Indian in the Cupboard, The

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details of classification and consumer advice lines for Indian in the Cupboard, The
• a review of Indian in the Cupboard, The completed by the Australian Council on Children and the Media (ACCM) on 23 July 2024.

Overall comments and recommendations

About the movie

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.

ACCM review

This review of the movie contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• themes
• use of violence
• material that may scare or disturb children
• product placement
• sexual references
• nudity and sexual activity
• use of substances
• coarse language
• the movie’s message

A synopsis of the story

Among other gifts, Omri (Hal Scardino) receives an old cupboard for his birthday. It is missing the key that would enable it to close and his mother allows him to go through her key collection to find one that might work. A mysterious skeleton key, once belonging to her grandmother, eventually fits the lock and Omri is thrilled. Much to his amazement he soon discovers that, when used together, the cupboard and key have magical powers and they can bring inanimate objects to life. Omri’s friend Patrick (Rishi Bhat) gives him a small Iroquois figurine named Little Bear (Litefoot) and he is among the first figurines that Omri brings to life. As Omri begins to understand the needs of Little Bear, he is driven to make sacrifices and choices – the repercussions of which he does not fully understand. When Patrick places a cowboy called Boone (David Keith) in the cupboard, life suddenly become a lot more complicated. Meanwhile, Little Bear teaches them some valuable life lessons about power, responsibility, compassion and friendship and they soon form a bond that bridges the gap between cultures and centuries, a bond with the power to transform obvious enemies into faithful friends.

Magic; The misuse of power and ‘playing God’; The moral implications of bringing inanimate objects to life; Causing accidental death; Cultural and racial stereotypes.

There is some violence in this movie, including:

• Little Bear stabs at Omri with a knife.
• Darth Vader fights a dinosaur figurine with his light sabre.
• Toy soldiers shoot at characters in a cabinet.
• A bird attacks Little Bear and injures his leg.
• A character describes some of the horrors of war he has witnessed, including how bloody rats were eating a wounded man.
• Boone warns Omri: “Better watch out that the savage doesn’t scalp you in your sleep.”
• Little Bear kills a rodent and speaks to its spirit, offering thanks as he kneels before the lifeless creature.
• Little Bear shoots an arrow at Boone.
• Boone shoots at Little Bear.
• Little Bear describes how his wife died of smallpox and how he also lost his child.
• Omri takes a bow from an old, Native American man who immediately dies from a heart attack.
• A bully grabs Omri and forcibly takes his money. Omri is later shown with a cut along his arm, presumably from this encounter.
• Omri roughly kicks his brother’s rat (who is in a circular rolling ball) out of his room and down the stairs where the rat crashes into a door.
• Boone shoots Patrick in the face but he is unharmed.
• Boone nearly shoots Little Bear.
• Patrick and Omri roughly shove each other as they disagree over something.
• Little Bear shoots Boone with an arrow and later pulls it from his chest.
• Omri steals a figurine of a young native woman, intending that she should become a wife for Little Bear. He refuses to let Omri do this, explaining that she already has a life, and she may even have a husband and a child.
• Toy soldiers battling with weapons.
• Scenes of Little Bear hunting and fighting
• Scene of death - heart attack.
• As Omri brings Little Bear to life he is confused about what has happened and engages in a small scuffle with another toy character that is Boone, a cowboy.
• Later in the film, cowboy Boone shoots Little Bear with an arrow and wounds him.
• A violent massacre of Native Americans is shown on TV.
• As Little Bear goes beneath the floorboards a rat launches at him, however, it is quickly removed.

Material that may scare or disturb children

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 children may be frightened or confused by the concept of toys coming to life. The fact that they can so easily be brought to life or changed back and the fact that once something dies it can never be brought back at all may be too much for some younger viewers, especially given that Omri feels responsible for causing a man to die.

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:

• Little Bear risks his life to retrieve a key from under the floor boards where a renegade rat is lurking. Little Bear screams as the rat scurries after him, trying to attack. You can hear the sounds of a scuffle and horrible noises, and are left to imagine the worst. Little Bear manages to get the key out of the floor but there is a jump-scare as the rat flies out of a hole, right after him. The suspense and overwhelming sense of peril, in addition to the knowledge that Boone won’t survive if the key cannot be retrieved, may be upsetting for some children.
• Little Bear and Boone are initially extremely mistrustful of one another and, at first, repeatedly tried to shoot each other with guns or bows and arrows.
• Little Bear shoots and kills a rodent. He is very respectful of the animal and thanks it for its life but some sensitive children may be upset by seeing its dead body lying on the ground.
• Omri places the figurine of an old Native American chief (which he stole from his school, though he replaced it with a different figurine) in the cupboard. When the chief comes to life Omri quickly takes his bow and arrows from him. The man immediately suffers a heart attack and dies in front of Omri, who doesn’t seem to understand what he has done. There will be no bringing this man back. Little Bear is angry at Omri for his lack of respect and understanding. Omri blames himself for the death and wants to fix it but doesn’t know how. He attempts to make amends but it is clearly a painful lesson to process. The notion of guilt and responsibility may be overwhelming for some children.

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:

• The boys are watching a film depicting soldiers attacking a Native American village. Women and children are running and screaming as their people are massacred around them. Little Bear is horrified by what he sees and aims his arrow at the television, hoping to help the people being so brutally overpowered. He accidentally shoots Boone instead and Boone falls to the ground with an arrow lodged in his chest. The boys both think that he will die. The scene is intense and may be distressing for some children.

• Nothing further noted.

Product placement

The following products are displayed or used in this movie:

• The book, Stuart Little, by EB White is read at bedtime.
• Action figures such as Darth Vader and He-Man.
• Lego, including the packaging, is shown, used and displayed.
• The games Boggle and Operation are clearly displayed in the background of some scenes.

Sexual references

There are some sexual references in this movie, including:

• Little Bear tells Omri that he is: “alone and in need of a wife”.

Nudity and sexual activity

There is some nudity and sexual activity in this movie, including:

• Little Bear is bare chested and wears a loin cloth that covers his front and backsides, however, this small piece of cloth is open at both sides, revealing the sides of his buttocks and upper thighs.
• Omri, Patrick, Little Bear and Boone watch a music video full of girls in bikinis doing high kicks and sexy dance moves.

Use of substances

There is some use of substances in this movie, including:

• A character states: “I need a drink.”
• Boone rolls a cigarette and begins to smoke.
• A character asks for whiskey.
• There is reference to, “hitting the old tornado juice.”
• A medic suggests that Patrick and Omri give Boone a drop of brandy.
• Boone, nearly unconsciousness, asks about getting some brandy.

Coarse language

There is some coarse language in this movie, including:

• Demon
• Giant
• Suckers
• Half brain
• Cow Pie
• Damn
• Hell
• (God) Dang it!
• Tarnation!
• Hellfire damnation!
• Son of a bunch
• Horses Ass
• Butthead

Racial slurs include:

• Bloomin’ Injun
• Stinking savage
• Dirty savage
• Ugliest red skins ever to walk the face of the earth.
• Injun lover
• Little Bear speaks in a stereotypical native voice, “Me fight enemy”.

In a nutshell

The Indian in the Cupboard is an imaginative, fantasy drama based on the classic children’s book by Lynne Reid Banks. The film features a diverse cast and shares some powerful messages about friendship and culture, and some hard truths about historical practices and the misuse of power. Due to the content, this film is best suited for older children, teens and adult audiences.

The main messages from this movie are to understand that there are consequences for every choice we make; that we should not be playing God with the lives of others; and that compassion and understanding can bridge the gaps caused by mistrust and cultural divides, even so far as to transform old enemies into firm friends.

Values in this movie that parents may wish to reinforce with their children include:

• Empathy
• Responsibility
• Friendship
• Courage
• Wisdom
• Tolerance and understanding for the cultural differences of others.

This movie could also give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children attitudes and behaviours, and their real-life consequences, such as:

• The ethical use of power.
• Cultural sensitivity and respect, (the effect of racial stereotypes).
• Taking what doesn’t belong to you.
• Cultural genocide and what has happened (and continues to happen) to native communities around the world.
• Taking responsibility for your actions and making amends when necessary.