PG-13 Movies and Kids Under the Age of 13


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I went and saw The Wolverine today and the first thing that I noticed was the whole row of kids from (my best guess,)5 to 10. I saw some kids who could have been as young as 12, but those don't worry me as much. Why was I worried? Well, for one I actually read Wolverine comics and know just how mature they can get, not just in language and violence but also in theme and story. When I go to a movie about him I expect a certain level of physical violence, swearing, drinking, and cigar smoking I am not sure I would want a young child to see in a role model.

But what disturbs me more is this idea that just because it is a super hero film it should be okay for younger kids. That there is no need to use tools and helps to figure out just what might or might not be okay in the film you are about to take your kid to.

Was the movie violent? Yes. What it gory and over the top with the violence? No. To be honest, a young kid could probably watch the fight scenes and not be traumatized for life. There was swearing, not a great deal but it was there. No nudity so at least we don't need to worry about that. But to be honest, all of that isn't completely why I wouldn't take a kid to go see it.

I have a problem with young kids seeing a film like this because I don't think they will take away anything that was intended for the audience to take away from the film. Certainly not a whole lot that is appropriate.

For example, to use a film that has been out for a while so I don't spoiler anything, The Dark Knight Returns is really not okay to take a kid to. The level of violence alone should be a reason, but lets imagine it wasn't all that bad for a moment and was toned down. Now, ask yourself what a kid between the ages of 5 and 11 will take away from that film. That man can rise to do good even in the worst situation? That sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself for the sake of someone else? That even the best can stumble and fall? If so, those are really perceptive and intelligent kids. I think the average kid would walk away with how Batman is awesome, kicking bad guy butt is cool, and possibly a couple nightmares about Joker. However I would be concerned that they might walk away thinking that the Batman in that film is a role model they should emulate.

Batman from the animated series? Sure. Nolan's Batman, not so much.

In essence, they walk away with nothing the film intends for the audience to walk away with. They certainly do not enjoy the film in the way it is meant to be enjoyed. They may even walk away with a negative experience and not tell anyone because they are too afraid. I know I was when I saw my first PG-13 film. I had nightmares for a few days, and the movie was supposed to be a comedy!

(Actually, my brother had the it the worst when my dad accidentally assumed the PG rating on Poltergeist meant it was okay for a 5 year old. It was barely okay for my 12 year old bother. Funny story: He wanted to sleep in my parents room until I reminded him there was a tree outside their window. I have never seen a kid more frightened for his life, nor one move so fast to get into his own bed. It didn't help my mom had an old clown doll that found its way into his room.)

So what am I getting at? Should you never take a kid to a super hero film? I am not saying that. In fact there are a few that would be okay for all ages even with the PG-13 rating they typically carry. What I am saying is that you shouldn't assume that just because a film belongs to a certain genre it is okay for all ages. For example, I have heard of parents assume that just because Japanese anime is animated it is as tame as a Disney film. They were in for a shock to say the least.

Am I saying that The Wolverine will traumatize your kid? No, but I am saying that they certainly won't understand the finer details of the story, and thus the moral and underlying theme that makes the violence, swearing, and mature behavior necessary. I guarantee they won't understand the first scene in the film and possibly be moved to tears because what it represents. They might even be confused by it.

Please, do some research. We have the internet in our pockets. There are sites that can tell you all you need to know about what may or may not be appropriate for your child. If in doubt, go see it without them first. If it is a bad film you will end up saving your money while building their taste in films when you refuse to see it a second time with them. Lastly, keep in mind they think differently then adults and don't pick up on things like plot or story. If it is questionable even when you see it without them, wait for it to come out on DVD so you can have more control over.

(True story: I grew up watching Star Wars. In fact, it was constantly watched on a VHS tape at my grandparent's house by me and my cousins. I probably watched the original trilogy more than a dozen times before I realized Darth Vader was Luke's dad, and I remember having a conversation about that with an older cousin while wondering why I didn't pick up on it sooner. What was it that I enjoyed the most at such a young age? The space battles and the light saber fights. It wasn't until I was a teen that I even understood the story.)

So, what do you think? Am I just a rambling crazy person?


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I'm not sure you're a random crazy person, but I think you're definitely projecting YOUR view of what's appropriate for a A GENERIC child onto a lot of other parents with very specific children at various developmental stages.

And, frankly, the idea that kids shouldn't be exposed to violence is a relatively recent and unfounded idea. If you look at the "originals" of most fairy tales, they're outright gruesome by modern standards. (Do you remember what happened to Cinderella's stepsisters?)

Let the kids watch what they will enjoy.


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Teach the kid to discern fact from fiction early and this becomes a non-problem.

Teach the kid about gender, sexuality and respect and occasional nudity in movies becomes a non-problem.


Drejk has it hit right on the head.

However, if a parent does not instill the sense of reality in the child, they should not go see those movies.

My parents did a fairly good job instilling a sense of reality in me, so I'm not bothered much by horror, and the show Supernatural is actually what I watch to wind down at the end of the day, despite the gore, violence, and certainly mature themes it sometimes portrays.


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Talk of children and attending inappropriate films reminds of an experience I had 2001 or so. I attended my local cinema to watch Kiss of the Dragon.

This film was rated R according to to MPAA, but where I live it was rated MA15+, which means that under 15s can attend if accompanined by an parent or guardian.

Anyway, sometime into the film, if memory serves, a bad guy was dispatched by having a hand grenade shoved into his mouth which exploded, spraying said bay guy over the screen. In my screening this was followed by a young male, whom I judged to be about 4 years of age, if that, running up the centre isle screaming his head off. He had obviously failed to discern cinema from reality. From the reaction of his parents/guardians they seemed to agree with the idea that he needed to be toughened up by exposure to some fictional violence, obviously so he could reset to violence to solve future problems. My most vivid memory of this fim is the obvious abuse this child suffered.

Orfamay Quest wrote:
And, frankly, the idea that kids shouldn't be exposed to violence is a relatively recent and unfounded idea.

True true. Of course the idea(s) that children shoudn't be beaten to a pulp when they do not instanteously obey commands, or married off into sexual slavery at say the age of 10, or be forced to work down the mines for 16 hours a day et al, are also recent ideas.

Orfamay Quest wrote:
Let the kids watch what they will enjoy.

As a parent please tell me you don't actually have custody of any real children.


I can agree with Drejk, but I probably wouldn't do it to a four year old like that family in Purity of Violence's story. I remember watching Nightmare on Elm Street when I was 5 and how traumatized I was seeing Johnny Depp getting pureed on a water bed. Couldn't sleep on one until I was 18. I think (personally) seven or eight is a good age to do that. That's actually when my dad let me see Heavy Metal :) But then again, YMMV and I don't believe in telling anyone how to raise their kids.

Shadow Lodge

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Anyone else think it's a bit ironic that the biggest criticism of kids watching movie violence in this thread is from a guy with the alias "The Purity of Violence" ?


I chuckled a bit at that, not gonna lie :)

Shadow Lodge

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As for me, I think it depends on the kid, and the parents are generally the ones best equipped to decide if Junior is ready to go see "The Evil Dead". I saw the original when I was something like 8 or 9, and it was no big deal, other than being a f+#*ing awesome movie.

I do think that parents that overly-shield their kids end up doing them a disservice, as the kid ends up NOT prepared for things that he WILL eventually see when not under his parent's wings.


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As a parent, I find the movie rating system completely useless. It seems to me it is designed more as a marketing tool than an actual advisory for parents.

I decide for myself what to introduce them to, but if they express a desire to see something, I have never censored it.

I find the kids naturally want to watch what is appropriate for them, so there is little need to micro-manage what's on the screen. Really, if the kids are going to be more influenced by something they see on the screen than by me, then I'm just not doing a good job.

If it frightens them or they run away, which has even happened with so-called "G" movies, I take it off or we leaved the theater. If they are enjoying, I let them watch it.


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Its wolverine. Its a guy with claws hacking through lots of stuff with said claws. If you're looking for a deeper meaning for yourself or the kids you're sitting in the wrong theater.


Agree with Kthulhu and the Darth. Most parents don't even look at the ratings if it's an animated movie. And then you get parents that walk away from said animated movie when they realize that it is not for kids. This happened with the Aqua Teen movie. So many parents brought their kids to it, clearly not knowing that Aqua Teen is not made with kids as the target demographic.


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I research the movie myself before I take the kids to see it. I also watch all the cartoons with them.


I find the IMDB parents guide to be a much better resource to help me decide what's appropriate for my kid (who is 10) to watch or not than the rating system. And even then there are unforeseen misses. Despicable Me 2 gave him nightmares. Pacific Rim actually helped him get past it. (He'll wake up from a nightmare and pretend that he's piloting a Jaeger and it makes him feel better.) Not the way you would have thought that would go from the rating system, but it's hard to predict what will and won't scare a child. The important thing I think is that parents are aware of what their children are watching and watch with them as much as possible. And also to be available to talk through things with them. Sometimes all the kidlet really wants is an acknowledgement that something is sad or that something is in fact unjust and then he's able to process it and move on. Most of the movies he likes are PG-13 because of the amount of violence. He likes superheroes and giant robots. So did I at his age. Now that said I didn't take him to see The Wolverine. Not his cup of tea. He's really not impressed with Wolverine. But having watched it, I don't think there's anything in that film I wouldn't have been comfortable talking with him about. As has been said many times already it really does depend on the child and how they process things. What's right for my kid isn't necessarily right for another child even if they're the same age. And the important thing is for parents to be aware of where that line is for their kids. When they're not, yeah, you definitely get some problems. But that's not really a movie ratings problem.


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Kthulhu wrote:
I do think that parents that overly-shield their kids end up doing them a disservice, as the kid ends up NOT prepared for things that he WILL eventually see when not under his parent's wings.

Gotta agree with you there. My mum would never let me watch anything, so I ended up seeing it all at a mate's place. As a parent I was determined to avoid such, as with some many other things inherited from my parents, an attitude. I was a big horror fan so when my daughter reached an appropriate(?) age I introduced her to some 60s classics like Black Sunday, Eyes without a Face and Operation Fear, all of which she took too. Shortly after, whilst 'hanging with the wrong crowd' (I mean at friends' places) she saw Saw X(?) and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the remake), the second of which in particular she found disturbing (to say the least).

Now I philosopically agree with

darth borehd wrote:
I decide for myself what to introduce them to, but if they express a desire to see something, I have never censored it.

though I think it needs to come with a (unspoken: I have both seen that and know what's better for you to see than you do, so) "I would really prefer if you didn't watch that", which I found was rewarded with the trust that was implied.

Anyway, post TCM I freaked out a little and decided I needed to hasten the horror viewing experience before she became immune to 'the classics'. A couple of weeks ago (or seven/eight? years after the event) she admitted that she had been really scared by The Thing, which was pretty much the only film we watched in my somewhat short-lived horror viewing cycle.

Not sure actually what I'm geting at. Sure if you're a responsible parent you're probably pretty good at judging what your kids are up to seeing.Problem is too many people aren't responsible parents.


I remember seeing Princess Mononoke at the $1 theater back in the late 90's. Some dad brought his two little girls, probably between 4-7 y/o between them. They didn't stay long.

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It is more than just the violence, and I talked about that a bit in my OP.

@Orfamy Quest
The Grimms Tales were not all children's tales. That is a false assumption that got tacked on early on. In fact if you look at the time and place they were collected you will find that storytelling was one of the main forms of entertainment at the time. There were boardgames, dice games, a couple field games, and maybe a couple other distractions but mainly storytelling. As a result, many of them seem adult because they were meant for adults. Also, much of the elements of those stories could be changed to fit their audience and as a result the brothers took many notes on the different variations. An unfortunate result of printing the stories is that their elements are locked in, and we seem to then assume that is exactly what everyone heard. Not so. While I am sure that some parents told their kids the more gory details in one story, it is possible that others changed or omitted them for theirs.

In short: The Grimms tales are a horrible example because they were not all meant for children and storytelling the most adjustable form of entertainment.

As for letting kids watch what they seem to enjoy, I agree to a point. There are plenty of great options to do just that. I am just arguing that you should be educated before agreeing to let them watch just anything.

@Drejk
I agree that we should teach kids that, but I also believe that there are ages that won't really get it. As for nudity, I am actually super conservative on that point and believe it shouldn't be something so easily shown like it is today. It certainly isn't something that I would expose my young children to easily.

@Cobalt
I think you nailed it on the head in a different way. Instilling sense of reality to a child is part of it yes. Just be sure you don't crush their imagination in the process.

@Odraude
I guess I am telling people how to raise their kids, which I don't do lightly or in person as bluntly as I have done here. As for the appropriate age of a child to see certain films, I might actually agree on 8 with the caveat that not all 8 year olds are alike and you still need some discretion. My 9 year old half brother, for example, probably not a good kid to show Nightmare on Elm Street to.

@Kthulh
I am not saying parents should be overly protective, but they also shouldn't easily assume a film is going to be good for their kid. That honestly was the problem I had with seeing a whole row of kids (and I am not really exaggerating that, there were a few adults sitting with them but it may have been a birthday party or something,) and it was clear by one kid throwing a tantrum at the front that there were plenty more there. I wouldn't have had an issue with a few kids, say two or three. It was just that so many parents made the assumption that it was okay that bothered me.

Overly protective is like my wife's aunt who banns anything Harry Potter related because it promotes witchcraft and Power Rangers because it makes people violent.

@Darth Borhd
Awesome. You are not the parent I directed this to and you get what I am trying to say.

@Big Norse Wolf
*Edit* Your statement is the type of attitude I am cautioning against. Making an assumption without investigation.

You clearly haven't seen the film. There is more time devoted to the character study of Logan than there is time devoted to him fighting things. Even then, in most of the action scenes we actually have story being told instead of action for the sake of action.

The majority of the move revolves around the first scene.

First Scene:

Logan is a prisoner of war in Japan in WWII. Because of how dangerous he is they threw him in a pit and topped it off with a solid enclosure. The Japanese soldiers are freaking out because large bombers are approaching the city, and three Japanese officers commit ritual suicide on screen. Another frees Logan and then in shock watches one of the atomic bombs go off right before Logan saves him.

Do you think a young kid will really understand what is happening and grasp the importance of it? This isn't violence for the sake of violence, or a dumb dude tearing things up with claws.

@Iynora
You are a good example of YMMV. Funny enough, I thought Pacific Rim would be okay for younger kids, while Despicable Me 2 had a couple of parts where I questioned if the creators understood their target audience. I still thought it was a good kids film, but I could see where I kid could get scared.

And to be honest, The Wolverine is probably okay for most kids with a parent who had explained a few things to them ahead of time. Like what happened in WWII, a bit about the Japanese culture, and that just because Wolverine says something doesn't mean you should. This isn't to shelter them, but to help them enjoy the film.

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The Purity of Violence wrote:

I was a big horror fan so when my daughter reached an appropriate(?) age I introduced her to some 60s classics like Black Sunday, Eyes without a Face and Operation Fear, all of which she took too. Shortly after, whilst 'hanging with the wrong crowd' (I mean at friends' places) she saw Saw X(?) and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the remake), the second of which in particular she found disturbing (to say the least).

My wife is really into classic horror. He have a deep issue with more modern slasher and torture porn flicks though. (If you didn't know, the Saw films belong to a genre called torture porn.) When our kids reach a certain age we plan on showing them the more classic stuff as it becomes appropriate for them. However, we are going to be clear about why exactly we wouldn't want them to see certain films, like Saw, at all no matter how old they are.

*Edit* Watching SyFy b-movies is going to end up becoming a family past time at some point.

Silver Crusade

I grew up watching horror movies at a very young age (probably 4-5ish age, possibly younger). Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, these were things I grew up on. And they certainly affected me as a child. I was terrified of being alone at any time. Fortunately my younger brother and I were very close and did things together all the time, so not that much of an issue. But I couldn't even be upstairs in my house by myself as a child without someone else present. So in my opinion, yes it should be considered by parents when to show these movies. On the other hand, watching them I was fine with it at the time as a kid.

By that same topic, due to an unusual circumstance I saw my first sexually explicit movie at around age 7. Being into sci-fi, my parents rented Flash Gordon for me and my brother. Now the shop they go to has an adults section and apparently somehow a movie I believe titled Flesh Gordon was what they actually rented. Since I knew how to work the VCR, I just popped it in and my brother and I watched it. Well, until it got boring. Neither of us had any interest in the movie and He-man and Transformers were far more enjoyable to us. I suppose that's not a good scale to judge by, but that particular event hasn't traumatized me in anyway, only given me an interesting story to tell. Not that I'm saying to show pornos to kids of course. But the violence had a far worse effect on me at least.


Caleb T Gorden wrote:

Do you think a young kid will really understand what is happening and grasp the importance of it? This isn't violence for the sake of violence, or a dumb dude tearing things up with claws.

No, but they will see someone tearing things apart with his claws. Thats not a bad thing, it can be fun, and I don't think it does any harm.


darth_borehd wrote:
I research the movie myself before I take the kids to see it. I also watch all the cartoons with them.

Uh, shouldn't it be obvious to all parents?

Yeah, I know, despite seeming so obvious it is not. Regretfully.


CalebTGordan wrote:
Do you think a young kid will really understand what is happening and grasp the importance of it? This isn't violence for the sake of violence, or a dumb dude tearing things up with claws.

I'll usually take my son (who's almost 8 now) to movies during the week, middle of the day, and usually a couple weeks after a movies release. I do this to avoid crowds, and so he can ask me questions and I can give a good answer without having to worry about bothering anyone in the almost always empty theater. Will he understand that scene on his own? Some of it, absolutely. Other parts not so much. But I'll take the time to explain it to him.

Sure, there's a point where I draw the line. Anything with nudity or gore type violence I really won't let him watch. Anything short of that is fair game. PG-13 is just a recommendation, and each kid is different. Mine can watch monster movies and most horror movies and laugh at them. My neighbor's kid, not so much.

In the end, as long as the kids aren't bothering anyone watching the movie, then you have no ground to comment on what they're watching. You're not their parent and it's none of your business.


CalebTGordan wrote:

@Drejk

I agree that we should teach kids that, but I also believe that there are ages that won't really get it.

Of course. Discerning fact from fiction requires variable amount of maturity and knowledge about the world, depending upon particular fact/fiction. It's hard to explain to a child that has not yet grasped basics of economy how to see past deception used in financial frauds for example.

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Doggan wrote:


In the end, as long as the kids aren't bothering anyone watching the movie, then you have no ground to comment on what they're watching. You're not their parent and it's none of your business.

Fair enough. Thanks for being considerate in your movie watching. Talking during a film is a whole different issue that I am even more adamant against, and going to a showing where that isn't a problem is a great solution.


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As an old grognard I was part of the community of gamers that had to suffer parental scrutiny for my D&D hobby. Being called a satanist. Constant check ins to make sure I wasnt practicing witchcraft or suicidal... I rolled my eyes and was happy to have parents that, though poorly informed, were concerned for my well being.

I of course didnt turn out to be any of the horrible things they'd heard about gamers being, and have seen the same conversational points made about rock music and rap music and violence in videogames with the thought that all of them are ok. Because I had all that stuff and I am ok. As an adult I can see the separation between violent videogames and dangerous homicidal children and know that the games didnt 'create' the dangerous kid... They had bigger problems in real life and emulating the violence they see in tv and games was a product of their troubles, not a cause. As a parent I think I wont worry too much about what my son watches or plays as long as I do what my parents did. Check in with him that he's able to separate real from not real, that he's happy and healthy and has his head screwed on straight intellectually and morally...

Doesnt mean I havent seen a disconcerting spark of cro-magnon wanton violent streaks out of the 11 year old son of one of our other gamers who lets his kid play assassins creed for 8 hours at a stretch, as he gains logarithmic volume levels of excited glee as he finds interesting new ways to assassinate innocent peasants... I still dont think my philosophy of being loose about it as wrong, but his kid does make me feel like I'd better live up to the vigilance part of my philosophy and not just the laissez faire part.

Sovereign Court

PG-13 brings home the money. R rated movies can bring it home, but do so less consistently. So unfortunately, that means PG-13 is going to remain very unreliable as a rating due to the lower risk making it a desirable rating for the film industry. *Don't forget that PG stands for parental guidance.

I think I remember the exact moment where I was like "OMG I am officially old." I was watching one of the Transformer movies and there were pot brownie and sex jokes. I couldn't believe it. Wasn't this movie supposed to be for kids?

Before then even I recall a couple of times seeing people bringing very young children to R rated movies. I went to a Sunday night 10pm screening of Next Friday (which was god awful) and a lady brought 3-4 elementary aged kids to the movie with her. School night and not the most appropriate movie I could think of at the time to be bringing kids to. Another time I went to see Payback with Mel G (great flick) and the folks down the aisle brought a baby and a whole pack of kids. Baby is crying, kids are misbehaving and who can blame them Payback was not exactly an exciting movie for toddlers. /shrug

I grew up with 80's cable. It was pretty bad. The old man always spent a lot of time with me though. I would often ask him to explain what was going on and why folks were doing the things they did. I fondly remember watching Quantum Leap every week and really getting to understand how storytelling worked. Quite a few Arnold and Dolph movies too that I bet most people were not letting their kids watch. That was up to my old man though and I'm glad he took the time to help me develop into what I think is a well functioning individual.

I understand were you are coming from but its still up to parental guidance. I'd say your beef should be with the rating system allowing the industry to push the ratings to the limit. Its not working as intended.


When I was in high school I babysat for a woman with twin boys. One day she tells me she didn't need me to sit for her, because their uncle had them, and he'd taken them out to see Robocop.

...

Robo-freakin-cop.

I was a teenager and thought the level of violence in that movie was over the top. These kids were five.

Parental guidance is usually a toss-up.


Just one question... seriously, what is so horrible about Despicable me 2? I saw it a while ago, and I guess I just don't understand that it could be nightmare-inducing?


Sissyl wrote:
Just one question... seriously, what is so horrible about Despicable me 2? I saw it a while ago, and I guess I just don't understand that it could be nightmare-inducing?

In general it's a sweet funny movie. However kids process things differently than adults and

Spoiler:
the thing where the minions get changed into the ravening purple monsters bent on destruction
can apparently be quite traumatic to a child. I'm not saying don't take kids to see it. I was using it as an example of how something that you don't expect to be a problem can cause nightmares for a child, in this case specifically my child. What am I really gonna say? I had nightmares about the red bull from the last unicorn when I was his age. You just never know what's gonna strike a particular kid as scary.

Irontruth wrote:
I remember seeing Princess Mononoke at the $1 theater back in the late 90's. Some dad brought his two little girls, probably between 4-7 y/o between them. They didn't stay long.

Hmm... my daughter must have been about 7 when she first saw Princess Mononoke. Turned her into a life-long (so far) Miyazaki fan. But this is also the girl who, at 4, cheered when Aragorn cut off the Uruk-hai's head when she first saw Fellowship of the Ring. I'm not saying she has a bloodthirsty streak, but...

The Exchange

Most of my friends and i grew up in the 80's and got a good dose of gory horror young, we are all ok. Kids can handle more than most think, of course it does depend on the kid.


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It is interesting that while we are all extremely certain we have a very good handle on what is real and what is not. Not having that is called psychosis. Even so, there are so many that feel so sure more or less every kid doesn't have that reality anchoring. In truth, the mental disorders that disrupt this anchoring are typically things that begin in early adulthood, meaning that most kids are safe with whatever in the movies. Second, evidence is mounting that violent movies in an area tend to REDUCE violent crime. Third, if a parent is going to let its kid see horrible things, and the kid is one of the few who really should not see such things, allow me to STRONGLY doubt that a censorship marking will change anything. In conclusion, I think the ratings are utterly pointless. If people wanted a functioning rating system, it would be based on learning psychology and what kids of various ages were able to understand, rather than a one-eyed, almost perverted focus on "kids can't see sex" and "kids can't see violence". To my knowledge, nobody has died from seeing either. If it makes sense to the story, beheading a villain can be a very valuable scene. Most kids above ten to twelve have begun trying to relate to sex, whether adults like it or not.

Regarding violence, I always found the japanese censorship reasoning much healthier than the american one. They rate unrealistic violence, such as someone keeping fighting after several kicks to the head, worse than violence in which the realistic effects are shown. The best scene to illustrate this in american cinema is in Blade runner, where a woman is shot in the brain and has an epileptic seizure. If the point of movie censorship is to reduce violence in society, perhaps it's a relevant point that Japan has far less violent crime than the US.

Grand Lodge

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I went to see Watchmen at the post theater, which had it for an early screening. There was a family with about three young girls in line. The manager came out and reminded everyone that the movie was rated R. I imagine the parents found out why during the long sex scene.


Heh, I remember when we were kids and my friend found one of his dad's porno tapes, and clandestinely invited us all over to watch it. Rather than being scarred for life, I remember wishing he'd found it a lot sooner.


Oh... And seriously... Anyone setting censorship ratings who felt Bambi would be okay for little kids ought to be shot. Slowly. If you want a hint of what a two-year old considers the most horrible concept ever, try "someone shoots your mom, and then your dad tells you to get lost". At the very least, it comes pretty close.

And regarding sex: Lion king: Simba lives in a flock of lions. A flock of lions consists of a male adult lion, a number of females, and the offspring of the male lion and the females. Yay! Simba gets the girl!!! Only, you know, Nala is at least his half-sister.

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Pride. Geese fly in flocks. Lions hang in prides.


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Geese fly in gaggles, actually. :P


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Shadowborn wrote:

When I was in high school I babysat for a woman with twin boys. One day she tells me she didn't need me to sit for her, because their uncle had them, and he'd taken them out to see Robocop.

...

Robo-freakin-cop.

I was a teenager and thought the level of violence in that movie was over the top. These kids were five.

Parental guidance is usually a toss-up.

My father took my brother and me to see Robocop when it came out. I was probably 15 (I think) and my brother was 12. As the intro screens were rolling, a little voice pipes up from in front of us and says, "Daddy, what does that say?" I simply could not believe that a parent had brought their child who was probably between ages 4 and 6 to an R-rated movie!

To stay on-topic :). My husband had our daughter watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer when she was young to show her that bad guys could be defeated. And she's fairly well grounded, though the Hush episode still freaks her out. I'm probably much more protective than he is -- but then I had that experience at Robocop! (As a teenager, *I* was grossed out!)


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Okay. A gaggle of lions.


I sat in a theater of team america world police behing a family with a kids at about a ~12 7 5 2 spread.

Sczarni RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

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Hitdice wrote:
Geese fly in gaggles, actually. :P

Doh, see what happens when I skip breakfast.


It very much varies from kid to kid. I and/or the better half sit down to watch any shows our son is interested with him for at least a couple episodes to see if we feel it's appropriate for him. We also pre-screen movies or at the very least read parent-centric reviews of movies before we take him to see them.

The problem is parents who have no clue/don't care. I've sat by parents with screaming children at R-rated movies who just ignore them. Or the father who took their 4 year-old with them to Blade 2 and just told the kid to close her eyes any time something really gory was going on. Just makes me shake my head. I realize it's tough to get a babysitter sometimes, but there's an answer to that: just stay home.

I see maybe one or two movies in the theater in any given year (not counting the occasional kids movie) simply because I don't want to expose my son to things I know he's not ready for, and I don't want to ruin the movie experience of others because I have a kid who's acting out with me.

Hitdice wrote:
Geese fly in gaggles, actually. :P

What's the proper plural for when they're being juggled?


I guess that would have to be "guggles," wouldn't it?

Speaking seriously, the ratings board standards (here in the US, at least) are just all over the place, not that I'm excusing parental malingering. But if Whale Rider and The Wolverine get the same rating something very, very weird is going on; one is a story about a princess with magic whale powers, and the other is about an immortal berserker with knives in his hands.

Mind you, I'm not saying The Wolverine is unfit for thirteen year olds, just that there's no way on earth Whale Rider deserved anything beyond a G rating.

The Exchange

TriOmegaZero wrote:
I went to see Watchmen at the post theater, which had it for an early screening. There was a family with about three young girls in line. The manager came out and reminded everyone that the movie was rated R. I imagine the parents found out why during the long sex scene.

Not to mention all of the blue penis before and after that.....

Sovereign Court

Andrew R wrote:
TriOmegaZero wrote:
I went to see Watchmen at the post theater, which had it for an early screening. There was a family with about three young girls in line. The manager came out and reminded everyone that the movie was rated R. I imagine the parents found out why during the long sex scene.
Not to mention all of the blue penis before and after that.....

A guy I work with told me he was going to check it out with his son. He had no idea what to expect. The next day told me it had "too much blue dong" for him.


The princess juggles whales?

Re: Watchmen: The blue dongery and sex scene is what remains AFTER they removed the

Spoiler:
FORTY FOOT TALL VAGINA MONSTER
from the comic.

Liberty's Edge

Hitdice wrote:

Speaking seriously, the ratings board standards (here in the US, at least) are just all over the place, not that I'm excusing parental malingering. But if Whale Rider and The Wolverine get the same rating something very, very weird is going on; one is a story about a princess with magic whale powers, and the other is about an immortal berserker with knives in his hands.

Mind you, I'm not saying The Wolverine is unfit for thirteen year olds, just that there's no way on earth Whale Rider deserved anything beyond a G rating.

Go watch 'This Film Is Not Yet Rated'. It will explain how these things happen and give you another reason to hate the MPAA.


It's on my to be viewed list. I've been keeping an eye out for it since I read a review in one of Roger Ebert's year books.

Anyhow, it's not that I hate the MPAA, it's just that their endorsement is irrelevant to whether or not I'll enjoy a movie.

Liberty's Edge

At a guess, Whale Rider got a PG-13 because the censors felt it would encourage children, and girls in particular, to disrespect their elders and their 'place' in society.

Plus the pagan religion on display.


Her uncle (or whoever) smokes weed one time, was the issue I think. ("...and some drug use.") But then she uses her magic powers to inspire him so that he gives it up, goes on a fitness kick and starts jogging on the beach; obviously not fit for children. :P

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