Not suitable under 8; parental guidance to 13 (theme and scenes of bullying, coarse language)
This topic contains:
Children under 8 | Not suitable due to disturbing scenes and coarse language. |
Children aged 8-13 | Parental guidance recommended due to themes and scenes of bullying and coarse language. |
Children aged 14 and over | Ok for this age group. |
This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Australian Government Classification Board and the associated consumer advice lines. Other classification advice (OC) is provided where the Australian film classification is not available.
Name of movie: | Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) |
Classification: | PG |
Consumer advice lines: | Infrequent coarse language |
Length: | 92 minutes |
This review of the movie contains the following information:
Diary of a Wimpy Kid is an adaptation of the best selling book series by Jeff Kinney. The author of the diary, Greg Heffley (Zachary Gordon) has been given the book by his mother to record his feelings about his transition to middle school. Unhelpful advice from his older brother Rodrick (Devon Bostick) to ‘just be invisible’ and the presence of his child-like and ‘uncool’ best friend Rowley (Robert Capron) do not affect Greg’s overconfidence in attempting to conquer the popularity stakes. The audience gets an insight into Greg’s thoughts as he desperately tries to manoeuvre through the perils of pre pubescence. Bullies, girls and social faux pas await Greg as he dabbles in the wrestling team, the safety patrol and participation in the school play while trying to climb the popularity ladder. But this all comes at a cost…..eventually putting his friendship with Rowley at risk.
Children and adolescents may react adversely at different ages to themes of crime, suicide, drug and alcohol dependence, death, serious illness, family breakdown, death or separation from a parent, animal distress or cruelty to animals, children as victims, natural disasters and racism. Occasionally reviews may also signal themes that some parents may simply wish to know about.
Bullying, life transitions, relationships; individuality versus ‘fitting in’
Research shows that children are at risk of learning that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution when violence is glamourised, performed by an attractive hero, successful, has few real life consequences, is set in a comic context and / or is mostly perpetrated by male characters with female victims, or by one race against another.
Repeated exposure to violent content can reinforce the message that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution. Repeated exposure also increases the risks that children will become desensitised to the use of violence in real life or develop an exaggerated view about the prevalence and likelihood of violence in their own world.
There is violence in this movie, some of which may be imitated by children. Examples include:
Children under five are most likely to be frightened by scary visual images, such as monsters, physical transformations.
In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children under the age of five, including the following:
Some very young children may find the cartoon depictions disturbing.
Greg’s brother jumps out from behind a shower curtain, scaring Greg.
Rodrick tells Greg and Rowley a story about ‘devil worshippers’ who are looking for children to eat
Scary looking jack-o-lanterns at Halloween
Images and spooky sounds in a dark forest
Children aged five to eight will also be frightened by scary visual images and will also be disturbed by depictions of the death of a parent, a child abandoned or separated from parents, children or animals being hurt or threatened and / or natural disasters.
Younger children in this age group may also be disturbed by some of the above-mentioned scenes
Children aged eight to thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic threats and dangers, violence or threat of violence and / or stories in which children are hurt or threatened.
Children in this age group may be disturbed by the scenes of bullying.
Children over the age of thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic physical harm or threats, molestation or sexual assault and / or threats from aliens or the occult.
There are some sexual references in this movie, including:
There is some nudity and sexual activity in this movie, including:
There are some coarse language and putdowns in this movie, including:
Diary of a Wimpy Kid is an entertaining and discussion-provoking look at pre-teens trying to survive the social minefield that is high school. The movie is particularly likely to appeal to those who have recently made, or are soon to make, the transition from primary to high school.
The main message from this movie is to be yourself. Rowley remains true to who he is, despite Greg trying to change him to fit in with the rest. Rowley’s warmth and sincerity shine through and help him to become popular with his peers without pretending to be someone else. Greg, on the other hand, tries desperately to fit in and be popular without success and ends up almost losing his friend.
Values in this movie that parents may wish to reinforce with their children include:
This movie could also give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children attitudes and behaviours, and their real-life consequences, such as
Tip: Leave out the first A, An or The
Selecting an age will provide a list of movies with content suitable for this age group. Children may also enjoy movies selected via a lower age.
Content is age appropriate for children this age
Some content may not be appropriate for children this age. Parental guidance recommended
Content is not age appropriate for children this age
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