A friend of mine, Kelly (from Journey’s With Kelly), has been telling me about a website from Focus on The Family which reviews movies, t.v., music, and video games. While I have not taught my 6 year old how to even turn on the t.v. (thus ensuring I am always in control of what she watches), I saw last week what a useful tool this is for parents.
Here was the scenario: Kelly is in S.C. on a trip with us, and her brother calls. He is taking her 10 year old son to the movies. They were going to watch “Wall-E” but they have no viewings for the night. They are standing outside the theater and want to know if they can go see “The Incredible Hulk”. Rather than simply complying, she knew how to easily know whether this was something she would allow him to see. She went to the computer and pulled up PluggedInOnline, and found the review of “The Incredible Hulk”. She found the “no” she was looking for. Her conviction? “Sorry buddy it uses God’s name in vain”, end of discussion.
After looking at the site I found what I like most about this site is it gives you the facts, and the facts that a Christian, religious, or moral parent, would want to know. The categories they review for the movies are: Positive Elements – What good or moral lessons they may draw from this movie; Spiritual Content – Whatever spiritual connotations it may hold. i.e.- “the hulk” meditates, in the movie “Hancock” he is viewed as a descendant of “the gods”; Sexual Content– Even tells you if there are innuendos; Violent Content; Crude or Profane Language; Drug And Alcohol Content; Other Negative Elements- Example in “the hulk” it appears the military leader seems to not care about the lives of his soldiers more than his own agenda.
One great point Kelly made is that it is not necessarily that you may or may not let your child (according to age) see certain things, but you are made aware in advance of the content you may have to discuss with your child. For example in the latest Superman movie there was an illegitimate child, and this brought discussion with her 10 year old son, who is adopted and asks questions concerning his birth mother and the circumstances surrounding his conception. This actually, in her opinion, was a positive thing, as the movie actually helped to open the dialogue between them. She was prepared for the discussion because this site made her better informed of the content the movie would hold.
Obviously my opinion is that this is a great and useful tool for all parents of children of all ages. So check it out at PluggedInOnline.com