12 May 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 6+
Tags: action, Arabia, castle, desert, genie, Magic, monkeys, Princess, romance, treasure, wizard
Rated: G
Length: 90 min.
Age: 6 and up Commonsense Media sez: 6 +
Scary Factor: villain Jafar is creepy and evil; the huge lion creature guarding the treasure is truly frightening; it devours a thief at the beginning, though this is not seen; in one scene Aladdin nearly drowns; villain’s magic in the climax at the end is pretty scary and huge – turning into an enormous snake and then an even bigger genie
Action: Aladdin is continually fleeing guards with swords – played for laughs but may be stressful; the scene when Aladdin’s in the cave is pretty heavy action-and-danger-wise (Indiana Jones-esque)
Bad Behavior: when the sultan is imprisoned Jafar’s parrot tortures him by force-feeding him crackers – this might be disturbing, or maybe just disturbing for adults!; Genie smokes a cigarette at one point
Sex: all females are scantily clad; a few kisses
Racism: many stereotypes of Middle-Eastern peoples and lifestyle; heroes sound American, while bad guys have Arabian accents
Language: very slangy; also name-calling: “stupid” “dumb” “idiot”
Interests: Arabian legends, magic, desert, folk tales, other cultures
Next: picture books of 1001 Arabian Nights, old movies like The Thief of Bagdad
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02 May 2011
by Kim
in Books, books 5+
Tags: action, crime, romance, theatre
GREENAWAY MEDAL WINNER – 2007
Mini Grey
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006
30 pp
Ages:5 +
Interests: nursery rhymes updated, crime and punishment, love stories
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28 Apr 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 4+
Tags: castle, dragons, fairies, Fairy Tale, knights, Magic, Princess, romance, witches
Rated: G
Length: 75 min.
Age: 4 and up. Commonsense Media sez: iffy for ages 4/5
Scary Factor: no real danger until the climax, when Maleficent turns into a dragon to battle the prince (scene is relatively brief)
Intense Scenes: far more suspense and chills than outright scares – Maleficent is wonderfully threatening; scene in which Aurora pricks her finger on the spindle is eerie and enthralling.
Bad Behaviour: Boozing – the two kings drink endless toasts to each other and a minstrel gets quietly sloshed under the table.
Language: “fools! idiots! imbeciles!” barked by Maleficent at her underlings; she also mentions the powers of “hell”
Interests: fairy tales, princesses, knights, castles, dragons, magic, fairies
Next: Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Thumbelina
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27 Apr 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 6+, Old Movies
Tags: action, adventure, boats, British history, history, pirates, romance, war
Black and White
Rated: TV-G (TV rating)
Length: 119 min.
Age: 6 and up (more for complex plot and slow pace at start)
Scary factor/Violence: slaves are beaten, and one is branded as punishment (not graphic – offscreen); many battle scenes, but generally bloodless; one big swordfight on beach, but not graphic or disturbing
Sex: scene in which pirates party in a brothel/bar is pretty harmless
Other Bad Behaviour: fair amount of boozing, especially among the naughtier French pirates
Interests: pirates, sailing ships, history, old movies
Next: Treasure Island, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Sea Hawk
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13 Apr 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 4+
Tags: action, chase, environment, robots, romance, sci fi, space, spaceships
Rated: G
Length: 98 min
Age: 4 + … watchable at 4, better understood by 5 or 6 Commonsense Media sez: 5 +
Scary factor: our main characters are chased about, but nothing very threatening; Eve has a gun in her arm that she shoots at inanimate objects; in one scene she accidentally sets some huge oil tankers ablaze – no danger to characters, but it’s big and fiery, so may be alarming; a bad robot falls a great distance and breaks apart
Intense: some sad moments near the end when Wall-E seems broken-down/dead, but Eve is looking after him and it’s easy to allay concerns (“He’ll get better!”) because he does!
Language: one ‘heck’
Interests: space, robots, spaceships, environment
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13 Mar 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 4+
Tags: adventure, boats, Fairy Tale, fish, Japan, Magic, nature, ocean, romance, sea creatures, spirits, storms, strong girls, weather, wizard
Rated: G
Length: 101 min.
Age: 4 and up.
Scary Factor: typhoon and tsunami, storm at sea mitigated by sight of little girl happily running on top of the waves!; entire island is submerged in huge flood, but no casualties
Intense scenes: twice Sosuke thinks his fish is dead (briefly); after floods Sosuke finds his mother’s car, eerily empty, and starts to cry, but finds her soon after
Language: mother calls the oddball wizard a “freakshow”; she also calls her husband a “Jerk!”; the wizard calls humans as a species “filthy” and “stupid” (which is justified)
Interests: ocean, sea creatures, magic, nature, spirits, boats, fish, wizards
Next: BOOK: The Little Mermaid (Hans Christian Andersen); MOVIES: My Neighbor Totoro, Finding Nemo (a little scarier), The Little Mermaid (a lot scarier)
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11 Mar 2011
by Kim
in Introduction to..., Movies, movies 3+, Old Movies, Shakespeare
Tags: fairies, Magic, poetry, romance, spirits, theatre
Black & White
Rating: USA: Approved
Length: 133 min – other versions: 117 min (edited version), 142 min (with overture and exit music)
Age: suitable for 3, but for plot comprehension 4 or 5
Scary Factor: Oberon in black and his bat-people minions are a little unnerving, particularly when they seem to be rounding up the beautiful fairies at the end. Other than that there’s nothing violent or threatening. Viewers may wonder about the small orphan boy fought over by Oberon and Titania, but the toddler keeps smiling whether he’s with one or the other and seems to be treated well, so it shouldn’t be an issue. (He weeps only when Titania ignores him during her fascination with Bottom.)
Interests: magic, fairies, Shakespeare, old movies
Next: MOVIE: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999) is more for 12+ crowd (PG-13); BOOKS: traditional fairy tales, Peter Pan, Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb, Shakespeare’s The Tempest (in a picture book version)
Preparation: picture books or other abridged versions of the Midsummer Night’s Dream story – helpful to know the plot first!
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09 Mar 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 4+, Old Movies
Tags: action, British history, castle, history, knights, Princess, romance
Rated: PG for adventure violence
Length: 102 min.
Age: 4+ commonsense media sez: 9+ *
* There’s a big gap between our age recommendations here, which I have given a lot of thought to. Commonsense usually rates a year older than I do, but five?! If your child likes action, and is okay with violence at a beginner level (arm’s length, non-gory), then I really think 4 or 5 is all right for this film. My daughter was a ‘slightly brave 4’ and had more trouble with the plot points than the violence. She quite enjoyed it, especially the jumping out of trees, which our stuffed animals still re-enact from time to time. … Plus, both Peter M. Nichols (The New York Times Essential Library : Children’s Movies: a critic’s guide to the best films available on video and DVD), and Ty Burr (The Best Old Movies for Families) agree with me – they both rate this film good for 4 years old and up.
Scary Factor: montage of dastardly doings to the peasants is upsetting but brief. Battles are not intense, see below. Robin is captured, which was hard to watch for my daughter, but just made his inevitable escape more exciting.
Interests: history, action, medieval life, England, knights, castles, old movies
Next: books on Robin Hood, MOVIES: other Errol Flynn: Captain Blood; Disney’s animated Robin Hood (1973)
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04 Mar 2011
by Kim
in Movies
Tags: action, adventure, boats, crocodile, fairies, London, Magic, mermaids, pirates, romance, strong girls
Rated: PG – frightening scenes, violence
Length: 113 min.
Age: 8 and up. commonsense media sez: 9+
Scary Factor: violence and killing among the pirates, though no show of blood and gore; the mermaids are truly creepy, and Hook is genuinely threatening
Intense scenes: Wendy is shot down and believed briefly to be dead, Tinker Bell drinks poison and nearly dies, Peter is bashed around by Hook during final fight
Sexuality: only some sexual tension between Peter and Wendy, limited to a couple kisses; there is a glimpse of bare Lost Boy behinds at one point
Also: a brief sight of Hook’s amputated arm may bother the squeamish (though the wound is old: no blood); as always, the pirates smoke and drink, and liquor and cigars are offered to Wendy (she turns them down)
Interests: fairies, pirates, magic, mermaids
Next: read the original novel Peter Pan, see the grittier pirate movies (Pirates of the Caribbean are for the 12+ crowd)
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01 Mar 2011
by Kim
in Movies, movies 4+, Old Movies, Silent Movies
Tags: action, chase, detective, history, mystery, romance
Black and White, Silent Movie
Rated: unrated
Length: 45 min.
Age: 4 and up.
Scary Factor: nothing to speak of. A little uneasiness perhaps regarding an explosive billiard ball that never quite gets hit… more suspenseful than scary.
Interests: detectives, mysteries, history, silent movies
Next: other silent movies: The Gold Rush, Safety Last! ; more Buster Keaton: Steamboat Bill Jr. (6+), The General (7+), shorts
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