Watch This With Your Kids – Who Is Simon Miller?

This Saturday, August 6th, Walmart and P&G present the newest Family Movie Night feature, Who is Simon Miller?, starring Loren Dean (“Bones”) as Simon and Robyn Lively (regular on TV & half-sister of Blake Lively) as his wife Meredith. Simon’s frequent business trips have created distance between him and his 18 year old honor student daughter Sarah and 15 year old video gamer Kevin. But this is no business trip, as Meredith and her kids learn when they discover a stash of passports hidden in a desk drawer, each with Simon’s face but a different name. And then Simon calls, but only to tell them not to tell anyone he’s gone, not even the authorities.

Meredith, Sarah and Kevin band together to solve the mystery of who Simon is and where he has gone. Who is Simon Miller? is fast-paced and exciting while remaining family-friendly in keeping with the genre. I recommend watching this with your kids this Saturday night!

Watch This With Your Kids – Field of Vision This Saturday Night on NBC

This is definitely a “must watch” for families with kids this weekend. “Field of Vision” is the latest Family Movie Night presentation from Walmart and P&G, airing June 11th (this Saturday) at 8 pm ET/7 pm CT.  Starring Murphy Brown’s Faith Ford and a cast of multi-talented actors, Field of Vision addresses one of the most important topics we parents can talk to our kids about – bullying. Here’s the synopsis:

Through mysterious footage captured on an old malfunctioning video camera, Sinclair High School’s star quarterback, Tyler McFarland, learns that some of his teammates have been bullying Cory Walker, a troubled new transfer student. Aware that sharing this information with the coach might get his friends kicked off the team and ultimately cost the school the state championship, Tyler must choose what’s more important: winning or doing what’s right.

As these events unfold, the camera also reveals more surprising footage to Tyler’s kid sister Lucy… She learns that Cory has a secret past, unknown even to him. Now Lucy must convince her mom (Faith Ford, Murphy Brown) and family that the camera’s revealing insight is not a product of her imagination as she enlists their help to find the answers Cory so desperately needs. It’s a compelling and intriguing story that shows both the challenges and rewards of doing the right thing even when it’s tough to do.

I wasn’t able to attend the special online screening of Field of Vision attended by Faith Ford because I had Ryan’s 8th graduation, but I’ve read the cast bios and am impressed by the amount of talent in this movie. Every main actor has been on TV, in movies, on Broadway, in commercials, and almost all of them have either been nominated for or won some kind of award. Fans of shows like “House” and “Grey’s Anatomy” might recognize the actress playing Lucy, and Joe Adler who plays Cory was in Disney’s “Prom”.

Watching this movie as a family is such a great way to start conversations about bullying. Ask your kids what they would do if they saw a kid being bullied? Would they tell an adult even if it meant possibly losing a friendship? Don’t miss Field of Vision this Saturday night at 8/7c for a movie that looks entertaining as well as informative!

disclosure: I received press materials and a promotional item for participating in this campaign on behalf of Walmart and P&G Family Movie Night. All opinions are my own.

Change of Plans Sneak Peek and Giveaway

This Saturday night, gather your family around the TV and tune in to Change of Plans, the third made-for-TV movie from P&G and Walmart. I  reviewed the two previous P&G and Walmart movie collaborations,  The Jensen Project and Secrets of the Mountain, and we really enjoyed both of them.  From what I’ve seen so far of Change of Plans, I think we’re going to enjoy that one too!

Starring Brooke White, Joe Flanigan and Phylicia Rashad, Change of Plans airs on Saturday, January 8, 2011 at 8/7c on FOX. Brooke White (“American Idol”) plays  Sally Danville, a musician married to fighter pilot Jason (Joe Flanigan, “Stargate: Atlantis”). Sally and Jason are very much in love, very involved in their careers, and not at all prepared for what is about to happen.

A phone call from caseworker Dorothy (Phylicia Rashad, The Cosby Show) surprises Sally with the news that her best friend from college has died in a tragic accident while serving in the Peace Corps, and that she has been named the legal guardian of her friend’s four children – three of whom were adopted from third-world countries.   While Sally feels badly for the children and agrees to take them in, she tells Dorothy that it would be best if homes were found for the children.  Dorothy tells her that most likely the children will be split up, which tugs at Sally’s heart.

Now Sally and her husband, Jason , must quickly learn to parent this instant family and help the kids deal with culture clashes and life in America. The story is both humorous and heartwarming, revealing how fulfilling life can be when you look beyond your own plans and invest in the lives of others.  With songs by Brooke, this is a feel-good movie that I think is perfect for family movie night. Grab some popcorn and candy, snuggle under a blanket, and enjoy the movie!

WIN IT: I have a great giveaway for you courtesy of P&G and Walmart! One winner will receive a grey fleece blanket with the Change of Plans logo on it, plus the DVDs of all the P&G/Walmart family movies to date. That’s 3 family movies: “Secrets of The Mountain”, “Jenson Project” and “A Walk in My Shoes”. You can see the blanket in this photo I took of the review kit I received:

WIN: To enter, leave a comment on this post telling me how often you and your family have a special family movie night. You MUST leave this main comment entry before any bonus entries will count. Open to U.S. mailing addresses only. Enter by 01/21/11 at 11:59 p.m. EST.

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