ZATHURA
A funny, inventive family adventure with a strong moral heart.
Should You Watch It?
ZATHURA is a delightful, energetic family adventure that earns its four-star rating through humor, creativity, strong performances, and state-of-the-art special effects. Its best lesson is also its simplest: brothers should stop fighting, care for one another, share, and sacrifice their own desires for the good of others.
The movie does contain a few areas for discernment. Its game appears able to manipulate reality, and the story suggests alternate realities in a science-fiction setting. There are also three obscenities, including one lovingly rebuked by the boys’ father, along with scary lizard aliens, a dangerous robot, and other light action violence.
The good outweighs the bad. Families with older children should find ZATHURA funny, inventive, and morally encouraging; parents of younger children should consider their children’s sensitivity before watching.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESSix-year-old Danny and 10-year-old Walter are brothers who cannot stop bickering. In their father’s basement, Danny discovers an old, tattered metal board game called Zathura.
When Danny begins to play, the game sends their house into outer space near Saturn. To get home, the brothers must continue playing while facing a rampaging robot, monstrous lizard aliens, and other dangerous obstacles.
Is It Any Good?
Four stars means ZATHURA is an especially entertaining family movie. Jonah Bobo and Josh Hutcherson are a hoot as the bickering brothers, and the rest of the cast helps bring the well-written, fun script to life.
Director Jon Favreau displays a deft hand with the young actors and the rest of the cast. The special effects are state-of-the-art, especially Stan Winston’s lizard aliens, while their fun retro style reflects the 1950s milieu of the mysterious game. The result is funny, inventive, energetic, and original.
The Worldview
ZATHURA presents a strong moral worldview with positive lessons for children. Danny and Walter learn to stop arguing and take care of one another. Walter learns to share and sacrifice his desires for the good of other people. Their father is a positive, caring figure who tries to help his sons, even while distracted by work.
The film’s main worldview concern is its treatment of reality. The game appears able to manipulate reality or create its own fantasy world, and the story implicitly suggests alternate realities. These ideas have pagan and humanist elements, though they mainly support the science-fiction adventure and its resolutions.
The film’s central moral insight aligns with Scripture: love for family should lead to self-sacrifice and practical care. “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers” (1 John 3:16).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Strong moral worldview with strong positive lessons for children and father is a strong role model, though he is a bit distracted by his work, with pagan and humanist elements where game appears able to manipulate reality or create its own fantasy world and the idea of alternate realities is expressed implicitly; three obscenities (one of which is lovingly rebuked by boy’s father), five light exclamatory profanities such as “My God,” man uses the word “sphincter” in referring to traveling through a black hole in outer space, and man burps; light action violence, such as small and medium meteors crash into house and on floor and objects, scary (for younger children) lizard aliens try to get and grab people to eat them, spaceships fire on flying house and demolish much of it, scary robot tries to kill boy, robot smashes through walls and ceilings, robot falls down stairs, and explosions; no sex, but fourth grader says he has a girlfriend and teenage girl is attracted to older young man but nothing comes of it; no alcohol; no smoking; and, brothers often bicker loudly with one another, teenage sister fails to keep an eye on younger brothers despite father's orders and boy cheats at game but is rebuked.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Danny and Walter begin by treating each other badly. What would it look like for you to care for a brother or sister when you are angry?
Ephesians 4:32 · 1 John 3:18Walter learns to share and sacrifice his desires for other people. When is giving something up an act of love rather than simply losing?
Philippians 2:3–4 · Romans 12:10The boys’ father tries to care for them while distracted by work. What helps your family pay attention to one another?
Deuteronomy 6:6–7 · Colossians 3:21The Final Word
ZATHURA is a funny, creative adventure with a strong moral heart. Its fantasy ideas, brief foul language, and scary moments call for parental discernment, especially with younger children. For families with older children, the good outweighs the bad. WORTH THE TRIP — AGES 10 AND UP.
