PG
Mirror Mirror. Julia Roberts has fun playing an evil Queen in this often humorous, yet rather misshapen re-imagining of the classic Brothers Grimm tale “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” The laughs come pretty far apart, yet kids 8 and older will probably like the tongue-in-cheek approach and appreciate the more active role this Snow White (Lily Collins) takes in her own fate. It is the nasty Queen herself who narrates the tale, complete with sarcastic asides, and who communes through her mirror with a magic alter ego. The dialogue is a jarring mix of modern slang and fairy-tale speak, and the narrative makes little sense, with whole, illogical scenes that seem dropped in by helicopter. Yet somehow it still manages to be a bit of a lark.
THE BOTTOM LINE: The violence features sword and dagger fights, fisticuffs and other mayhem, but is PG-bloodless and involves more property damage than anything. Some under-8s may be scared when the Queen’s magical alter ego unleashes giant marionettes to destroy the little men’s forest hideout. The dragon-like “beast” that lurks in the woods proves to be mostly bluster but may frighten under-8s when it appears near the end. The Queen’s beauty ritual includes a facial with bird poop, and she uses bees, leeches and other yucky stuff. The film features lots of mild sexual innuendo, such as references to the prince’s shirtless physique. One of the little men wants to “get to know” Snow White better, and says it with a bit of a leer. Much of this could go over kids’ heads.
PG-13
October Baby. Themes of late-term abortion and emotional upheaval probably make this movie better fare for high-schoolers, despite the PG-13 rating. College student Hannah has many health issues. After she collapses, her adoptive parents feel compelled to tell her the story of her birth: She was born prematurely after a botched late-term abortion. The distraught Hannah heads out on a road trip with friends to try to find her birth mother. A product of the growing Christian-themed film industry, “October Baby” is solidly acted, and its message, while far from subtle, is delivered without bombast and with a sense of forgiveness. High-schoolers looking for a full debate about reproductive choice, however, will have to look beyond this movie.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Nothing graphic is shown, but there is a description of a botched late-term abortion and then an emergency premature birth. We never see Hannah and her friends drink or doing anything sexual, but there is brief comic discussion about getting drunk and some talk about Hannah being a virgin.
The Hunger Games. Even teens who haven’t read Suzanne Collins’s popular trilogy will be gripped by this arresting film adaptation of the first book. Despite the bravery and selflessness of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, however, the film has a dark view of human behavior and of the future, which some younger teens — and certainly preteens — might have trouble processing. Katniss lives in District 12 of Panem. Her father died in a mine explosion. Every year, as punishment for a long-ago rebellion, the Capitol requires each district to contribute two teenagers, or “tributes,” to take part in the Hunger Games, a fight to the death in which only one can win. When Katniss’s little sister is chosen in the lottery, Katniss volunteers to take her place. Peeta, the son of a local baker, becomes District 12’s second “tribute.” The competitors are let loose in a woodland battlefield, and their actions are broadcast on TV.
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