Not suitable under 13; parental guidance to 14 (violence, scary scenes, themes)
This topic contains:
Children under 13 | Not suitable due to violence, themes and scary scenes. |
Children aged 13–14 | Parental guidance recommended due to violence, themes and scary scenes. |
Children aged 15 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: | Hunger Games, The: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes |
Classification: | M |
Consumer advice lines: | Mature themes and violence |
Length: | 157 minutes |
This review of the movie contains the following information:
In the Dark Days, three years before the first annual ‘Hunger Games’ begins, a small Coriolanus Snow and his young cousin scrounge for scraps of food on the dangerous streets of the war-torn Capitol. Following the death of his father, Coriolanus’ family is left with next to nothing and must do all they can to continue to pass as fine society. As he grows into a young man, Coriolanus (Tom Blythe) is at the top of his class at the Academy and has distinguished himself in every way possible, despite the efforts of the headmaster (Peter Dinklage) to consistently derail his accomplishments. During the very ceremony in which Coriolanus is meant to receive a coveted scholarship, along with much needed funding, an announcement is made that changes everything. People have stopped watching the Games but the Gamemaker (Viola Davis) is determined that ‘the show’ must go on, so, for the first time in the games’ ten year history, there will be mentors. Each member of the Academy’s graduating class is assigned a ‘tribute’ from one of the 12 districts and told to present their tribute to the world, to make the audience care about them and ensure that the masses will, once again, be watching as the twenty-four tributes (two children from each district) fight to the death. In a last ditch effort to sabotage Coriolanus, the headmaster matches him with the petite female tribute from District 12, a kind-hearted outcast called Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler). Lucy Gray knows she can’t win but has no intention of going quietly. She has a beautiful voice and uses the power of song to share her truth, a truth that many, even in the Capitol, can relate to. As Lucy’s fate is tied to his own success, Coriolanus does everything he can to help her and she slowly begins to trust him. Lucy’s courage and charm, along with the fact that she saves his life, brings out the best in Coriolanus who does whatever it takes to keep her safe while attempting to keep up the facade to protect his family and friends. Lucy wins the games because of the help she receives from Coriolanus and because her bravery and defiance inspires the spectators. She is then sent back to District 12, while Coriolanus is banished for cheating. As he rises up the ranks as a Peacekeeper, he will do whatever it takes to succeed and to get back into the good graces of Capitol society but when his best friend, who only wants to make a difference, begins to get involved with rebel forces, Coriolanus betrays him and, in the process, loses the one thing he was willing to risk it all for.
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.
Poverty; Governmental control; Death; Cruelty to children; Betrayal; The nature of power; Politics and Insatiable ambition.
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 some violence in this movie, including:
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:
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.
In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes and scary visual images, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children aged five to eight, including the following:
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.
In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children aged eight to thirteen, including the following:
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 is some use of substances in this movie, including:
There is some coarse language in this movie, including:
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a dramatic adventure based on the prequel to The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The film features a diverse cast and some excellent special effects but lacks some of the heart of the original stories. It is best suited to teen and adult audiences and likely to be enjoyed by fans of the series.
The main messages from this movie are that trust is more important than love; that (even in the most challenging of circumstances) it is possible to stay true to who we are; and that, sometimes, it is what we love most that destroys us.
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
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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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