Unlike the MPAA we do not assign
one
inscrutable rating based on age, but 3 objective ratings for SEX/NUDITY, VIOLENCE/GORE
and PROFANITY on a scale of 0 to 10, from lowest to highest,
depending on quantity and context.
Weeks before defending their national championship title, a
cheerleading squad realizes that their routines were stolen from an inner-city squad and
must decide how to save their reputation and their title. With Kirsten Dunst, Jesse
Bradford, Eliza Dushku, Gabrielle Union, Clare Kramer, Melissa George, Tsianina Joelson,
Rini Bell, Nicole Bilderback, Shamari Fears, Natina Reed, Brandi Williams, Huntley Ritter,
Ian Roberts and Nathan West. [1:40]
SEX/NUDITY 4 - Some sexual innuendo and a few kisses. A boy tells a few
other people that he often touches a girl's genitals while lifting her up during a
cheerleading routine; in one scene where we see the routine, it's implied by the girl's
facial expression that he's doing so. A boy stretches a girl's leg in a way that looks
like they're involved in a sexual act (she also says a mild double entendre). We briefly
see a boy rolling back into bed where a girl is already lying; in a later scene, we see
the girl in bra and panties getting dressed. A boy grabs his clothed crotch in front of
another boy (he's insulting him); a boy pushes his tongue on the inside of his cheek,
simulating fellatio; and a boy wiggles his tongue at a girl. During a cheer, two girls
touch their clothed breasts and another smacks her own clothed buttocks. Several times
during the movie people make mild references to others being homosexual. A boy wears a
cheerleader's spandex panties on his head. Cheerleaders flip up their skirts and show
their panty-clad buttocks to another group of cheerleaders. During cheerleader tryouts, a
girl in a cleavage-revealing top and tiny spandex shorts dances suggestively on a table in
front of a boy. Throughout the film we see lots of cheerleaders in midriff-revealing tops,
sports bras and short skirts; we also see several other girls in cleavage- and
midriff-revealing tops, and in one scene we see several girls in bikinis and several
shirtless boys washing cars (one girl rubs her chest against the hood of a car, and
another jokingly strokes a car antenna). In a locker room scene, we see a few girls in
bras with towels wrapped around their waists (one's panties are also visible). A
cheerleader dreams that she loses her shirt in front of many people at an assembly (we see
her bare back, shoulders and arms).
VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - Mostly played for laughs. It's implied that a cheerleader
falls from the top of a pyramid; we see her in a neck brace being wheeled into an
ambulance, then later see her with a leg cast and crutches. A woman swats a boy's neck
with a book, a group of girls act as if they're going to beat up two other girls, a man
snaps a girl's buttocks with a towel, a man flicks the tip of a girl's nose, a girl smacks
the side of a boy's head, a man smashes a stool against a floor, a little girl lightly
punches a girl's legs, two girls get into a mild slapping fight, girls jump onto and hit a
man during the closing credits, and a couple of people shove each other. During a football
game we see many players being tackled with loud thuds. A girl has a very bloody nose,
presumably after falling during a cheerleading competition. A girl vomits all over a
woman's face. A boy purposely passes gas on a girl.
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 4 - One bleeped-out F-word and two F-word derivatives in the
closing credits, several profane finger gestures, lots of anatomical references, many
scatological references, many mild obscenities, several insults, and some derogatory
remarks about homosexuals. [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Cheerleading squads, cheerleading competitions,
cheating, deception, independence, being a good leader, inner-city schools vs. suburban
schools, infidelity, homophobia.
MESSAGE - It's better to play fair and lose than to cheat and win.
(Note: The following material does not fall within any of the regular categories
but could be objectionable to some viewers: In one scene a man tells several girls that
they are overweight and that they must diet; he singles out one girl and makes disparaging
remarks about her buttocks.)
A CAVEAT: We've gone through several editorial changes since we
started covering films in 1992 and some of our early standards were
not as stringent as they are now. We therefore need to revisit many
older reviews, especially those written prior to 1998 or so; please
keep this in mind if you're consulting a review from that period.
While we plan to revisit and correct older reviews our resources are
limited and it is a slow, time-consuming process.
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