Grace & TV/Movie Ratings

"And God
is able to make all grace abound toward you, so that in all things,
at all times, having all that you need, you may abound in every good
work." -II Corinthians 9:8 NIV

Quick biblical facts regarding God's grace:
A. The gospel (good news) is a result of God's grace (Gal. 1: 6-9). Grace is presented as sufficient and Christians are called by grace (2 Cor. 12: 7-10, Gal. 1: 15). Man is saved by grace, the heart is established by grace, and we are justified by grace (Eph. 2: 5, 8, Heb. 13: 9, Tit. 3: 7).

B. Moreover, we render acceptable service by grace and grace imparts everlasting consolation (Heb. 12: 28, 29, 2 Thes. 2: 16). God's grace also makes us better people and helps us in time of need (I Cor. 15: 9, 10, Heb. 4: 16).

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TV and Movie ratings, what they REALLY mean...Before the children and teens head off to the theatres this summer I wanted to draw your attention to the ratings, especially "PG".

It's easy to see why entertainment has become such an influence in children's lives: Most school-age kids watch four to six hours of television and videos a day, or about 1,500 hours a year. And that's not counting the number of hours they spend watching movies in a theater.

"It's imperative that parents be involved in making choices about their children's entertainment," says Nell Minow, film critic and author of The Movie Mom's Guide to Family Movies. For more than 30 years, the film industry has had a rating system designed to help parents make informed decisions about what their children may watch. But even a film with a general-audience (G) rating may not be appropriate for a young child.

To help make your choices easier, what follows are basic descriptions of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) ratings, comments from parents who let their children watch movies with those ratings, and experts' views on what the ratings really mean.

G rating (general audience)
What the MPAA says: All ages are admitted. The film contains nothing that most parents would consider offensive, even for young children. There are no scenes containing nudity, sex, or drug use. Violence is minimal; there may be dialog that goes beyond polite conversation, but there is no foul language.

What a parent says: "If it's marketed to children or families, I let my kids see it," says Julie, an Atlanta mother of two boys, ages 5 and 2 1/2. Julie says that some themes in G movies, especially the frequent motif of orphaned children, seem too advanced for her younger child, but so far he hasn't complained of nightmares or shown any other negative reactions.

What the expert says: Julie's approach is a "big mistake, especially now that we know [thanks to a recent Federal Trade Commission study] that movie companies intentionally market inappropriate material to children," says Michael Rich, a pediatrician in Boston and media expert for the American Academy of Pediatrics. While much G-rated material may be harmless viewing for youngsters, some can be disturbing. Many Disney cartoons, for instance, feature a plot element like the death of a parent and other violent content that can be confusing and scary to children.

PG rating (parental guidance suggested)
What the MPAA says: The film may contain material that most parents would consider inappropriate for their young children. There are no scenes with explicit sex or drug use; there may be brief nudity. Horror and violence do not exceed moderate levels.

What a parent says: "I object more to sexual content than to violence. PG movies may have science-fiction violence, but that doesn't bother me," says Anna, a lawyer in Reno, Nevada, and the mother of two boys, ages 5 and 2 1/2. Among the PG-rated films that her boys have seen: The Road to El Dorado, the Star Wars series, That Darn Cat, and Inspector Gadget.

What the expert says: "It's difficult to know what kinds of material a PG film might include, since [that rating] encompasses too much," says Peggy Charren, founder of Action for Children's Television, an organization that worked to ensure quality and diversity in television programming for children and to limit advertisements. Indeed, PG movies often contain jokes about bodily functions, some foul language, and sexual innuendo. "At least this parent has decided what kind of content she thinks is appropriate instead of just allowing any PG movie into the house," Charren says.

PG-13 rating (parents strongly cautioned)
What the MPAA says: Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13, and parents should be "especially careful" about letting children younger than 13 attend. There is no persistent violence, meaning that there may be one punch thrown but not an elaborate fight; sexually oriented nudity is generally absent; some scenes of drug use may be present; and one use of a "harsher sexually derived word" may be present.

What a parent says: "My boys love action movies, but I don't like them to see violence," says Kathi, the mother of two boys, ages 8 and 5, who lives in Los Angeles. "My oldest wanted to see the latest Jackie Chan movie and I wasn't sure if it was appropriate, so I went to see it alone. His dad took him to see it after I'd screened it and decided it was okay."

What the expert says: "Bravo! This mom is obviously concerned about what her children are exposed to," Minow says. Screening a movie before your kids see it is a good idea for any rating, but particularly PG-13. "This rating is the no-man's-land of the rating system," Minow says. "Some PG-13s have fairly innocuous material, but others manage to avoid an R only by using sound-alikes — like Austin Powers's 'frikkin.' Or there's vulgarity that manages to come in under the MPAA's radar," such as a transvestite in an Adam Sandler movie who moans as he massages his nipples.

R rating (restricted: under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian; the age may vary in some locations)
What the MPAA says: The film contains adult material. Parents are urged to see the film before allowing their children to see it. This rating may be assigned for one or more of the following: language, sex, drug use, or violence.

What a parent says: "As long as it looks like there's not too much sex or violence, I take my child with me to see movies that I want to see," says Andrea, the mother of a 4-year-old boy in Sausalito, California. Andrea reads reviews and uses ads on television to help her make decisions about what her child may watch. Sometimes her choices backfire. "My son was 3 when we took him to see South Park, a show we all watch on television, and he swore like a sailor for a few weeks afterward," she admits. "It was a mistake." (Even the teenager at the ticket window told Andrea that the movie was inappropriate for her young son.) "Now that he's getting older, if it's really questionable, we get a sitter," she says.

What the expert says: "I know a lot of parents who take their kids to see movies they have no business seeing because the parents don't want to pay a sitter," says Minow. "But a babysitter is cheaper than psychoanalysis!" Of course, not every child who is exposed to violence or overt sexuality in entertainment will be troubled by it later, but a large body of research suggests that some children who are repeatedly exposed to violence in entertainment are more likely to be aggressive and exhibit other negative behavior. The point is, Minow says, that parents need to consider carefully the potential effects of some movies on their children. "And if you're willing to let your kids view such sophisticated movies, you should be willing to discuss with them the issues the movie brings up — like sex."

Violence in PG...any different than R?
A recent study conducted by researchers at the UCLA School of Public Health and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that there may not be much difference between PG- and R-rated movies when it comes to violence. After analyzing 100 top-grossing movies, researchers concluded that while MPAA ratings may convey the degree of violence in movies, they do a lousy job of indicating the number of violent acts. The PG films observed included anywhere from one to 97 acts of violence, while the R-rated movies ranged from one to 110—only a slight difference, though the average number of violent acts did increase with harsher ratings. The study surveyed movies that were all released in 1994.

Reuters, 5/2/05; physorg.com, 5/3/04
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