Rant warning.....we decided to watch Spanglish with Adam Sandler with my 12 year old daughter. It is rated PG13 so I expected some bad language (she knows what is "good" and "bad" and knows not to repeat the "bad") I was blown out of the water to hear the "F" word. When did this word become PG13??? I have heard HE** and D**N, but I thought this was just awful. We took the CD out immediately and trashed it. It just seems we are lowering and lowering our standards, good grief, Might Joe Young was rated PG13 and it was fine for a 12 year old....ok, I am done. Do others feel the same way??? What is now allowed in a regular PG movie??

Why in the world are you letting a 12 year old watch a PG13 movie?? I'm just kidding, I think that the standerds for R rated movies have gone down quite a bit and now there are a bunch of movies that would no longer be considered R (even though they should) so they just give them a PG13 rating and hope for the best...

One F word is allowed in a PG-13 movie. In fact, in BE Cool, the sequel to Get Shorty, Chili Palmer even made light of it with an intentionally placed one. So you can rest assured, if you hear one, you will hear no others for the remainder of the film. That is unless someone spills hot cappucino all over themselves in the theatre.

You definitely gotta watch those PG-13s closely. I don't know if the actual ratings definitions have changed in recent years, but there is sure a lot of stuff in them that I personally would think more appropriate to maybe a 16 and over age group. My 11 year old wanted to watch "10 Things I Hate About You". My older daughter thought it would be O.K. for her to see. I started watching it & decided pretty quickly that she can wait a few years. It's rated PG-13, and here's is what one review site says about why the PG-13 rating:
"Rated PG-13 for crude sex-related humor and dialogue, alcohol and drug-related scenes, all involving teens."
Lovely. Well... that's what the PG stands for and that's what I try to do- exercise parental guidance rather than relying on someone else's judgement regarding appropriateness.

Once is too much for me!!! Of course I get upset when I hear bad language coming from tv commercials when I am flipping the channel around!

Are there still bad words? It's f**king archaic thinking if you ask me. Seriously, though... who decided which words are bad and which are good?

And when was the last time you saw a "G" rated movie - even from Disney?! Everything seems to be rated PG-13. Pirates of the Carribbean was PG-13 and there was not 1 curse word in it that I remember. The fighting is probably what earned it that rating.

From Jack Valente:

PG13:"Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some Material May Be Inappropriate For Children Under 13."

PG-13 is thus a sterner warning to parents to determine for themselves the attendance in particular of their younger children as they might consider some material not suited for them. Parents, by the rating, are alerted to be very careful about the attendance of their under-teenage children.

A PG-13 film is one which, in the view of the Rating Board, leaps beyond the boundaries of the PG rating in theme, violence, nudity, sensuality, language, or other contents, but does not quite fit within the restricted R category. Any drug use content will initially require at least a PG-13 rating. In effect, the PG-13 cautions parents with more stringency than usual to give special attention to this film before they allow their 12-year olds and younger to attend.

If nudity is sexually oriented, the film will generally not be found in the PG-13 category. If violence is too rough or persistent, the film goes into the R (restricted) rating. A film's single use of one of the harsher sexually-derived words, though only as an expletive, shall initially require the Rating Board to issue that film at least a PG-13 rating. More than one such expletive must lead the Rating Board to issue a film an R rating, as must even one of these words used in a sexual context. These films can be rated less severely, however, if by a special vote, the Rating Board feels that a lesser rating would more responsibly reflect the opinion of American parents.

PG-13 places larger responsibilities on parents for their children's moviegoing. The voluntary rating system is not a surrogate parent, nor should it be. It cannot, and should not, insert itself in family decisions that only parents can, and should, make. Its purpose is to give prescreening advance informational warnings, so that parents can form their own judgments. PG-13 is designed to make these parental decisions easier for films between PG and R.

Ice Princess is rated "G". So was Princess Diaries. But you're right, they are few and far between. PG-13 seems to be the rating of choice.

I rented Uncle Buck a few years ago while babysitting for friends. Their parents told me to limit the movie to PG. The rental box said PG. We began watching it and I was surprised at the language and content. (It is a funny movie.) I pulled the tape out and looked at it and it said: PG13. Oops!

You have to be careful about movies made prior to 1994...People had a sense of humor back then.

If you have a problem with the rating system, write:

The Classification and Rating Administration
15503 Ventura Boulevard
Encino, CA 91436

Jaws was PG but today the language would get it at least a PG13 and the gore factor (no pun intended) might even get it an R.

So glad I don't have kids! I don't envy any of you that have to make these decisions.

I am definately with you on this one. It Stinks!!!!
I think the PG 13 replaced the old soft R ratings. PG 13 should be upped to PG 14 or 15.....TBB Here:

My son wanted to know if he could use the C word. I almost had a heart attack until I figured out he meant "crap". I still said no. I just don't like how it sounds coming out of his mouth. Same with "sucks".

If you want to know if a film is ok, I suggest looking for a review at www.pluggedinonline.com

This website will not assist with content, but if you want to know what multiple critics think of a movie, go to: www.rottentomatoes.com.

Michael, thanks for the Plugged In link.

Plugged In's Review of Spanglish

I took a moment to look at the review of Spanglish, and here is what I found interesting....

Positives: "Flor loves her daughter and makes multiple sacrifices to provide for and protect her. She also sacrifices to care for Deborah’s daughter, Bernice, when Deborah does a particularly hurtful thing. A strong role model, Flor is committed (mostly) to standing up for what she believes is right, even when that means not giving her daughter what she wants. John also clearly loves his wife and kids; he takes time to listen to and understand them. He’s kind to Deborah even while she’s treating him badly.

Deborah’s mom chooses sobriety toward the end of the movie and wisely warns her daughter that her affair is about to cost her a very good husband. Deborah’s narcissism and resulting near-ruin of her family are truthfully revealed as evil. "

Negatives:

Sexual Content
The f word is used once and implied again. The s word is used.

Sounds to me like they nailed your objection to the movie, and using the site would have helped you chose a better movie.

Congress has approved the DVD players that edit out offensive material. The industry fought it. They got Congress to compromise by strengthening copyright laws and punishment for copyright violations.