My girlfriend came hope from a shopping trip last week to find her husband and 4 year-old sacked out on the couch, elbow deep in a bowl of Jiffy Pop and eyeball deep in a screen full of gore. Perhaps Alien v. Predator was not the wisest movie choice, and the little guy wetting himself wasn’t due to one too many juice boxes.
However, some movie choices aren’t so obvious when it comes to your kids. Other than word of mouth with other moms and the rapid “back of box” skimming at Blockbuster, while Thing #1 is begging for a giant gumball and Thing #2 is opening and slamming shut the Coca Cola cooler like she’s trying to lose a finger, there aren’t a lot of ways to know if your movie choice is going to delight or traumatize your child.
A great online resource for parents is Common Sense Media (www.comonsensemedia.org). This database allows parents to search by movie title or age group, and lists parent and editor reviews for movies in new release and on DVD. The reviews don’t only inform parents about the entertainment value of the movie, but also if there are scary or racy moments that might have both you and your kids cringing.
When you sign up for a free account, Common Sense asks your kid’s ages and then recommends movies that your kids would love. I was not surprised to see several of my kids’ favorites, like Finding Nemo and Curious George on the list.
Shockingly, though, I didn’t see Alien v. Predator.
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