OK, I admit it. I happen to like movies.
I have been a fan of motion pictures for as long as I can remember. Some of my favorite summer memories involve visiting the now defunct East Main Drive-In in Columbus, OH. My mom and her sister would fill their cars with lawn chairs, food, and kids for an inexpensive evening of 'entertainment'. I remember going to see most of (if not all) of the classic Disney films on their seven or eight year cycle in the theaters.
And then Star Wars showed up in the local cinemas in 1977. And like my friends in school, I thought about the possibility of making films someday. We all wanted to be the next George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, or Orson Wells (the one who directed Citizen Kane - and not the guy who became a wine commercial in the 70's).
I have inadvertently passed on my enjoyment of movies to my family - or should I say to our daughters! And like most parents, we have experienced challenges in finding appropriate films for the family. It is difficult challenge today to decipher why one film is listed PG-13, PG, or G. I try to find out as much as I can about a film before we watch it. There are films that have steered my family away from - and directed them toward appropriate alternatives. If that makes me a 'old fogey' - then so be it!
As a parent, I believe that it is a mistake to send our families to just any film out there. There is a need to guide our young people to make wise choices in their viewing habits. The Internet provides some wonderful tools to help you to be informed about the content and themes found in films today.
I found an interesting new addition (at least to me) that you might find helpful. The people behind Kids-in-mind describes the purpose of their website on their FAQ page:
The purpose of kids-in-mind.com is to provide parents and other adults with objective and complete information about a film's content so that they can decide, based on their own value system, whether they should watch a movie with or without their kids.
It's like a food labeling system which tells you what a food item contains. That's it. We make no judgments about what is good or bad or anything else. Indeed, we do not "condemn," "critique" or "criticize" movies. And we don't "praise" or "recommend" movies either. We advance no "beliefs" and we do not "preach" anything. We are not affiliated with any political party, any cultural or religious group, or any ideology. The only thing we advocate is responsible, engaged parenting.
I have to smile a bit at their politically correct phraseology. But I am all for the concept of responsible, engaged parenting.
The website offers information on the content of movies such as sex & nudity, violence & gore, and profanity. The site offers a synopsis of the basic plot-line, potentially objectionable scenes, and discussion topics. I find the "discussion topics" to be helpful in deciding upon a particular film.
We all need tools to help navigate our families in this confusing electronic world. It would wise if we as parents become engaged in working with our families to make appropriate viewing choices.
