Sunday Best: Top 5 Sibling Movies

I had the privildige of spending time with my brother whom I haven't seen in many years, and his sons.  Also there was my sister and her children.  It is a very interesting thing to be a sibling.  It is an experience that so many of us have and yet I've found that there are not nearly as many great films that explore what it is like to be a sibling.  Or at least it seems that it is a relationship that is not nearly as explored as is the romantic relationship of the relationship between parents and children.

So below are movies where being a brother is essential to the story.  And here we are talking being an actual sibling by blood or adoption and not in the spiritual sense.



5.  Thor

While this is a big comic book spectacle, it is also the story of how two brothers can grow up so differently but both jousting for the approval of the parent.

4.  Frozen

One of the reasons I think this movie became a phenomenon is because of how well it captured some essential aspects of the sister-sister relationship.  It is so fascinating to see how Elsa and Anna are so different and yet so much the same.

3.  American History X

This one has a much darker tone than the other films, but it does an excellent job of how sometimes an older sibling, whether they want to or not, become the role model of the younger.  And it is a great exploration of that responsibility, especially when the older sibling realizes how they have to fix their mistakes.

2.  Rain Man

A fantastic movie about caring for a special needs sibling, this Academy Award winner for Best Picture remains a classic.  The reason for this is that no matter how many cynical layers the younger brother has developed, his brotherly love slowly, believably, imperfectly but significantly changes his life forever.

1.  The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

I grew up in a house with one brother and two sisters and this magical adventure is also a great exploration of that family dynamic.  And sometimes you hope to be brave like Peter or thoughtful like Susan or faithful like Lucy.  But too often I find myself petty like Edmund.  And yet through all of this, the bond that the four Penvensie children have is part of the deepest magic of Narnia.