`War of the Worlds’
Rating: Rated PG-13 for frightening sequences of sci-fi violence and disturbing images.
What it’s about: Aliens invade, bodies are vaporized, humans are shocked and awed.
The Kid Attractor Factor: Lots of stuff blows up.
Good lessons/bad lessons: Families, even divorced ones, should stick together. Parents should be more responsible. And don’t scream at the big bad tripods when Daddy’s driving.
Violence: The body count is staggering, with most of the carnage except for the vaporizing of bodies taking place off camera.
Language: A lot of profanity, considering that the ratings board doesn’t even mention it as a reason for the PG-13.
Sex: None.
Parents’ advisory: Pretty intense for the under-10 set, though not as scary and gory as your average horror movie.
`Rebound’
Rating: PG for mild language and thematic elements.
What it’s about: An arrogant college hoops coach learns to curb his temper and love the game, and kids, when he’s sent back to coach at his old middle school.
The Kid Attractor Factor: Martin Lawrence acting goofy with a bunch of 13-year-olds.
Good lessons/bad lessons: If you’re given a second chance, make the most of it. There is no “I” in “TEAM.” Bend but don’t break rules.
Violence: Mascot slapstick.
Language: PG clean, shocking for a Martin Lawrence movie.
Sex: No. Young love is pretty chaste at the best middle schools.
Drugs: None.
Parents’ advisory: Lawrence’s bid for a family audience is pretty mild stuff, even for the formula kiddie sports-comedy genre.
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`Bewitched’
Rating: PG-13 for some language, including sex and drug references, and partial nudity.
What it’s about: A remake of the old TV show hits a comic snag when the producers cast a real witch to play Samantha.
The Kid Attractor Factor: Will Ferrell, and some kids who have been raised on the old show on Nick at Night or TV Land.
Good lessons/bad lessons: Judge redheads by the content of their character, not the way they twitch their noses. And becoming famous is no excuse for turning into a jerk.
Violence: Mild slapstick.
Language: Pretty tame as well.
Sex: Well, there’s flirting, but with ’60s TV mores, that’s about it.
Drugs: Maybe a little wine, here and there.
Parents’ advisory: A very mild PG-13. Kids may not go for its nostalgia trip, but Will Ferrell is the new Jim Carrey, guaranteed to deliver something juvenile if you give him a chance.
`Herbie: Fully Loaded’
Rating: Rated G, and it deserves it.
What it’s about: The Love Bug is rescued from the scrap yard, and he helps Lindsay Lohan win the race and get the boy.
The Kid Attractor Factor: Lindsay Lohan, lots of slapstick involving a smart alecky Volkswagen.
Good lessons/bad lessons: You lie to your dad’s face and he’s bound to get mad. Never buy your kid a car from the pre-seatbelts era.
Violence: Three Stooges stuff involving car doors, trunks bashing bad guys and the like.
Language: Darned clean, even for a Disney “G.”
Sex: None, despite Lindsay Lohan’s obviously active hormones.
Drugs: Not on your life.
Parents’ advisory: It’s a bit much for the 5-and-unders to follow, but older pre-adolescents should get a kick out of it, and parents might feel a little Beetlemania nostalgia, too.
`Batman Begins’
Rating: PG-13 for intense action violence, disturbing images and some thematic elements.
What it’s about: A kid sees his parents murdered, and his guilt drives him to become a caped crusader against crime.
The Kid Attractor Factor: A guy in a bat suit fights evil.
Good lessons/bad lessons: The way to fight your fears is to face them. Some vigilantes are nicer than others. And a good butler is handy to have around.
Violence: Lots of it, from fisticuffs to swordfights.
Language: Nothing you wouldn’t hear on prime-time TV.
Sex: A little bar-hopping with Hilton sister clones.
Drugs: Bar hopping entails drinking. Sometimes.
Parents’ advisory: Kids will want to see it, and even if it isn’t sexy, there’s violence to worry about.
`The Perfect Man’
Rating: Rated PG for some mildly suggestive content.
What it’s about: A teen fed up with her single mom’s choice in men resolves to make up a “perfect man” for an Internet romance with her.
The Kid Attractor Factor: Hilary Duff and a cute boy.
Good lessons/bad lessons: Nobody should “settle.” Lying doesn’t have consequences, and you can never wear too much eye makeup.
Violence: Not on your life.
Language: Disney clean, for a Universal film.
Sex: Hilary’s clothes have lower pants/necklines, and her character’s mom had her out of wedlock.
Drugs: None.
Parents’ advisory: The messages aren’t that great, but it’s pretty harmless, even for Duff fluff.
