Parents' Guide to

Thomas and Friends: The Christmas Engines

By Renee Longstreet, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 3+

Gentle winter train tales celebrate the holidays.

Movie NR 2014 60 minutes
Thomas and Friends: The Christmas Engines Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 2+

Based on 1 parent review

Lowe's man
Lowe's man Adult
June 30, 2017
age 2+

Teamwork is valued here. So is work.

I haven't seen all the episodes, as I only saw the ones that aired on tv. The ones I did see, however, were very good, as they show the value of teamwork, the reward of having completed a job, occasionally having to do a job that we don't like, the importance of completing assigned tasks and how good we feel when we feel useful and wanted. Valuable lessons for the very young.
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What's the Story?

THOMAS & FRIENDS: THE CHRISTMAS ENGINES includes five short winter stories about the little trains. "Last Train for Christmas" finds the train team in the midst of a very big snowstorm, trying to get passengers from the mainland to their homes on Sodor for Christmas. In "Long Lost Friend" Gator, who has been gone for a very long time, returns excited to see his old friends, especially Percy. But it's no matter how hard the two engines try, they don't seem able to catch up with one another. Duncan is one grumpy train in "Duncan the Humbug." Everything about the cold Christmas season seems to make him unhappy -- too much snow, too many extra jobs. But what happens when one complaining train makes everybody's holiday unpleasant? "Duck in the Water" finds James, the bright red train who thinks he's more splendid than the others, annoyed when he has to help out with flooded tracks. James ONLY likes pulling passenger trains, not freight cars! He learns an important lesson about not always doing what he wants, AND about admitting mistakes. Finally, "The Perfect Gift" tells the story of Percy's concern about Reg, a grappling crane, who must stay in the scrap-yard all the time and doesn't get to participate in the magic of Christmas. Percy is determined to make this holiday special for his friend, and learns some lessons about gift-giving along the way.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (2 ):

The Island of Sodor is covered by snow; it's holiday time; and this gentle collection brings sweet happy endings, plainspoken messages, and tot-friendly fun with popular, hard-working trains. Young fans of the little steam engine and his companions don't expect clever; they don't expect complexity; they don't expect real scares. So, Thomas & Friends: The Christmas Engines delivers stories with simple plots, distinctive train-characters, and likeable humans who interact with them. A nice, wholesome addition to holiday viewing for the very youngest viewers.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the lessons some of the trains learned in Thomas & Friends: The Christmas Engine. What did Duncan find out about how his grumpiness affected the other trains in "Duncan the Humbug"? And what did he find out about not having to be cheerful ALL of the time?

  • What did both Gator and Percy learn about not jumping to conclusions in "Long Lost Friend"? Why is it important to have all the facts to fully understand a situation?

  • James, who almost always thinks he's better than the other engines, found out in "Duck in the Water" that everyone sometimes must do a job he or she doesn't like. Think of some things you have to do that you don't always want to do. Why are those tasks important? Do they help you or do they help others? Is it easier when you have a good attitude about the task? Why?

Movie Details

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