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.
A documentary look at three animal families across the globe and the difficulties they face in trying to survive: we follow polar bears, elephants and humpback whales. Narrated by James Earl Jones. Directed by Alastair Fothergill. [1:39]
SEX/NUDITY 0 - Many varieties of male Birds of Paradise dance and parade in a mating ritual (females either do not come to see them or fly away disinterested). We see two polar bear cubs nursing from their mother.
the review continues below...
VIOLENCE/GORE 4 - Many lions attack an elephant, the elephant runs, the lions jump on its back and bite and claw at it (we do not see the elephant taken down, but it is implied that the lions killed it). ► A wolf attacks a caribou calf, both run for a great distance, and the wolf snatches the tail of the calf when is stumbles (we do not see blood or the wolf devouring the caribou). ► A cheetah stalks and chases a gazelle, the gazelle trips, and the cheetah bites its throat (we see no blood or eating). ► A great white shark leaps out of the water and catches a seal in its mouth (we see no blood but we see the fins of the seal sticking out of the shark's mouth). ► A polar bear tries to attack walruses: we hear that the walrus tusks cut like knives and the polar bear can be killed, the polar bear chases one walrus into the water and they struggle briefly (the polar bear gives up). A polar bear collapses and lies motionless (it is implied that the bear died of starvation). ► We see a polar bear scavenging for food and hear that there is a limited amount of time that it will be able to hunt before the ice melts. We hear that a polar bear may drown because the ice has melted and it must continue to swim. We hear that a polar bear may starve to death. We hear that a polar bear has not eaten for 5 months. We hear that it is unlikely that polar bear cubs will survive their first year. We hear that an elephant mother and calf have been separated from the herd and are unprotected. We see an elephant calf following the footsteps of its mother, but hear that it is going in the wrong direction (it is implied that the elephant will die on its own). We hear that a humpback whale is starving and must get to a far away body of water to feed. We hear that rain forests are starting to dry up because of changes in weather patterns and that deserts are getting larger. ► Elephants struggle to keep lions away from their young. An elephant calf appears very weak. We see sailfish feeding on huge schools of fish. We see several baby ducks jump out of a nest in a tree and fall, uninjured, onto a pile of leaves below (they cannot fly yet). ► We see a bubbling fungus growing and spreading on the ground in the tropical rain forest. A monkey shoves many pieces of fruit in its mouth (its face and mouth are stretched to extreme).
DISCUSSION TOPICS - The Earth, global climate changes, the polar icecap melting, survival in the wild, natural beauty, seasons, climate extremes, familial relationships, predators.
MESSAGE - Life on Earth is beautiful but precarious.
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.
Become a member: You can subscribe
for as little as $1 per month and gain access to our premium site,
which contains no ads whatsoever. Think about it: You'll be
helping support our site and guarantee that we will continue to
publish, and you will be able to browse without any commercial
interruptions.
2.
Tell all your friends:
Please recommend kids-in-mind.com to
your friends and acquaintances; you'll be helping them by
letting them know how useful our site is, while helping us by
increasing our readership. Since we do not advertise, the best
and most reliable way to spread the word is by word-of-mouth.
3.
Alert local & national media:
Let major media know why you trust our ratings.
Call or e-mail a local newspaper, radio station or TV channel
and encourage them to do a story about our site. Since we do not have a PR firm working for us, you can
be our media ambassadors.
"This is an excellent resource for
families. Merits two thumbs up...[Finally] movie ratings that actually
work"
