2. The Burnford-Seaver Family – Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey
When it comes to wholesome movie families, Burnford-Seaver is probably not a name that springs to mind. That’s probably partly because they aren’t even the focus of their own movie: that honor goes to their pets. Even so, we’d love to count ourselves as part of the clan.
Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey starts with a wedding that makes Bob Seaver the legal stepfather of the three Burnford children; Peter, Hope, and Jamie. With the children comes their respective pets, Golden Retriever Shadow, Himalayan cat Sassy, and American Bulldog Chance. Though the film follows the animals’ journey home to find their humans, it only serves to highlight what a great family they really are.
Not only does each child receive their own individual pet, but Bob and Laura go above and beyond in trying to locate the missing animals. They don’t patronize the children, and they certainly don’t lie to them, but they refuse to give up on bringing the animals home. It’s a family that’s genuinely full of love, although to be fair, we’d probably join them just for the animals alone.