Parents’ Guide to Movies

Published 5:00 am Friday, July 24, 2009

‘Orphan’

Rating: R, for disturbing violent content, some sexuality and language.

What it’s about: Parents who have lost a child adopt a girl who turns out to be more evil than they realized.

The kid attractor factor: The horror, the horror.

Good lessons/bad lessons: Keeping secrets from your parents, especially about your new stepsister, can be dangerous.

Violence: Quite a bit, some graphic.

Language: Profanity.

Sex: Yes, and fairly explicit.

Drugs: Alcohol is abused.

Parents’ advisory: Adult in theme, if not subject matter, this is a bit much for anybody younger than 15.

‘The Hurt Locker’

Rating: R, for war violence and language.

What it’s about: A bomb squad in Iraq deals with IEDs, snipers and the tensions of the job as they finish their tour of duty.

The kid attractor factor: It’s an action film that isn’t about robots or wizards.

Good lessons/bad lessons: You recklessness is cool, up to the moment you put somebody else at risk

Violence: Shootings, bloody bombings, a corpse has to be defused.

Language: They cuss like soldiers.

Sex: None.

Drugs: Soldiers doing this sort of duty have been known to take a drink.

Parents’ advisory: For all the violence, this thriller is still a mild R. Suitable for 14 and older.