Posted on: Friday, January 9, 2009
Family fare
By Roger Moore
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
"THE SPIRIT"
Mini reviews of new movies from a family perspective
Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of stylized violence and action, some sexual content and brief nudity.
What it's about: A dead cop wanders The City, foiling crooks and battling his arch nemesis. Yes, it's a comic-book movie.
The kid attractor factor: A hot young cast and a lurid, comic-book look.
Good lessons/bad lessons: If your mom named you "Octopus," chances are you're going to turn out bad.
Violence: Almost constant.
Language: Old fashioned gee-whiz and its ilk.
Sex: Belly dancing, Scarlett Johansson and Eva Mendes, only here for ogling.
Drugs: None.
Parents' advisory: Entirely too violent for younger children; teenagers into graphic novels are an appropriate audience.
"VALKYRIE"
Rating: PG-13 for violence and brief strong language.
What it's about: Germans plot to rid themselves of Adolf Hitler in the last year of World War II.
The kid attractor factor: Tom Cruise in an eye patch, World War II history.
Good lessons/bad lessons: Some sacrifices you make for history's sake.
Language: Some profanity.
Sex: None.
Drugs: Cigarettes.
Parents' advisory: Suitable for teenagers who are into history, over the heads of kids under 13.
