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.
In order for a smitten high school boy to take out the girl
of his dreams, he must find someone brave enough to date her older, temperamental sister.
Based on Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew." With Heath Ledger, Julia
Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, David Krumholtz, Andrew Keegan, Larry
Miller, David Leisure, Susan May Pratt and Gabrielle Union. [1:30]
SEX/NUDITY 4 - Lots of sexual innuendo (including references to masturbation
and homosexuality). Kissing, sometimes passionately. A boy draws breasts onto a tray and
draws a penis onto a boy's face. A girl dances suggestively on top of a table. A girl
flashes her breasts at a man (we only see part of her bare back) and many girls wear
cleavage- and midriff-revealing tops.
VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - A boy riding a moped is nearly hit by a car; when he
swerves to avoid the car, he drives down a hill and eventually falls off his moped (he's
shaken but unharmed). Also a girl intentionally backs her car into a boy's car and dents
its door. A girl accidentally shoots a man with an arrow (the scene is more comical than
violent). There are a number of shoving punches and scuffles: A boy pushes a boy down and
punches another, a girl punches a boy in the face twice and knees him in the groin (we see
him writhing in pain on the floor), a girl bumps a boy in the head with her bag, and two
boys fall through glass doors. A girl knocks down another while playing soccer, a boy is
knocked out when he's hit in the head with a golf ball and a girl hits her head on a
chandelier and falls off a table (she's caught before she hits the ground). We see someone
fall past a window. We briefly see students dissecting frogs, and we hear a girl throw up.
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 4 - Lots of anatomical references (a couple are clinical terms and
one is seen in a subtitle), many scatological references, many mild obscenities, many
insults and lots of name-calling. [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Protective parents, dating, falling in love, being different,
teen smoking, drinking and marijuana use, sexuality, deception.
MESSAGE - Don't let past pain keep you from experiencing new and exciting
things.
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"
