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.
Three friends reminisce about growing up in Inglewood,
California while one is having doubts about going through with his wedding that afternoon.
With Taye Diggs, Omar Epps, Richard T. Jones, Sean Nelson, Trent Cameron, Duane Finley,
Malinda Williams, Patricia Belcher, De'aundre Bonds, La'Myia Good, Telma Hopkins, Tamala
Jones, Sanaa Lathan, LisaRaye, Cynthia Martells, Aiysha Sinclair, Elayn Taylor and Basil
Wallace. [1:52]
SEX/NUDITY 6 - Lots of sexual innuendo (including many references to
erections) and a few kisses. A boy and girl kiss passionately, then she unzips his pants,
takes off her skirt and gets into bed while he puts on a condom (we see the condom in his
hands, but don't see anything else); they awkwardly and briefly have intercourse with
slight movement (there's an interruption after the condom breaks and he has to find
another one) and we briefly see the front of his underwear, his bare chest and a bit of
her bra. A couple kisses passionately and it's implied that she briefly performs
fellatio (we see his pants being unzipped and see them bunched around his ankles). Boys
make a bet to see who can have sexual intercourse first, and we see a montage of short
scenes during which they try to convince girls to sleep with them: a boy appears to be
showing a girl his genitals, a boy has his hand between a girl's spread legs and we
see her pleased expression and a boy tells a girl about "blue balls" (no nudity
is seen in any of the scenes). A shirtless and apparently sexually frustrated boy pours
ice water on his genitals (we only see him from the waist up). A man slaps a woman's
clothed buttocks, a boy grabs a girl's clothed buttocks and a boy holds a girl's
clothed buttocks as they dance slowly. A boy and girl dancing very closely are moved apart
by an adult and a boy passionately kisses and dances with a stuffed animal, pretending
it's a girl. Lots of camera shots focusing on girls' legs, clothed buttocks and
clothed breasts; also, a couple of discussions about girls' buttocks. A few times
it's implied a boy has an erection; in one scene, he holds a folder in front of his
clothed groin and in another, the girl he's dancing with feels his erection. We see
two men's bare backsides and a nude man covering his genitals as they're all
showering. We see some women in cleavage-revealing tops and short skirts/shorts; in one
scene, a woman wears a sports bra.
VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - A girl punches and slaps a boy's back after he grabs
her buttocks, a man holds another by the back of the neck (it's comical rather than
violent) and a man pushes some boys and repeatedly punches another, giving him a slightly
bloody lip. A couple of slaps and some scuffling and shoving. A girl makes a menacing
"you're dead" slicing gesture across her neck to a boy. A man threatens a
storeowner with a gun during a robbery. Police force a group of boys to put their hands
behind their heads and stand against a wall while being frisked. We see a man vomit lots
of fluid all over the inside of a car and we see wet spots on his shirt (as well as two
other men's shirts).
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 10 - 55 F-words and lots of anatomical references (including many
slang terms), scatological references, mild obscenities, insults and racial slurs (used
among friends, not used maliciously). [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Male friendships, teen sexuality, weddings, marriage,
marijuana use, gangs.
MESSAGE - Strong friendships remain intact throughout all stages of life.
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"