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Band of Brothers TV Series [Review]

September 15, 2011 No Comments

Band of Brothers TV Series Review: Story

Band of Brothers is ten-part HBO TV series about World War II, based on the Band of Brothers book written by historian and biographer Stephen E. Ambrose. Band of Brothers received considerable attention because it was produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks who both worked together on “Saving Private Ryan,” another realistic World War II movie.

The series follows Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion who is assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. It follows their experiences from before landing in Normandy to the end of the war. The events are based on real life accounts from the soldiers of easy company. Before every episode the surviving members describe their experiences, often in tears thinking about their fallen friends and the experiences that will forever haunt them the rest of their lives.

The series mainly focuses on Major Richard Winters (1918-2011), played by Damian Lewis, as he grows into a leader and strives to keep his band of brothers together and alive. However different episodes often highlights different soldiers of E Company, and their various experiences. Through out the series you get to know each of the character from the first time they step onto soil, to hard veterans, battle tested, growing into leadership roles… for those who survive through the battles. As a viewer, you get to experience both the forming and loss of relationships as well as the hardship of war life especially mentally and emotionally.

Band of Brothers TV Series. Is it Clean? Safe?

Band of Brothers by no means should be shown to children. It’s a war movie, and a realistic one at that. Just like Saving Private Ryan, there are plenty of realistic violence. There is also plenty of cursing, which of course is expected as it is a war movie.

There is also a sex scene in the beginning of episode 9. Avoid it. It is explicit and completely unexpected as all the episodes up to this point was clean in this area. Why the directors chose to add this scene is beyond me as it seems completely out of place.

Band of Brothers TV Series: Morals? Opinions?

Personally, I loved Band of Brothers. Though it may be hard to follow all the characters as the cast is large, you can easily sympathize with the various characters as they struggle mentally and emotionally through the war. The loss of key people are disheartening but there is also a sense of triumph as the various characters grow up, and step up as is needed. As the title says, you can definitely come to appreciate how these men draw together, put their differences aside and become like brothers. Every battle is tense as you don’t want anyone to die or get hurt. The struggle of dealing with death is a big theme as well.

Major Winters – Lessons on Leadership

Major Winters is a person to be admired, someone who deeply cares for his men and does everything in his power to protect them and train them properly. Watching him grow from a fellow soldier into highly respected leader has many lessons packed in itself. He leads by example, he is always in the front lines, he seeks to understand his men, he is decisive, he follows the rules, he cares deeply about his men, he thinks through how his interactions with his unit affects their morale, their behavior and the level of respect he needs to command the unit. An example is when Major Winters reprimands his his Lieutenant for gambling with his soldiers because he says he should never put himself in a position from taking from his own men. A leader must always give in every way to the people you lead. From the beginning, he slowly earns everyone’s respect and you can see how it plays out with each of the characters. There are many other men you can compare leadership qualities with such as E Company’s first commander, Herbert Sobel (great trainer, but horrible leader), the mysterious Captain Ron Speirs (everyone feared but respected him), and Lieutenant Norman Dike (who no one had confidence in).

Major Winters Quotes about Leadership

“The qualities you are looking for in a leader include: Does the individual have the respect of the men? How do you get the respect of the men? By living with them, being a part of it, being able to understand what they are going through and not to separate yourself from them. You have to know your men. You have to gain their confidence. And the way to gain the confidence of anybody, whether it’s in war or civilian life or whatever, you must be honest. Be honest, be fair and be consistent. You can’t be honest and fair one day, and the next give your people the short end of the stick. Once you can achieve that, you will be a leader.”

“You maintain close relationships with your men, but not friendship. You have mutual respect for one another, but yet you have to hold yourself aloof, to a degree. If you are too friendly, it works in a negative way when you need to discipline your men. You can have your men’s respect and friendship, but there is a point where you have to rise above this relationship and make sure they are following the orders that are in effect for everybody. In leading groups effectively, you have to rise above camaraderie. You have to be fair to everyone. Everyone must know that they are treated equally.”

Major Winters

The Pacific – Band of Brothers Followup – Quick Note

NOTE: “The Pacific,” the followup mini-series covering WWII battle in the pacific is NOT A CLEAN MOVIE. It is unlike Band of Brothers which was relatively clean throughout. Also “The Pacific” less centered around brotherhood and leadership but more centered around the degrading psychology of men – Highlighting how innocent people’s mind becomes jaded and ruthless in war. Thus the series is much darker.

How did you like Band of Brothers?
Any addition lessons to note?
What was your favorite episode?

Movies, News

The Teen Choice Awards Chooses R-Rated Movies?

June 30, 2011 No Comments

Just a discussion starter. So share your your thoughts below…

What are your thoughts on the fact that three R Rated, raunchy comedies earned multiple nominations at the TEEN choice awards?

Hangover Part 2 Movie — Sneaking into the Minds of Unaware Teens

R-Rated Nominees – The Hangover Part II, Bridesmaids, Bad Teacher

The three R rated movie in question are “The Hangover Part II”, “Bridesmaids” and “Bad Teacher”. The Hangover Part II earned a six nominations, while Bridesmaid and Bad teacher were nominated for best comedy. Remember this is the TEEN choice awards for 13-19 year-olds voting for what they consider the best movies, shows, and music of the year. Anyone under 17 must still be accompanied by an adult to watch these movies due to their content. The Hangover Part II and Bridesmaid have been one of the more popular movies of this summer. The Hangover centers around a Drunken Bachelor party romp where the characters can’t remember what happened.

Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows Movie — What is the Meaning of This? That's Evil! - Voldemort

“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” led the pack with twelve nominations including best sci-fi fantasy film. TV Musical “Glee” follows with nine including top TV Comedy. The Twilight Saga swept the awards last season, but expects to face stiff competition from “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1”, “X-Men: First Class”, “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” and “Super 8.”

Something is Just not Right

So I pose the question again.

What are your thoughts on the fact that three R Rated, raunchy comedies earned multiple nominations at the TEEN choice awards?

I think, it’s a testament to how much our standards have fallen in terms of what is considered appropriate and not appropriate for our teen’s consumption, let alone public consumption as a whole (including adults!). I bet for most reader, this news doesn’t seem like big news at all. Is there anything that can be done or will our standards just fall lower and lower? Did you know the US Superior court overruled a law, saying it is ok for stores to sell Mature Rated video games to children? Also I remember just a mere 10 years ago, what passes as PG-13 today would cause a riot even though it was Rated R. It’s a slipper slope folks.

Movies, News

Peter Jackson’s Hobbit Preview Video

April 14, 2011 No Comments

Peter Jackson Hobbit Preview Video

Peter Jackson’s Hobbit Preview Video

Peter Jackson posted a 10-minutes production video with tons of behind-the-scenes footage for the Hobbit. In this video he revisits some of the locations of the footage as well as gives us a chance to see some of the cast members interacting with one another. See Andy Serkis, Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman and Richard Taylor of Weta Workshop in action. [That is Ian McKellen aka Gandalf in the picture above with Peter Jackson]

The Lord of the Ring series, though contains a lot of violence, is a very clean set of movies with tons of great themes such as friendship, love, morality, and deeper themes of the human condition of pride, power, and greed.

Check it out Below! Let us know what you think in the comment section below! Anyone excited to see this?

Movies

‘The Adjustment Bureau’ – Fate vs. Free Will

March 16, 2011 No Comments

The Adjustment Bureau Movie

Have you seen the Adjustment Bureau?

The Adjustment Bureau is a science-fiction, romance hybrid film featuring Matt Damon as David Norris, an aspiring politician aiming for the senator seat of New York who meets a mysterious ballet dancer on the night of his defeat. This brief encounter was orchestrated by agents from the Adjustment Bureau, a Bureau that constantly controls the fate of people’s lives. These agents intervene to guide people in the path they are intended to follow. Unfortunately things don’t go as planned. Through this story, the film touches on the theme between free will and predestination.

Do we have have complete free will or are things predetermined?

First time director George Nolfi tackles this interesting topic of free will versus fate with this adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s short story “The Adjustment Bureau.” George Nolfi is best known as the screenwriter of “Oceans Twelve” and “The Bourne Ultimatum”. In an effort to promote discussion over this topic of free will (and of course promote the film), there has been heavy national outreach to colleges and Christian churches.

Director George Nolfi Speaks!

Below are excerpts from an interview with the director at “Big Hollywood.” It gives us a nice window into this theme of free will versus predestination through the eyes of the director:

BIG HOLLYWOOD: How were you drawn to this subject matter? Were you just a fan of Philip K. Dick, or was there a spiritual element?

GEORGE NOLFI: I’ve long been fascinated with the question of how much we control our own destiny or how much we’re controlled by larger forces. When I think of that question it’s not explicitly theological, though I think that’s one of the answers. I studied philosophy in grad school and it intertwines with theology. Is it social forces, like what family you’re born into, or God’s plan for you that shapes your life most? We’re set on a path by something much bigger than ourselves, and yet we also know we have choices and that they matter.

The Adjustment Bureau Movie - Matt Damon Emily Blunt

BH: Are you spiritual or religious yourself, and if so, how did that tie into the project, and if not, how did you find a grasp on this and did you realize this would resonate with Christian audiences in addition to secular ones?

GN: I’ve not talked about my personal views because of this reason: I want the movie to be viewed by people whether religious or not or whatever religion they are. I want them to engage with the central question bringing their faith and views and grappling to the table. So when they leave, the question of how much of your life is handled by outside forces and how much by you is key, and that has been around since the ancient Greeks. I just want to have people have a great time at the movies in a romantic thriller with a sci-fi tinge to it all, leaving with their own questions brought to the table.

As a kid I’ve been interested in this issue. I studied it in college and graduate school, and studied various ways people grapple with that. My own family background dealt with it as well. I was also fascinated with the problem of evil in theology and if there’s a higher power that’s all powerful, benevolent and all knowing, then why do bad things happen to good people?

I think that for religious people period, but certainly Christian audiences, it is a part of their daily life to engage in discussions of why are we here. I don’t think that necessarily people who are completely secular deal with those issues, but I think it’s almost impossible to be a religious person without struggling with this issue. It’s ultimately a movie about a character going through character changes. It’s a thriller, a sci-fi tinged one, and hopefully you’re on that ride. But it does have these issues, and i thought it would have extra interest to those who struggle with it on a daily basis.

Free Will vs. Fate

Full disclosure here. I have not seen this movie. I don’t have any plans on seeing this movie. The science fiction aspect draws me, but the romance part does not. But I did want to note it here because I am curious what kind of impression people will walk away with.

For those of you who have seen the movie, what impression do you leave with?
Is the movie objective or do you walk out feeling one way or another?

Do you personally believe life is completely “free” or pre-determined?
If so, why? Do you believe just because you feel it’s true or do you have a good logical argument?

Movies, Social Media

The Social Network – Business Ethics in Movies

October 13, 2010 2 Comments

“…virtually all of the practices that nearly wrecked the global economy back in 2008 were legal—all of which goes to prove that just because something is legal doesn’t make it ethical or right… So the question isn’t “why?” but “why not?” If the only thing standing between you and millions, even billions, is other people’s disapproval, why not do what you want to do?”

Social Network the Movie- Business Ethics

The following is an excerpt from Breakpoint discussing Business Ethics. The question that is asked is:

If it is legal – does that make it ethical?

Thought it was interesting so wanted to share here. Enjoy.

Facebook’s Beginnings in The Social Network

Even before the critically acclaimed film The Social Network opened in theaters, there was one big financial winner: Newark, New Jersey’s public schools.

While critics were screening the movie, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg donated $100 million to the struggling school system. Not only that, he made the announcement on Oprah.

Apparently, Zuckerberg was looking for a little bit of good PR. He’s concerned that people who see the film may question his personal ethics. The more important concern ought to be, however, what the film says about business ethics in our culture.

I personally don’t have an opinion on whether the $100 million donation was a PR move versus perhaps something he wanted to do all along. Maybe his PR people told him to do it now versus later. Either way, I do want to acknowledge that this is a very nice gesture on his part and definitely hope to see more of it in the future.

What are your thoughts?
Do you think it was a PR move? Or do you think it was intended all along? or both?

The Social Network, based on the book The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich, tells what’s been called a “creation myth” about the wildly successful Facebook. The “myth” alternates scenes from Zuckerberg’s days at Harvard and depositions taken in connection with two lawsuits filed against him by former schoolmates.

One lawsuit alleged that that Zuckerberg stole the plaintiffs’ idea. The other lawsuit was brought by Zuckerberg’s best friend, who accused Zuckerberg of cheating him out of his share of Facebook.

Well, regardless of the legal merits of the allegations, Zuckerberg has reason to be concerned: His actions depicted in the film ranged from merely duplicitous to outright treacherous.

While the filmmakers have acknowledged taking some creative license, Zuckerberg’s ruthlessness is well-documented, which prompts the central question of the film: Why? In the film, the answer is that he’s an insecure outsider who wants to be one of the “cool kids.” Others have speculated that he suffers from autism spectrum disorder, which is unfair to autistic people: They may be socially awkward, but they are the farthest thing from ruthless.

Personal Failure or Broken Culture or Both?

This is where it get’s interesting. Everything Zuckerberg did was very legal. His lawyers made sure of that. but does it make it right? But if it’s legal why not? Interesting to think about.

Focusing on Zuckerberg’s foibles misses the point: The most important failure wasn’t personal but cultural. Every one of the actions depicted in the film was arguably legal: You don’t have a proprietary interest in an idea. Zuckerberg’s friend signed away his interest in Facebook because he wrongly thought that Zuckerberg’s lawyers were looking after his interests as well.

Similarly, virtually all of the practices that nearly wrecked the global economy back in 2008 were legal—all of which goes to prove that just because something is legal doesn’t make it ethical or right. Any lawyer worth his hourly billings can find a way to exploit weaknesses in the system.

So the question isn’t “why?” but “why not?” If the only thing standing between you and millions, even billions, is other people’s disapproval, why not do what you want to do? Especially since you can subsequently buy their approval with a check and an appearance on Oprah?

Of course, if this becomes normative, then the kind of trust that makes free markets possible would dry up, which is exactly what happened in the aftermath of sub-prime crisis. Lenders have money to lend—what they lack is confidence in borrowers’ ability or willingness to repay.

What is your take? Thoughts?

Love to here your thoughts on this matter?
Are you going to watch the movie? If you have, how was it?

Movies, News

James Cameron Shooting “Avatar 2” 7 Miles Underwater?

September 20, 2010 1 Comment

Some interesting news.

James Cameron Shooting Avatar 2 Underwater?

James Cameron is planning to shoot some of Avatar’s Sequel 6.8 miles under water…

|| James Cameron is going to do what? ||

Why would James Cameron do such a thing when he could easily do it through CG and special effects? James Cameron has always had a passion for exploring the deep having shot deep sea documentaries such as Aliens of the Deep and Ghosts of the Abyss. This time he may be eying the $10 million X-Prize.

What is the X-Prize Award?

The X-Prize is a $10 million award given to pioneers in scientific exploration. The previous prize was given to develop a manned spacecraft. This new prize is to be given to the first private crew to be able to make manned dives to “Challenger Deep”, the deepest known point on Earth. The last time explorers visited the Challenger Deep was some 50 years ago by Jacques PIccard and Don Walsh.

Selfridge with Unobtainium — || It's all about the Money Folks. Bling Bling ||

Why Shoot Avatar 2 Underwater?

|| NO! Get out of Pandora! Stop making these War Movies! ||

Does James Cameron really need $10 million dollars? Probably not. But as someone who has a passion for deep water exploration, it would not be a surprise if he tries to hit two birds (Fish?) with one stone. Avatar 2 is reported to be set in the oceans of Pandora and thus figures to include a lot of underwater footage.

Most may laugh at such an endeavor, but James Cameron has experience with deep water exploration and was the creator and or director of the two most successful films ever in Avatar and Titanic. The former making almost 2 billion dollars at the box office. You would figure if James made it down there, he would take some great footage to be used perhaps both in his film as well as future deep water exploration documentaries.

What are your thoughts?

Movies

Avatar Movie Review: The Best Movie Ever?

January 9, 2010 9 Comments

Avatar recently screamed past the $1 billion mark, easily placing itself as the second highest grossing film in history right behind titanic, which not by coincidence was also directed by James Cameron.

Everyone has heard the talk. The CG is stunning. The immersive land of Pandora is breathtaking. Viewing a movie in 3D finally was worth the extra $2-3. All that talk is true. It’s really an awesome piece of work and the visuals is well worth the ticket price.

When you visit movie sites and read the user reviews, you would think this is the movie of the century. A+’s all around. Best movie ever. Highest praises you could possibly mark. But is Avatar the best movie ever?

Movies

Watch the Best Movie Films of 2009

December 26, 2009 1 Comment

Top Movie Films of 2009

Best Movie Films of 2009

2009 seems to have gone in a blur. Every year seems to go faster the one before!

As we look back at the films of 2009, it was really a huge for the film industry. Several movies had record-breaking box office figures and we saw the success of more sequels then ever before. As we speak Avatar, a movie that cost half a billion dollars to get out, is ringing up the box office.

How many transformer movies were there? How many alien movies? How many remakes of old series? Batman returned with a bang. Terminator returned with a thud. So did Star Trek. The fantasy genre is exploding off the coattails of Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter now followed by vampires and greek mythology. Comic book movies continue to be popular from Wolverine to Watchmen. Pixar continues to bring out masterpieces such as UP (saw it, loved it) and others produce movies that breaks my heart because it truly is a depiction of our degrading culture: Bruno (did not see it).

I barely remember but luckily through the power of YouTube and the people’s desire to create mashups of just about everything, we can watch this 2009 film mashup. Enjoy.

What was the best film you saw in 2009?
What was the worst movie you saw in 2009?

I’ll start –
Best: UP (Pixar) & Star Trek (J.J. Abrams) – Ok I cheated and picked two.
Worst: Knowing (we went expecting to watch Monsters vs Aliens, then we switched… never watching anything nicholas cage is in again).

Featured, Movies

Clean Family Friendly Movie Reviews & Ratings

August 29, 2009 159 Comments

Pixar - Clean Family Friendly Movies

Clean Family Friendly Movie Reviews

Help us start a list of Clean Family Friendly Movies!

One of the goals of Clean Cut Media is to raise awareness of the influence of media on our culture and our Worldview. It is not an easy task as by nature much of what is written pushes up against what our culture would consider the norm. However, in addition to this primary goal, Clean Cut Media aims to also be a resource where people can come to find fresh perspectives and reviews on movies, music, tv shows, and other media.

It’s hard to find truly clean movies suitable for children

There are so many ways to watch or rent a movie. From Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, to Youtube, you can stream movies online at a flick of a finger, yet it is not an easy task to figure out which movies are wholesome, safe, and free of sexual innuendos, sex scenes, violence, vulgar scenes, and bad language. It’s nearly impossible outside of a few children’s movies (and even many of those are questionable). As someone who spends tons of time with youth students myself, it isn’t easy to find a definitive list of clean movies I can check out.

So I’d like to start a list of Clean Movies as well as Clean Family Friendly Movies so those who will find this post can have a list of movies they know is safe to watch both for their children and for themselves. Also, please contribute popular movies that seem safe at first glance.

Please Share Your List of Clean Movies & Clean Family Friendly Movies

Here is what you can do.

Comment below with the Names of Movies that you consider to be clean and/or family safe.

Please label them as Family Friendly / Clean

Clean Movie: This means no sex scenes, no or minimal sexual innuendos, no or minimal bad language, no excessive violence/gore, and no bad message!

Family Friendly: Basically would you take your 10-year-old daughter to this and be perfectly comfortable with what she is taking in?

Exceptions: I realize finding perfectly “clean” movies is really hard, so if you know of any movies that violate a portion of these categories, just notate it next to the name. You MUST note any amount of bad language, sexual innuendos, sexual scenes, bad message, violence – think about parents of very young kids who may want to use this list to choose a movie. The more information the better. Also if you know the RATING, please note it as well.

Please also contribute movies that come off as family-friendly but you found to be unacceptable as well as any popular movie titles! (Ex. The Later Shrek movies are NOT for kids! Tons of sexual innuendos and jokes). If you see movies below that do not have proper warnings, let us know!

Below are some samples to start off with. Please follow the general format.

I’ll update this as people comment. Red = Not Family Friendly

List of Clean / Family Friendly Movies [+ Unclean “Children” Films]

Movies Names	Clean	Family Friendly	Exceptions
25th Hour [R]			Lots of Bad Language
100 First Dates [PG-13]	X	X
30 Minutes or Less [R]			“Horrible Language, Massively Inappropriate” “Horrifying” “Skipped through the whole film then turned it off”
12 Angry Men [PG]	X	X
A Little Princess[PG]	X	X
Adjustment Bureau, The [PG-13]	X		Some Sexuality
The Adventures of Tin Tin [PG]	X	X
The Adventures of the Wilderness Family Series [G]	X	X
Aladdin [G]	X	X	Clean movie, other than how absurdly skinny the princess is as in all Disney movies. Beware of the impact!
All Dogs Go to Heaven [PG]	X	X
Amadeus [PG]	X		Director’s Cut is rated R for flash nudity & language
Amazing Grace [PG]	X	X
Angels in the Backfield [PG]	X	X	Violence & Bad Language
Anne of Green Gables [PG]	X
Annie [PG]	X	X
Ant Man [PG-13]	X	X
Antz [PG]	X	X
Apollo 13 [PG]			Foul Language, Short sex scene in shower
Around the World in 80 Days [PG]	X	X	Some Nude statues & Pictures
August Rush [PG]	X	X	“very mild foul language” – Arica
Babe 1 & 2 [PG]	X	X
Back to the Future Series [PG]	X		Some bad language [see comments], some adult themes
Band of Brothers [NR]	X		War Violence, Sex Scene in Episode 9
Beaches [PG-13]	X		Some Adult Drama
Bedtime Stories [PG]	X	X
Bella [PG-13]	X	X	Topic of Abortion & Sad Scene of Car Accident
Ben-Hur [NR]	X	X	Violence during the race.
The Big Year [PG]	X	X	Few Bad words, some sensuality. Sensual kissing scene b/w married couple. Clean, Family Film
Billy: The Early Years [G]	X	X
Black Beauty [G]	X	X
Black Stallion [G]	X	X
Blind Side, The [PG-13]	X	X	Some language typical of football players. Some images of alcohol drinking
Bolt [PG]	X	X
The Bourne Identity [PG-13]	X		Violence & Bad Language, Sensual Kissing, Characters sleep with each other despite knowing very little about each other
The Bourne Supremacy [PG-13]	X		Violence & Bad Language
The Bourne Ultimatum [PG-13]	X		Violence & Bad Language
Brave [PG]	X	X
Bridge to Terabithia [PG]	X	X
The Bucket List [PG-13]	X		Some Cursing & Sexual References
Bugs Life [G]	X	X
Cacoon [PG-13]	X		Brief Nudity? Someone please confirm.
Captain America [PG-13]	X	X	Action/Violence
Captain America 2 [PG-13]	X	X
Captive 2015 [PG-13]	X		Drug Use
Cars [G]	X	X
Chariots of Fire [PG]	X	X
Charlotte’s Web [G]	X	X
Charly [PG]	X	X
Cheaper by the Dozen [PG]	X	X	Sexual References, Schoolyard name calling
Chicken Run [G]	X	X	I found this movie too scary for children under age of 4-5
Christmas Child [NR]	X	X
Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe [PG]	X	X
Cinderella Story [PG]	X	X
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs [PG]	X	X
Cool Runnings [PG]	X		Quick Kissing Scene, Some Foul Language
Cop and a Half [PG]	X	X	Mild Language, Violence
Cop Out [R]			“Horrible Language, Massively Inappropriate” “F every other word”
Courageous [PG-13]	X
Cranford BBC Series [G]	X	X
Dead Man Walking [R]	X		Murder, Rape Scene at a distance, some bad language
Dead Silence [PG-13]	X	X	Clean Language (some use of “hell”), Frightening scenes
Deep Impact [PG-13]	X	X
Deja Vu [PG-13]			Violence & Terror
Die Hard: Live Free, Die hard [PG-13]	X		Violence & Bad Language
Despicable Me [PG]	X	X
Despicable Me 2 [PG]	X	X
Dumbo [G]	X	X
Dustin Checks In [PG]	X	X	Mild Language, Sensuality
The Emperor’s New Groove [G]	X	X
Ella Enchanted [PG]	X	X
Encanto [PG]	X	X	Encanto is one of the better films with good themes and messaging from Disney in my opinion.
End of the Spear [PG-13]	X
Eternals [PG-13]			Most Marvel movies has been relatively clean but this one is NOT. There is a sex scene (tho mostly covered) that would be completely unexpected for parents if taking kids thinking it’s just another Marvel movie. Be aware.
Evan Almighty [PG]	X	X
Ever After [PG]	X	X	Death of Father & Scary Scene with Villian unsuitable for the very young
Facing the Giants [PG]	X
Fiddler on the Roof [G]	X	X
Finding Nemo [G]	X	X
Fireproof [PG]	X	X
First Dog	X	X
Five Mile Creek Disney Series [NR]	X	X
Forrest Gump [PG-13]
Fried Green Tomatoes [PG-13]	X	X	“very minimal language, sad death scene” – J Rae
Frozen [PG]	X	X	Actually a good message about true love. Really flipped the script on “love at first site” and pining for a prince. Focused on sibling love. Awesome.
Frozen 2 [PG]	X	X
The Fugitive [PG-13]	X	X	Violence. Murder Scene.
Galaxy Quest [PG]	X	X	Older Kids 8+, minimal violence, positive msg
Gifted Hands The Ben Carson Story [NR]	X	X
Gladiator [R]	X		Extreme Violence
Glory Road [PG]	X	X
God’s not dead [PG]	X
Goonies [PG]	X		Kids curse
Gravity [PG-13]	X		“Gravity has some foul language and would be very scary to a child.”
The Great Escape [NR]	X	X
The Greatest Game Ever Played [PG]	X	X
Groundhog Day [PG]	X		Romantic Comedy. Mild Profanity, No nudity but implied sex
Happy Feet [PG]	X	X
Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince [PG]	X	X	Major Teen Love Drama
Heaven Can Wait [PG]	X	X
The Help [PG-13]	X	X	Few scenes may be too mature for kids. 1 character suffers miscarriage, another victim of domestic violence, but viewers doesn’t see anything. Police office hits black woman. All around safe, clean film.
Hitch [PG-13]	X		Shows people in bed together before marriage
The Hobbit [PG-13]	X		Lot of Violence. Clean Film for Adults.
Home Alone [PG]	X	X
Homeward Bound Series [G]	X	X
Horton Hears a Who [G]	X	X
Hotel for Dogs [PG]	X	X
How to Train Your Dragon [PG]	X	X
Hugo [PG]	X	X
Ice Age [PG]	X	X
Ice Princess [G]	X	X
Inception [PG-13]	X		Violence. Slightly disturbing scenes. Suicide.
Indiana Jones Series [PG-13]	X	X	Temple of Doom has some upsetting, graphic scenes.
Incredibles [G]	X	X
Infernal Affairs (Cantonese) [R]	X		Violence
The Inheritance Hallmark [NR]	X	X
Inside Out [PG-13]	X	X
Iron Giant [PG]	X	X
Iron Will [PG]	X	X
The Italian Job [PG-13]	X		Mild Language, Violence, Shows girl in bra
John Q [PG-13]	X	X
Jurassic Park [PG-13]	X	X
Jurassic World [PG-13]	X		Dinosaurs eating humans
Kings Speech [R]	X		One Scene where speech therapist has the main character curse the F word numerous times as part of the treatment. Other than that, it’s a clean movie.
Kung Fu Hustle [R]			Mild and cartoon-like violence
Kung Fu Panda [G]	X	X
Lady and the Tramp [G]	X	X
The Lake House [PG]	X		Language, Disturbing Images
The Land Before Time [G]	X	X	Entire Series
The Land of Oz [PG]	X	X
Lark Rises to Candleford BBC [NR]	X	X	shows superstitions of village people
The Last Airbender [PG]	X	X
Last Chance Harvey [PG-13]	X	X
The Last Samurai [R]	X		Action/Violence/Gore Sensual Scene
The Lego Movie [PG]	X	X
Letters to Juliet [PG]	X	X
Life is Beautiful [PG-13]	X		Holocaust Themes
Life on Liberty Street [NR]	X		Holocaust Themes
Lilo & Stitch [PG]	X	X
Lion King [G]	X	X
Little Giants [PG]	X	X
Little Mermaid [G]	X	X	“Does anyone find it problematic that the main character is barely wearing anything and is super skinny and what kind of effect it has on a girl’s self-perception and guy’s view towards girls? I do.” Another issue is the underlying theme of rebelling against her father, feeling I know what is best for me even as a child, and all to pursue a ‘love’ grounded on superficial things like looks and curiosity. Movie was fun, but the message.
Little Rascals [PG]	X	X	#1 & #2
Love Comes Softely [NR]	X	X
Lord of the Rings – Fellowship of the Ring [PG-13]	X	X	Violence
Lord of the Rings – Return of the King [PG-13]	X	X	Violence
Lord of the Rings – Two Towers [PG-13]	X	X	Violence
Lorenzo’s Oil [PG-13]	X	X
Madagascar [PG]	X	X
The Magic of Ordinary Days Hallmark [NR]	X	X
A Man for All Seasons [G]	X	X
Mandie and the Secret Tunnel [NR]	X	X
Masterless [PG-13]	X	X
The Matrix [R]	X
Marry Poppins [G]	X	X
The Messengers [PG-13]	X	X	Clean Language, Frightening scenes
Miracle [PG]	X	X
Miracle Dogs [N/A]	X	X	#1 & #2
Miss Potter [PG]	X	X	Mild Language
Mission Impossible 3 [PG-13]	X		Intense Action
Moana [PG]	X	X	Clean Movie. Note there is definitely a bit of a theme around a child believing they know better than parents and taking risks, but it’s not as bad as other films. Lack of “romantic” story is refreshing.
Monsters Inc [G]	X	X
Monsters & Aliens [PG]	X	X	Potty Humor
Moondance Alexander [G]	X	X
Mulan [G] Animated	X	X
Muppets, The [G]	X	X
My Big Fat Greek Wedding [PG-13]	X		Non-sexual scene, but implied between unwed partners
My Girl [PG]	X	X
Nanny Mcfee [PG]	X	X
My Spy [PG]	X	X	Clean. Fun.
Napolean Dynamite [PG]	X	X	It’s one of those love it or hate it movies..
National Treasure [PG]	X	X
The Negotiator [R]	X		Violence & Bad Language
Newsies [PG]	X	X
Night at the Museum [PG]	X	X	Mild Flirting, Checking a girl out, can be a little scary for very young children
The North and South BBC [NR]	X	X
Oliver and Company [G]	X	X
The Other Guys [PG-13]			“Horrible Language, Massively Inappropriate” Not for Kids.
Overboard [PG]			Some Bad Language & Sexual Content
Passion of the Christ [R]			Gore, Beatings
Pay it Forward [PG-13]	X		Mature Elements, Substance Abuse, Sad Parts, Sexual Citations, Language
Penelope [PG]	X	X	Some Innuendo
Perfect Man [PG]	X	X
Pink Panther 2006 [PG]			Beyonce’s clothing are tight fitting & revealing. Sexual innuendos. Should be PG-13.
Pirates of the Caribbean [PG-13]	X	X	Some Violence
Pride & Prejudice [PG]	X	X
Prince of Egypt [PG]	X	X
Princess Bride [PG]	X	X
Princess Dairies [G]	X	X
Protocol [PG]			Some Bad Language & Sexual Content
Pursuit of Happiness [PG-13]	X	X	Some Bad Language
Raising Arizona [PG-13]	X	X
Raising Helen [PG-13]	X		Thematic theme issues involving teens
Ratatouille [G]	X	X
Remember the Titans [PG]	X	X
Return to Snowy River [PG]	X	X	Mild Language
Road to Avonlea Sullivan Series [G]	X	X
The Rookie [G]	X	X
Saints & Soldiers [PG-13]			Originally rated R, cut down to lower rating, War Violence. Mormon Sniper?
The Sandlot [PG]	X	X	For-e-ver. For-e-ver. (#1 & 2 both OK)
Saving Private Ryan [R]	X		Lots of Violence (War Movie)
Schindler’s List [R]			Violence, Holocaust Themes
Second Hand Wedding [PG]	X	X	Young Couple living together. Teenage Appropriate
The Secret Garden [G]	X	X
Secret of Nimh [G]	X	X	Both #1 and 2 are clean
Secrets of Jonathan Sperry [PG]	X	X	Both #1 and 2 are clean
Series of Unfortunate Events [PG]	X		Dark / Sad Movie
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers [G]	X	X
Seven Pounds [PG-13]			Sexual Content, Bad Language, Adult Theme [Suicide]
Shadowlands [PG]	X	X
The ShawShank Redemption [R]			Bad Language, Prison Violence
Shrek 3 [PG]			Tons of Sexual Innuendos, Adult Humor
Sign of the Beaver [N/A]	X	X
Signs [PG-13]	X	X	Few curse words, scary but no gore
Sixth Sense [PG-13]	X		There is a scene where you see a fuzzy silhouette of the wife in the shower. The focus in the scene is elsewhere though. Too scary for kids.
Sleepless in Seattle [PG]	X	X	Two bad words, couple sexual innuendos
Social Network [R]			Not Clean – that’s why its Rated R!
Somewhere in Time [PG]	X	X
Soul [PG]	X	X	Topics are around death and afterlife.
Spy Kids [PG]	X	X
Stand and Deliver [PG]	X	X
Star Trek [PG-13]			Several Sexual Innuendos, Short Sexual Scene
Star Wars – Original Trilogy [PG]	X	X
Stardust [PG-13]	X		Fantasy Violence, Risque Humor
Stormbreaker [PG]	X	X	PG for Action Sequences
Stuart Little [PG]	X	X	Includes: Stuart 1, 2 and 3
Sugarland Express [PG]	X	X	Great for Older kids. Young won’t get the humor.
Summer of the Monkeys [G]	X	X
Sweet Home Alabama [PG-13]	X		Language, Sexual References
Sword in the Stone [G]	X	X
Sydney White [PG-13]	X		Mild Language, Sexual Humor, Partying, Nudity implied but not seen
The Tale of Despereaux [G]	X	X
Tarzan [G]	X	X
Thor [PG-13]	X
Though None Go With Me [PG]	X	X
Time Traveler’s Wife [PG-13]			Rear End Nudity, Sexuality, Bad Language
Total Recall [R]			1990 Version. Profanity, Violence, Bed Scene
Toy Story [G]	X	X
Toy Story 2 [G]	X	X
Toy Story 3 [G]	X	X	A little intense for young kids. Sneaky reference to “Nice As..cot”
The Treasure Seekers [N/A]	X	X
True Grit [PG-13]	X		Violence
Truman Show [PG]	X	X
Try Try Again [N/A]	X	X
Two Week’s Notice [PG-13]	X		Sexual Related Humor, Language
The Ultimate Gift [PG]	X	X
Unbreakable [PG-13]	X	X
UP [PG]	X	X
US Marshall [PG-13]	X	X
The Village [PG-13]	X	X	No Cursing, Some frightening scenes
A Walk to Remember [PG]	X	X	Some Sensual Material
Wall-E [G]	X	X
Wallace & Gromit [G]	X	X
The Waterhorse [PG]	X	X
Veggie Tales [G]	X	X	Includes all Veggie Tale Titles. See Comments for Fuller List
The Wager [N/A]	X	X	Family Friendly
War Horse [PG-13]	X
War Room [PG]	X
We are Marshall [PG]	X	X	“grab your box of tissue! it’s sad- tells the story of a town and how they dealt with the tradegy of their football team’s plane crash- sad but definately uplifting!” Note: At least 7 “s” words, 10 hells, 5 damns and few others.
We Were Soldiers [R]	X		“Extreme Violence, but Excellent Message”
What Dreams May Come [PG-13]	X	X
The Winter Stallion [N/A]	X	X
What the Deaf Man Heard Hallmark [NR]	NA	NA
When Calls teh Heart [TV]	X	X
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town [PG]	X	X
White You Were Sleeping [PG]	X	X	Some Sexual References and Kissing. Mild Language
Wild Hearts Can’t be Broken [PG]	X	X	Mild Language
Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder) [G]	X	X	May be scary for small children
World War Z [PG-13]
The Young Victoria [PG]	X	X	“some sensual material bw the married couple but no sexual scenes, mild language”
You’ve Got Mail [PG]	X		Father & Grandfather being involved with series of younger women portrayed as humorous. Scene about Cyber Sex. People living together before marriage. Parents should explain talking to strangers online is never good.
Zathura [PG]	X	X
Zeus and Roxanne [PG]	X	X	“Zeus is a little dog and Roxanne is a dolphin, and how they manage to bring a lonely man with a son and a career woman with two teenagers together. Sweet movie!”

Please take a minute to contribute some movies!
It would help a lot if you noted the movie rating!

This will take a long while to become a comprehensive list but slowly and surely we’ll build out this list!

Movies

Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince Movie Review

July 20, 2009 13 Comments

Harry Potter<br /> <h2>Half Blood Prince - Movie Review

Harry Potter (2009)

Primary Audience: Teens, Adults
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance
Length: 2 hr. 33 min.
Rated: PG

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley), Emma Watson (Hermione Granger), Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), Alan Rickman (Prof Severus Snape), Michael Gambon (Dumbledore), Helena Bonham Carter, Jim Broadbent, Robbie Coltrane, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis
Director: David Yates
Producer: Warner Bros. Pictures, Heyday Films
Writers: Steve Kloves, J.K. Rowling

The Bulletpoint Movie Review: Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince

Pros:

Movie Making Quality – Best of the Series (Cinematography, Special Effects)
Enjoyable – One of the more enjoyable in the movie series.

Cons:

No Character Development
Plot Development Lacking
Teenage Love Drama – Half of the film was all about crushes and love triangles, while the actual plot development and character development was lacking. Bad Priorities.
Faithfulness to Book – Not very faithful to the book (large gaps and missing scenes)

Extras:

Very Dark Throughout– Not a film for the family. Kids would be scared out of their minds.
Underlying Messages – Teenage Love Drama is “cute” but sends way too many inappropriate messages to the youth culture.

Movies, TV Shows

Ever Fading Sensitivity to Violence in Media

July 10, 2009 No Comments

Wu Fei (吴非), is a school teacher who often contributes to several different newspapers and textbooks. She maintains a blog that covers issues in contemporary education. Utilizing the movie Schindler’s List she wrote a post discussing the need to be careful in the way we expose children to the tragedies of human history and the evil of humanity. She believes there needs to be an emphasis on kindness and understanding or these cruelties can be taken the wrong way.

Personally, I really like the post, because it indirectly brings up the issue of our ever fading sensitivity to what we should be viewing with disgust and shame. That is media’s influence at it’s best.

I’ve pasted the entire translation below.
Credit to Danwei for the translation.

Unendurable Brutality

by Wu Fei

The script to Schindler’s List has been selected for inclusion in a middle school textbook.* From the standpoint of both language arts and humanities education, this is a necessary step forward. Secondary education should make students aware that the history of human civilization contains such instances of violence against civilization and humanity.

Articles, Movies

Star Trek 2009: Movie Review – Themes Galore

May 25, 2009 4 Comments

Star Trek (2009)

Primary Audience: Teens, Adults
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action
Length: 2 Hour 6 Minutes
Rated: PG-13

Starring: Chris Pine (James T. Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Spock), Leonard Nimoy (Spock Prime), Eric Bana, Bruce Greenwood, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Ben Cross, Winona Ryder, Chris Hemsworth, Jennifer Morrison
Director: J.J. Abrams (Felicity, Alias, Lost, Mission Impossible III, Cloverfield)
Producer: Bad Robot, Paramount Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment

Is Star Trek Action Packed as the Trailer?

Have you seen the Star Trek trailer? The Star Trek trailer makes the movie seem like an edge-of-your-seat action packed movie. There are a lot of movies where the movie itself doesn’t do the trailer justice, however this is not one of them. Star Trek was a visual treat and an extremely well made movie. With the latest in CGI technology, space travel has never been so fun and visually pleasing. The trailer showed a lot of action and the movie made good on it’s promise.

Do I need to be a Trekkie to Enjoy the Movie?

Absolutely not, though I imagine this movie is going to create a lot of new fans and a huge boost in sales of older Star Trek DVDs. Though this movie is a prequel to the original star trek series, the movie has enough content and story in itself to be very enjoyable. I myself am not a trekkie. I’ve only seen clips of a few episodes and saw one star trek movie. Of course Star Trek fans of old would enjoy this movie all the more knowing the future histories of many of the characters such as Kirk, Spock, Dr. McCoy, Scottie, Uhura, Sulu and Chekov.

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