Netflix’s newest animated movie for kids, Wish Dragon, is a fun and sweet film filled with silly moments that will make the whole family giggle. The story, which is based on the same Chinese fable about a wish-granting spirit that inspired the story of Aladdin, is about 19-year-old Din (Jimmy Wong), who is given an old teapot that contains a Wish Dragon named Long (John Cho) with the power to grant three wishes to whoever releases him from the teapot. As Din carefully decides how to use his three wishes to reconnect with his childhood best friend, Li Na (Natasha Liu Bordizzo), he and Long face several harrowing obstacles along the way.
Wish Dragon is guaranteed fun for the whole family, but if you’re watching with your younger or more sensitive kiddos, there are a few things you may want to know going in. Read ahead to see what we’ve highlighted, and watch a clip from the movie here to get a feel for its silliness!
What Parents Should Know About Netflix’s Wish Dragon Before Watching With Kids
- There’s a fair amount of fighting, violence, and harmful accidents. From the first night, Din has Long’s teapot, he’s pursued by men who are hired to steal it from him at any cost. They’re fairly violent, and much fighting ensues throughout the film. Spoiler: Din makes an accidental wish that he knew how to fight, and his newfound skills are no joke.
- There are a few deaths toward the end of the movie. Everything happens off-camera and nothing is super scary, but there are three deaths that take place in a short amount of time.
- There’s some brief language. Wish Dragon is very much a kids’ movie, so the language isn’t terrible. With your family’s definition of swear words in mind, know that characters call each other “stupid” and “dirtbag,” and words like “crap” and “shut up” are used.
- Greed is the cornerstone of the plot. Din comes from a single-parent home in a working-class neighbourhood where he’s bullied as a child and called a “peasant boy” in present-day by Long. Although his heart is in a good place, Din longs for the type of wealth his old best friend, Li Na, has, only because he thinks it will make him worthy of her friendship. Other characters with wealth are extremely greedy and make it known that they only consider other rich people deserving of their time.
- During the movie’s opening sequence, there’s a dark moment. It has to do with a chicken, and it’s possible it will go right over your kids’ heads because it’s presented in a fairly lighthearted way, but know that when Din and Li Na are mourning their pet chicken, it’s not because it died of natural causes.
- There are mentions of drugs and drinking. Din lies to his mom a fair bit throughout the film, and she accuses him of using drugs or being drunk because he’s acting so unlike himself.
