Family Films Hit and Miss This Summer

So far in 2016, one of the biggest gambles a Hollywood movie studio can take is releasing a big-budget family-oriented film. Through the first two thirds of the year, four of the top six highest-grossing movies had been animated (or partially animated) films aimed directly at kids and their parents. But the year has also seen quite a few moderately disappointing family films, too, along with some unqualified failures, including last weekend's Pete's Dragon.

There's no doubt that 2016 has been the year of the animated family movie. The year's biggest film so far is Pixar's Finding Dory, and The Jungle Book, Zootopia and The Secret Life Of Pets have all made it into the top six, as well.

But for every huge animated hit, there is at least one family film that failed to live up to its studio's highest hopes. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and Ice Age: Collision Course both failed to earn even close to $100 million, and The BFG barely broke $50 million, even with once-dependable box-office draw Steven Spielberg at the helm. Pete's Dragon, with its disappointing $21-million opening weekend, is just the latest high-profile kids' movie to underwhelm at the box office.

Worse, it's not easy to tell why some of the films flopped and others didn't. Critics loved Finding Dory and The Secret Life of Pets, but they also spoke highly of Pete's Dragon and The BFG. Yes, Ice Age: Collision Course and TMNT were sequels in a year when sequel/reboot fatigue is running high, but Finding Dory and The Jungle Book were also unoriginal properties.

In the end, it probably comes down to a crowded marketplace - at least a dozen family films have battled it out in theaters through the first eight months of 2016 - and when there's so much competition, there's little margin for error. If your kids' movie doesn't click with audiences immediately and spectacularly, you're in trouble.