How it’s done
A fixed night, a movie chosen by turns, and one rule: after the credits, nobody gets up yet.
The after-talk isn't an interrogation — it's one good question and seeing where it goes: who was right? what would you have done? why do you think he lied? The turn to choose really rotates, and when it's your child's turn, you watch their pick all the way through with no comments of suffering.
What it builds — the why
Narrative judgment, emotional vocabulary (it's easier to talk about what a character felt than about what you felt), and the experience that their taste holds the same status as yours. A shared screen with conversation is the opposite of the screen that isolates.
How it changes with age
3–5 Early childhood
6–9 Childhood
10–12 Preteens
13–15 Early adolescence
16–18 Adolescence
What to watch for in your child
Some kids need to talk during the movie and some need total silence until the end: negotiate the room rules between yourselves, don't import them from a cinema. And if the after-talk doesn't start, don't force it — sometimes the conversation arrives two days later, in the car, and counts just the same.