Content lists tell parents what happened. They rarely say what it meant. This is a look at what characters actually say, and when speech stops being harmless banter, using three films LionLens has reviewed recently — because the same element can be handled well in one story and carelessly in another.
ParaNorman (2012)
LionLens rates this some for language.
Insults and put-downs are frequent, especially around bullying. Parents will hear words like “stupid,” “loser,” “crazy,” “worst,” “ghost jerk,” and “jackass,” along with mocking lines such as “You stink of illiteracy.”
Read the full review of ParaNorman
Love Don’t Co$t a Thing (2003)
LionLens rates this some for language.
Language includes “hell,” “ass,” “kick your ass,” “stupid,” “punk,” and repeated mocking put-downs. The film also uses sexuality-based insults such as “gay surrender” and “homo thug,” which many families will find more concerning than the general teen banter.
“Bride of Chucky-looking extraterrestrial”
Read the full review of Love Don’t Co$t a Thing
Stuart Little (1999)
LionLens rates this some for language.
Most language is mild but includes repeated put-downs and rude phrases. Characters say things like “shut up,” “loser,” “You’re a mouse. You should live in a hole,” and “I’m arguing with lunch.” The humor often comes from sarcasm and exclusion.
“damn” - Used as a mild exclamation.”
Read the full review of Stuart Little
What To Do With The Difference
Set the three side by side and the useful question stops being “how much was there?” and becomes “what did the story want us to feel about it?” A film can show something difficult and still treat it as difficult. Another can show far less and quietly make it look admirable.
That is the question worth teaching children to ask for themselves, long before they stop watching films with you.