are a number of scenes of moderate threat, including as the villain takes hostages and threatens acts of terrorism, including by planting bombs.
language
There is use of mild bad language, including 'bloody' and 'son-of-a-bitch'.
sex
There are very mild references to sexual activity.
drugs
There are references to drug dealing but no clear sight of drugs or drug misuse.
injury detail
There is limited sight of blood in the aftermath of violence. There is also sight of injuries, including after a man is burned.
alcohol and smoking
Adult characters drink and smoke.
A character suffers injury to their face and parts of their skin have been totally burned away.
Wonder Woman 1984
moderate threat, violence, scene of domestic abuse
Wonder Woman must save humanity when an artefact with the power to grant wishes goes missing. As well as the usual scenes of action violence, more realistic domestic violence also features.
Why not download one of our tailored movie packs for film details and post-viewing discussion topics?
violence
There are fight sequences in which blades, guns and fists are used, occasionally with bloody aftermath detail.
threat and horror
A drunken man is threatening toward a lone woman in a park at night. Later, he cowers at her feet as she beats him. A robber dangles his child hostage from a height, threatening to drop it. A gang of warriors, armed with swords and daggers, surround an Amazon and hack at her armour. There is threat of nuclear conflict.
language
There is use of mild bad language ('bitch', 'bastard', 'shit'), as well as milder terms such as 'God', 'hell' and 'damn'.
sex
There are mild sex references, including to a sex tape, as well as couples in bed together although no sexual activity is shown beyond kissing.
discrimination
In one sequence, a woman wishes that "Irish bastards would go home". There is a brief visual reference to the Holocaust.
injury detail
There is limited sight of blood after violence, as well as sight of blood coming from a man's ears, eyes and nose.
theme
There is a brief scene of domestic abuse in which a man slaps his wife and shouts at her aggressively.
alcohol and smoking
Alcohol is consumed.
Other issues include mild sex references and discrimination. There is use of mild bad language ('bitch', 'bastard', 'shit'), as well as milder terms such as 'God', 'hell' and 'damn'. There is a brief visual reference to the Holocaust.
HanuMan
moderate violence, threat, injury detail
A man who accidentally attains superpowers clashes with one who is desperate to get his own in this Telugu-language superhero fantasy film, which features scenes of jeopardy and crunchy action.
violence
Hand to hand fighting involves crunchy punches, kicks, throws and choking. An elderly man is beaten by a group of thugs, though this attack lacks visual detail. In comic scenes a man's fingers are broken when he attacks another with fantastical powers and a character's teeth are punched from his mouth in slow motion, with some sight of blood. A villainous man slaps a young boy in the face to steal his food. Scenes of wrestling violence include chokeholds and an implied neck break.
threat and horror
A gang armed with blades chase people through a jungle; a woman is grabbed by the throat and lifted by one of these pursuers. Gang members threaten and intimidate innocent people with blades, vandalising their property and holding a man's head under water. Drone aircraft attack a village with a fantastical gas. A terrified woman is trapped in a burning building.
language
There is mild bad language ('shit', 'crap' 'ass', 'bloody') as well as milder terms which include 'damn', 'hell' and 'God'.
sex
A man makes mildly suggestive comments in the mistaken belief a woman is undoing his shirt because she finds him attractive. There is occasional innuendo.
injury detail
Characters bleed from their eyes and noses after being stricken by mysterious forces. A man's fingers are broken and bent backwards unnaturally in a slapstick comic scene.
sexual violence and sexual threat
A man attempts to kiss a woman without her consent, believing this will give him powers in a comic scene; she shoves him away and easily escapes.
dangerous behaviour
A child puts his hand in a jar full of spiders in the hope of being bitten and attaining superpowers. The same child later stands on top of a bridge and jumps, believing he can fly, before falling and injuring himself.
theme
A young boy is bullied and knocked to the ground by a group of other children, but their attack is interrupted.