Not recommended under 10, PG to 12 due to violence and scary scenes.
This topic contains:
Children under 10 | Not recommended due to violence and scary scenes |
Children 10-12 | Parental guidance recommended due to violence and scary scenes |
Children aged 12 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: | ParaNorman |
Classification: | PG |
Consumer advice lines: | Mild horror themes, scary scenes and coarse language |
Length: | 93 minutes |
This review of the movie contains the following information:
Norman Babcock (voice of Kodi Smit-McPhee) is an outcast with a special gift - he is able to see and speak to the dead, including his grandmother (voice of Elaine Stritch) and numerous ghosts that roam the town’s streets. Unfortunately no one believes that Norman can talk to the dead and he is ridiculed by his family and routinely bullied by his peers at school, the chief bully being a boy called Alvin (voice of Christopher Mintz-Plasse). Norman does however have one friend and believer, an overweight young boy named Neil (voice of Tucker Albrizzi), who has his own set of peculiarities and is also routinely bullied by Alvin.
One day life suddenly becomes even more complicated for Norman when he is approached by his estranged uncle Mr. Prenderghast (voice of John Goodman), who can also see and speak to the dead. Mr. Prenderghast informs Norman that the town is in great danger from a curse cast by a witch, who was condemned and put to death by the town’s inhabitants over 300 years ago. In order for the town to be saved, Norman must perform a ritual which involves reading a passage from a special book over the dead witch’s grave at sundown on a particular night once each year. Intent on saving the town from the vengeful witch, Norman attempts to perform the ritual, however things do not go as planned, the ritual in botched and a host of zombies rise from the grave to wreak havoc on the town’s inhabitants.
It’s up to Norman to find a way to stop the zombies, and together with some new and unexpected friends including Norman’s sister, Courtney (voice of Anna Kendrick), Neil’s brother Mitch (voice of Casey Affleck) and Alvin, Norman discover the terrible truth behind the town’s curse and works to set things right.
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.
The supernatural; ghosts and zombies; bullying
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.
ParaNorman contains some macabre animated violence, most of which is played for laughs in an over-the-top slapstick manner. The film also contains some scenes that depict intense peril; hurtful verbal conflict between Norman’s parents which involves Norman himself, the persecution of a young girl and school bullying.
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:
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.
Children in this age group are also likely to be disturbed by 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 also be disturbed by some of the above-mentioned scenes.
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.
OK for this age group
The following products are displayed or used in this movie:
ParaNorman contains occasional low-level covert sexual references. Examples include:
The film contains some cartoonish over-exaggerated sensuality. Examples include:
The film contains occasional suggestion of substance use. Examples include:
The film contains some low-level coarse language, name calling and putdowns, and toilet humour that may be imitated by children. Examples include:
ParaNorman is an animated, comedy horror film targeting older children and teens. The film was written and co-directed by Chris Butler, who was involved in the making of the films Coraline and Corpse Bride, and it has a similar feel. The violence and scary scenes make it unsuitable for under 10s, but older children will enjoy the humour and will be able to relate to the film’s content, particularly the interactions between on-screen teens and the awkwardness of adolescents.
The main messages from this movie are:
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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