Classic Movies for Boys - stir their masculine spirit!

Mommy Life writes:

As the mother of eight sons - the first string of four now grown men in their 20s - I can't emphasize enough how much I needed to learn to raise boys well.
You moms with young sons are in for a very special journey yourself if you allow God to teach you to step outside your own way of viewing the world. It takes a major paradigm shift for a woman to understand boys and to provide for their masculine potential.
There are many moments of surrender. I can remember so many times when my boys were roughhousing and I'd have to bite my tongue to keep from saying, "Be careful! Don't get hurt!" But instinctively, I felt like I wanted to do everything I could to avoid setting unnecessary limits on my boys.
As a former feminist I was used to looking at the word from the perspective that women were the norm and masculine behavior was deviant. Today, the once radical ideas of feminism have crept into our culture, suffocating our schools, which currently follow a learning template which girls can handle well but which is frustrating and stifling to boys. Boys learn best where there is physical activity and fierce competition.
But women, thinking competition "not nice" have seen to it that such opportunities are few and far between. Now every kid on the team gets a trophy so no one has hurt feelings. And all those medals and trophies and certificates have become cheapened and meaningless, leaving boys with nothing to strive for.

Their natural drive to compete gets them in trouble and they are made to feel ashamed about their drives, dreams and desires. Playground games, climbing structures, and in some schools even recess have disappeared.

And of course, the culture - through coarse and corrupt movies and TV - drives down their noblest impulses and replaces them with cheap humor and uncommitted sex.

Me
When I found this blog and read what this woman was writing I began to be filled with hope!  So often I hear and witness Mothers who try with all their might to stop their Sons from being who they are.  Read the above paragraphs very carefully.....several times.....a day.  This is indeed what boys DO.  They climb, fall down, get hurt and guess what....it is NOT the end of the world.  This is what builds boys' character and allows them to grow into Men that will lead, take a stand against wrong, fight for what is right and just, and live as Jesus did.  "As a former feminist I was used to looking at the word from the perspective that women were the norm and masculine behavior was deviant."  Fathers, I urge you to take part in rearing your children
without an example of masculinity our boys will grow weaker, not knowing how to behave as true men.  No, boys should not be rough with girls, be disrespectful, or intentionally hurt others.  This is not what this article is about.  Note that she wrote she is a former feminist- any flags go up?  Most women today do not realize that they have misguided feminist tendencies and transmit those to their children.  Does any thing written above happen in your home, with the attempting to stop boys from exploring and growing into Men?  You will be responsible for what happens in your home.  Obviously we don't want our children to get hurt, but to prevent it at all costs because we are scared they will get injured?  A bubble will not accompany our children throughout life, it is only through small "hurts" as we grow that we build up the strength to handle the "biggies" throughout the teenage and adult years.  If we allow our children to be spared from these rites of passage we severely hinder their ability to handle what happens after they are gone.  Take these little moments to use as building blocks;  think of it as a workout in character building.

Back to Her
Since I homeschooled my oldest sons, we were first of all able to break up the day and they had many more hours to be active, to explore and to find themselves as masculine creatures than they would have had in school.  I know they are grateful for that today.
Tripp and I also took a proactive approach - filling their hearts and minds with things that were noble and honest and true. A major part of that foundation was built on classic books and movies which would speak to their masculine spirit. Though I had a fairly extensive movie background, most of these were movies I'd never seen before having sons. And many I sill haven't seen - but the men in my family love nothing better than to watch them together.

This roundup of Classic Movies for Boys is a spin-off of a request for suggestions on books for boys which my husband Tripp put together. Zach - still recovering from his motorcycle accident/ankle surgery - was kind enough to link each to Amazon so you could read more about each movie. And even order if you like.
Many of these are available at your local library. All are available through Netflix - another good reason to join - as one MommyLife reader suggested, cut the cable and subscribe to Netflix for saving money and better viewing.

Note: a bold border indicates that the film may contain some mature elements not suitable for younger children.

H/T and credit to Mommy Life  The movie list can be seen on her blog