Enjoying ‘A Goofy Movie’ With My Son, 25 Years Later

I can’t lie, the soundtrack still goes

The world is changing ominously before our eyes, and it has many of us craving for simpler times. The year 2020 has made even a Black man nostalgic for the “good old days” — as long as he doesn’t go back too far, of course. Who knew he’d find himself in a time where his movements are limited, and there are clear rules about gathering with other folks?

Like most parents during the pandemic, I need to keep entertainment anything but boring while socially distancing with my 11-year-old son. In an attempt to share some of my happier times with him amidst global uncertainty, I’ve introduced him to a lot of ’90s cartoon series: The Simpsons, obviously, but also Dexter’s Laboratory, and a little Pinky and the Brain. But my son’s preferences lean toward the kind of violent anime that makes people wonder about “these kids today.”

You know what the opposite of that is? Disney’s A Goofy Movie, which we watched together for the first time recently. I’d forgotten that this flick is incredibly funny. I saw it for the first time at a friend’s house around 2000. I was well outside the target age demographic; my friend had a daughter of about eight, while I was still single and childless, with an ex-fiancé and a sneaking suspicion that it might be time to…