watching movies - spin-off of Transformers movie

my2monkeyboys wrote: I asked in an earlier post about the Transformers movie bc Will is wanting to see it really, really bad. It just got me wondering how important the rating is when it comes to what movies you let your kids watch, and what other factors there are.

I say rating plays a big part, as in most all G and PG movies I'll let him watch, and a handful of PG-13 ones have passed. I don't like him watching things that are sexual or that have really bad words in them. A mild expletive here or there doesn't bother me much. We just talk about how we don't repeat things we hear just bc someone else says it. One movie I was shocked at was The Hulk. The movie was cool, Will was really liking it and then the military man said G -- D---. I just about fell out, then I looked and saw it was PG 13. Of course we discussed that at length (I just really HATE that word), but it'll be quite a while before I let him see that again.

Celestrina replied: 90% of my decision is based on ratings. If it is above a pg-13 rating, he will not see it. The occasional pg he might get to see, depending on why it was rated pg. We still will take a closer look at all things he watches, but the rating helps us weed out what would be inappropriate. Ben has been bugging us non-stop to see the Transformers too. It didn't help that DH got him a few little Transformers action figures to take on their trip. They just look like the robot form; they can't transform. Not as expensive and much harder to break. Perfect toys for a trip.

luvmykids replied: Ratings are a factor but I rely on my own judgement a lot more. There have been movies rated G that I still haven't let them see just because I know my kids and know they would be scared/sad/upset, etc.

PG-13 I won't even consider right now just because of personal preference. It's mostly G and PG that I decide for myself wether they'll watch or not.

My3LilMonkeys replied: I rely more on my own perception of the movie than the ratings. If the rating is higher mainly because of mature content that I know will go right over their heads since they are so young, they can watch it. I'm not so concerned about bad words (yet) either since Brooke has only repeated one once (and that was from my sister) and Madison has never tried. If they were to start repeating them in the future that would of course change the way I feel about them. My big key is violence at this point - I try not to expose them to too much of it.

A perfect example that will probably get me flamed as a bad parent is Family Guy. Brooke loves it and watches it frequently.

redplaydoh replied: We're still G rated, maybe a PG but then again I have a 3 and 4 year old so they are only interested in the G stuff now. In the future I will probably want to pre-screen movies.

Nudity doesn't bother me much, sexual stuff and bad language does. Nudity is viewed a lot differently here in Europe. It's not unusual to see quite a bit of nudity in commercials during the day.

redplaydoh replied: I was thinking of some of those commercials and found one still shot from one of the commercials that I'll post in P&I since it wouldn't be appropriate in a G rated forum.

The commercials are really neat and are part of the Stop Aids campaign. One shows two women fencing in the nude and my personal favorite is of a male hockey team playing in the nude... with the meaning behind it that you wouldn't do this activity unprotected, therefore you shouldn't do other activites unprotected.

mom21kid2dogs replied: To a large extent I rely on the rating system for both movies and TV. She didn't watch Y7 stuff on TV until she was 6. That is the highest I go on TV and PG is the highest I go on movies, period. There are also several PG movies that she cannot see, ie Bridge to Terabithia, a movie, which by the advertising was clearly geared to children but was highly innappropriate children under 10 or 12. In addition to the movie rating system, I also rely on a select group of friends who have the same values as I do to give me input. I always read the review of it as well.

I always refuse to take Olivia to anything PG13 primarily to send a "shout out" to the movie industry. It is completely unecessary to make a movie primarily geared for children and construct it so that it earns a PG 13 rating. When using actors as opposed to cartoon images, it adds a lifelike dimension to the movie that move it from fantasy to reality in the child mind, thus making the image more real and more terrifying. Just because I see it and think it's OK, it won't necessarily translate that way in my daughter's mind. Also, she's VERY visual in her learning style so those images tend to stay with her far longer than things she hears only.

I'm probably as far afield from liking any kind of "big Brother" intervention in my life as one can be. I do, however, find the rating system to be consistent and helpful especially since it would be pretty impossible for me to "preview" the movie before we see it.

luvbug00 replied: No ratings matter here.

I pre-view it and she watches it if i deem it ok.

Hillbilly Housewife replied: We will watch it together if it's pg 13, and I use every opportunity to teach my kids about negative and positive behaviours. We talk a lot about what we see and why it's good or bad etc...

my2monkeyboys replied: I read an article on line yesterday at my mom's house. It was saying how movies rated 10-12 years ago were rated much harsher than today, meaning that movies that are pg-13 now would have been rated R back then, and PG now would PG 13 then.
I think that could very well be true bc we've all allowed ourselves to become desensitized to things, so naturally what was really bad back then is not so bad to us now. I don't think that it should be that way, I think it just is.

gr33n3y3z replied:
same here

Boo&BugsMom replied: Tanner is 5, so his restrictions are still quite tight. Nothing PG-13. Even many PG movies are a bit too mature for him. The ratings aren't the only factor, but it is a huge factor in deciding what he can watch.

alice&arik replied: I will usually watch a movie first if it is PG-13 or higher.

I don't think the rating system is correct these days. I was disgusted when one of the Backyardigans said "Son of a blank" I can't remember what word they said, it wasn't the bad word. They also sang a song that I didn't quite agree on. That is supposed to be preschool age.

There are some cartoons I won't let him watch like Family Guy, Simpsons, stuff like that. They just have some inappropriate stuff in them.

momtoMegan&Alyxandria replied: I don't often use the rating system other than if the movie is rated R, then Meg is not watching it. She does watch PG-13 movies with me so long as they don't have a lot of sexual comments or scenes. I will have to say though, Meg doesn't have your "normal" 8 year ideas as to what is good on tv. She loves most of the shows on Nick, but her favorite show that we watch together is Ghost Whisper. She begs to stay home and watch it. She gets upset with me when we do our grocery shopping on Friday nights instead of Sat. We watch alot of things that most kids would find very scary, but she really enjoys them and she doesn't have bad dreams about them. She has been watching the Harry Potter movies since the first one came out. We discuss the difference between what is real and what is on tv/movies. She knows that it is entertainment and not something to believe is real.
If you think about it though there are so many movies out there that are geared for kids that I laugh harder at then say Meg would. Thats because they have adult references that are above the kids heads. One that stands out is Shrek. All three of them had humor for the adults as well as for the kids. But, it was targeted to the kids, not us. We did see the Bridge to Terabithia together in which we BOTH cried very hard, but then the movie was over and everything was fine. She even liked the movie. I think the choices we make for our child(ern)s tv/movie viewing (at least mine is) is based on our childrens maturity levels and also how we were raised.

luvmykids replied:
Yeah, I learned that when I let Colt watch a western rated PG and didn't realize until much later that it was based on the OLD rating guidelines. Cheryl had the same thing happen with Raiders of the Lost Ark (I believe)