Archive for December, 2009

Family Movie Reviews

Family movie reviews are a great way to find films that will appropriately entertain everyone in your home. In this post, I’ll be talking about a few elements that parents often pay attention to when selecting a movie, and I’ll end by recommending four quality sites devoted to family movie reviews.

Let’s begin by taking a look at the ratings handed down by the Motion Picture Association of America, also known as the MPAA. These are the ratings used for any film shown in U.S. theaters.

Movie Reviews for Parents - Besides offering family movie reviews, this site also provides suggestions on ways to talk to your kids about the films they’ve seen. Easy to navigate, the site can also be customized for kids from two to seventeen. DVD movie reviews are included, as well as reviews of new release movies.

Parent Previews – Looking for something that you and your kids can enjoy together? Then Parent Previews has everything you need. Each film is given a grade for violence, sexual content, language and alcohol/drug use, as well as an overall score. The site also has a growing family community where you can comment on movies, grade films, and just discuss whatever is on your mind.

Kids-In-Mind – All the latest movie reviews are included, as well as films that are hitting the home video market. Each film is given a 0 to 10 rating for violence/gore, profanity and sex/nudity. Discussion topics are provided so you can talk with your kids after the movie is over, and an overall of each film’s message is also included. This site stays away from recommending or condemning movies, preferring to allow readers to make up their own minds based on the content.

Family Movie Review – What better place to find family movie reviews than a site named Family Movie Review? DVD movies and new releases are examined from a Christian standpoint, which is excellent for any family of faith. A number of articles and essays are also available for your enjoyment, mainly focusing on the effects of television and cinema on children.

Now that you’re armed with the above information, finding suitable family movie reviews should be a snap. Whether you’re seeking entertainment for your toddler, tween or teen, the items we’ve discussed should have you covered. Now get out there and rent some movies!

And if you’re really interested in quality family films, here are a few more articles you’ll want to read:

The Latest Movie Reviews

The latest movie reviews enable cinema fans to know what’s hot and what’s not at their local multiplex.  While some movie reviewers use lots of fancy prose, others opt for a more simplistic approach.  And then you’ve got guys like Roger Ebert who manage to make every film review read like a masterpiece.
 
At A1 Movie Reviews, we have three critics who keep our readers informed of the latest movie reviews.  Yours truly, Shane Rivers, is one of the aforementioned critics, and I’m joined by Roxanne Downer and Gregor Turley.  Gregor lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, while Roxanne calls New York City her home. 
 
We also have a selection of critics dedicated to bringing you the latest movie reviews for quality DVD and Blu-ray releases.  These include: A. Jaye, a screenwriter and novelist based in the UK; Michael Muniz, a screenwriter and veteran of numerous film and television productions; and Tercius Bufete, a college student who’s served as a writer, web designer, cartoonist and video producer. 
 
Here are some of our most recent reviews of Hollywood’s latest movies:
 
Avatar – Written by Gregor Turley, this review takes on the latest special effects blockbuster from James Cameron.  Having written a review of the Avatar IMAX preview earlier in the year, I know he was really looking forward to this one.  It appears it was well worth the wait, as Gregor gave it four stars out of a possible five.  “When not echoing the environmental, ‘love thy native everything’ message of Costner’s western, the film piles on the parallels to Aliens, from the presence of Sigourney Weaver (who needlessly smokes and whose Na’vi avatar incongruously wears a Stanford shirt) to the space Marines, the brave Hispanic female soldier, the human-operated lifter robots, and Giovanni Ribisi taking Paul Reiser’s place as the smartass corporate flack.”
 
Sherlock Holmes – I wrote this review, giving the recent Robert Downey flick three stars out of five.  Here’s one of my favorite lines from the review:  “In the hands of Robert Downey, Jr., Sherlock Holmes is transformed from a cold, analytical curmudgeon into a Bohemian savant. Think Tony Stark if he were poor, manic depressive, and living in 19th century London. It’s hardly a stretch for the actor, but he does manage to imbue his character with a mad artistic zeal that will keep audiences rooting for him well into Sherlock Holmes: Part 2.”
 
Nine - This movie review of the latest project from Daniel Day-Lewis was written by Roxanne Downer, and she gave it a disappointed two stars out of five.  Here’s a sampling of her top-notch prose: “But half-dressed is a running theme for this film. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why the costumes from a film set in 1960s Italy looked liked they were from a movie that would be more aptly titled “Miss Kitty’s Old West Saloon and Brothel.” Either that, or a Vegas show starring one of Hugh Hefner’s Girls Next Door.”
 
Up in the Air – Gregor also reviewed this George Clooney film that’s getting a former ER star a lot of Oscar buzz.  It ranked 4 1/2 out of 5 stars, eliciting such praise as, “Director and co-scriptwriter Jason Reitman is to be commended for crafting such an amusing yet realistic comedy-drama. Following in his father’s footsteps — Ivan Reitman, coproducer of Up in the Air, directed such comedy classics as Stripes and Ghostbusters — Jason gets better with each film he makes, and this one is, like his previous film Juno, both a crowd-pleaser and a worthy contender for awards and critic’s best-of-the-year lists.”
 
Crazy Heart – Speaking of Oscar buzz, Jeff Bridges is getting his name thrown around for his portrayal of a washed-up country singer in Crazy Heart.  He’s already been nominated for a Golden Globe, and Roxanne gave the film a perfect five out of five stars.  “Still, Bridges’ unique gifts as an actor and previously unseen skill as a musician are what really sets this film apart.”
 
The Girlfriend Experience – On the DVD front, A. Jaye recently endured this experimental film from Steven Soderbergh and was less than impressed.  He gave it one star out of five, and I suspect he would’ve went even lower if it was allowed (our policy dictates that films get at least one star for the time and effort that goes into making a movie).  As he so bluntly put it, “The dialogue delivery is David Mamet without the wit or engaging intellect. There is no character development to be seen or heard.”

Each week, our site brings you the latest movie reviews, the latest DVD reviews, and even a few surprises like an interview with director Brant Sersen or a Q&A with actress Maggie Gyllenhaal.  As long as you keep visiting, we’ll keep cranking out the cinematic goodness.

Christian Movie Reviews

Christian movie reviews are popular with the churchgoing crowd, especially those seeking to protect their friends and family from the potential evils of a godless Hollywood. Most Christian movie review sites offer a rating on the film’s overall quality, as well as some manner of system to determine a picture’s moral worth. In case you’re wondering, here are a few elements that can quickly cause a film to gain a negative rating at a Christian review site:

Some Christian review sites will give a negative grade at the drop of a hat, while others tend to be a bit more open-minded. It’s all a matter of preference, and I certainly can’t begrudge people of faith having movie review sites that cater to their needs and beliefs. In order to help readers find the site that’s best-suited for them, I’ve listed a few available options. Whether you’re looking for the faithful or the irreverent, something below should catch your eye.

Christian Spotlight on Entertainment – Offers a Christian take on movies, plus the latest entertainment news for the faithful. Besides movie reviews and morality ratings, the site also features a daily prayer focus that asks Christians to pray for certain entertainers who’ve went astray. When I viewed the site, the individuals singled out for prayer were director Terrence Malick and Rush Limbaugh. Fatty needs all the help he can get, while no amount of prayer will erase the stinker that was The Thin Red Line.

In her review of 500 Days of Summer, Christian critic Thaisha Geiger gives the film a “Moral Rating” of “Offensive.” This is due to 22 instances of cursing, drinking, and the depiction of pre-marital sex. While she appears to like the film in general, Geiger hesitates to recommend the film based on the depiction of love without the presence of God.

I also couldn’t resist taking a look at the review for The Hangover. Critic Ethan Samuel Rodgers labeled it “Extremely Offensive,” and took it to task for its chronic cursing, nudity, and depiction of every other vice under the sun. He wouldn’t even go into detail about the “deeply disturbing photographs” shown during the film’s credits.

Movieguide - The mission of Movieguide is simple: it’s “dedicated to transforming the culture by redeeming the values of the mass media of entertaining according to biblical principles.” Both DVDs and new movie releases are reviewed, and each is given a quality and content rating. The quality rating determines how good the overall film is (based on one to four stars), while the content rating show how offensive the film may be to Christians. This latter rating goes from +4 to -4, with the negative value indicating a movie filled with violence, nudity or profanity.

The film Up in the Air, for example, received a quality rating of 4 stars, while content rating was a -3 for more than 25 obscenities, moderate sex, and partial or brief nudity. On the other hand, A Life That Matters, a film about five people whose lives are turned around by the bible, received a +4 content and 4 stars for quality.

Basically, any movie which promotes Christian values will get a high rating, while those on the opposite end of the spectrum will not (at least in regards to content).

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Movie Reviews – Dedicated to providing the Catholic public with movie reviews on all the latest films. A spiritual eye is also cast towards DVD releases and family films. Their classification system places movies into the following categories:

A-I General Patronage
A-II Adults and Adolescents
A-III Adults
L Limited Adult Audience (contains content that many adults would find troubling)
O Morally Offensive

Films without a positive religious message still get penalized, but it’s been my experience that the reviews on this site are more balanced than others offering Christian movie reviews. A recent review of Nine, for example, rates the film Morally Offensive for repeated depictions of pre-marital sex and criticism of the Catholic church, but it doesn’t seem obsessed with delivering a sermon or keeping people away from the theatre. It presents the facts and allows readers the opportunity to make up their own minds.

If you’re looking for Christian movie reviews that don’t launch into hysterics, this is the site I’d recommend.

The Official True Christian Guide to the Movies – Meant as a parody of sites like those listed above, this inflammatory destination offers plenty of movie reviews by the congregation of the fictional Landover Baptist Church, a place where the “unsaved are not welcome.” Prior to each screening, Deacon Bob even checks each film reel for traces of microscopic demons. Here are a few examples of the satirical goodness contained within:

The review for Bill Maher’s Religulous comes with a flyer which can be printed out. Among the reasons listed for not seeing this film, “Any fool knows that you don’t need ‘facts’ when you have Jesus!”

In the review for Superman Returns, it’s mentioned that “we only believe in one flying superhero, and He doesn’t wear a skimpy bikini.”

The supposedly Christian movie review for Elf proclaims, “When that big queer elf’s head popped up on my TV screen, I thought the homos had taken over the world!”

Also recommended: