Two new films about bullying--kids tormenting other kids--are being talked about. Let's hope parents, teachers and especially kids will see these movies. The films are "Hunger Games" and "Bully."
NPR said this week that one of the films, a documentary, may have a hard time getting into theaters. Because the F-word is used six times in the film, the review board refused to rate the film PG-13, instead giving it an "R" rating. This means that none of the kids in the film could even get into a theater where it is being shown! NPR sums up the film as follows:
"Then there's Alex, a sweet, smart 12-year-old who, having been born prematurely at 26 weeks, is now awkward enough to be singled out for taunting and worse. Every morning on his school bus in Sioux City, Iowa, he's jabbed with pencils, choked, punched and otherwise harassed. And oddly, the little sadists doing the jabbing, choking and punching don't seem to be at all concerned about the presence of a camera."
Citing Bully as "a wrenching, potentially transformative look at an epidemic of adolescent cruelty and adult paralysis in the nation's public schools." NPR describes Bully as "a wrenching, intensely moral film, and so potentially useful to children who are either being bullied, or doing the bullying, that the MPAA's Victorian prudery about a few instances of schoolyard language can't help but seem boneheaded."
The Weinstein Co. is justifiably making hay of the fact that The Hunger Games, in which children are depicted as actually killing children for sport, earned a PG-13, while this serious, sensitive and valuable documentary was denied that rating.
Bob Mondello's recommendation about Bully? "All I can add to the discussion is the fervent hope that any parents, teachers, administrators or students who see it will immediately start clamoring for it to be shown at their next PTA meeting."
You may read the NPR review and related materials here. " 'Bully:' A Provocative and Essential Documentary" on NPR.org.
Earlier posts on this topic may be read here: How can Parents Help Prevent Bullying? LGBT Teens Need Survival Tools
Cyberbullying, Social Media | Impact on Children and Families
Controversial Anti-bullying Legislation | "A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words."
Keeping LGBT Students Safe at School
The Bully at School Goes High Tech: Protecting Students in the Internet Age
Watch the official Weinstein Movie Trailer here:
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