Not suitable under 12; parental guidance to 13 (themes, language)
This topic contains:
Children under 12 | Not suitable due to language and themes. |
Children aged 12–13 | Parental guidance recommended due to language and themes. |
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: | Miracle Club, The |
Classification: | PG |
Consumer advice lines: | Mild themes and coarse language |
Length: | 90 minutes |
This review of the movie contains the following information:
Banished from her community after an unplanned pregnancy, Chrissie (Laura Linney) returns home after the death of her mother. Her mother’s best friend Lily (Maggie Smith) and Chrissie’s former best friend Eileen (Kathy Bates), along with a young mother named Dolly (Agnes O’Casey), were all part of a singing group who were attempting to win tickets to visit the sacred French town of Lourdes in the hope of getting a miracle for Dolly’s young son Daniel (Eric Smith). With the recommendation of Father Dermot (Mark O’Halloran), Chrissie decides to join the tour at the last minute and accompanies the women to the legendary site of miracles, all the while believing that there is nothing she needs from such a place. As the women begin to communicate and past misunderstandings are explained and experiences shared, the animosity and tension begin to fade. The group may not have received the miracles they had come for, but the trip gave them all something just as powerful – it taught them humility and acceptance; it provided the opportunity for forgiveness and friendship; it showed them the power of compassion; and it gave them the strength to go on.
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.
Family estrangement; Coercive control and gender stereotypes; Death of a loved one; Miracles; Divine Retribution; Illness (including cancer, anxiety, miscarriage, amputation, abortion and the inability to speak) and the hope for cures.
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.
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 Miracle Club is a comedy drama with a stellar cast and lots of religious references. The plot, which largely centres around healing from trauma, is best suited to older teen and mature audiences.
The main messages from this movie are that there is always hope, even if you do not believe; and that love and forgiveness are capable of working miracles in the hearts of those they touch.
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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