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A ministry of the ChildCare Action Project: Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP Ministry) A 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Christian Ministry. www.capalert.com/ Entertainment Media Analysis Report A service to His little ones through you in His name by His Word MAR2011.087  (2011), PG [R-PG*] (1hr 39min) The #1 Christian entertainment media analysis service on the Internet. We give you OBJECTIVE tools NO ONE ELSE CAN to help YOU make an informed decision for yourself whether a film is fit for your family. Over 1300 analyses for parents, grandparents, pastors, youth leaders and more. |
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(While the Scriptural references are certainly not subjective, my commentary may be and sometimes is somewhat subjective.)
 Cast/Crew Details Courtesy Internet Movie Database Production (US): Blind Wink Productions; GK Films, Nickelodeon Movies Distribution (US): Paramount Home Entertainment Director(s): George Verbinski Producer(s): Gore Verbinski, Graham King, John B. Carls, Tim Headington, Mark Bakshi, Adam Cramer, Shari hanson, Jacqueline M. Lopex, Nils Peyron, David Shannon Written by: John Logan Story by: John Logan, Gore Verbinski, James ward Byrkit Music: Hans Zimmer Film Editing: Craig Wood Casting: Dennis Chamian Production Design: Mark "Crash" McCreery Art Direction: John Bell Viewed on Paramount Home Entertainment DVD  First it might be advisable to remind everyone that, regarding influence on the viewer, the CAP Analysis Model does not distinguish between content performed by animated characters or live actors/actresses. Any animated content that can reasonably be duplicated by a child is considered the same degree of influence as if it were performed or demonstrated by a live actor/actress. For example, to the developmental mentality of a child an animated act of killing by gunfire can be as morally acidic as the same act by live performers. To a child, that a demonstration is by animated characters does not insulate the child from the influence. People used to think the Road Runner™ cartoons were dangerously violent. Now comes Rango. I suspect this is going to be one of the rare R-PG films. We'll see. The number crunching will tell. I'll have the number crunching done in a couple hours. In the vernacular of the script, yup. This film earned a final score of 51 which places it near the top of the scoring range earned by R-rated films (54 and below out of 100) in the comparative baseline database. It is another R-PG. "RPG" also stands for "rocket propelled grenade." The influence of the content of this film may indeed create an explosion of immoral behavioral choices or expressions in your youth. Four characters hanging by the neck. One character being shot off a tower. Gunfire to kill repeatedly. Firearms held to faces to control or force. Gunfire to make a victim "dance" to hopefully avoid being shot in the foot. Gunfire to kill. That is not all. Not by a "long shot." There is much, much more. An area score of zero out of 100 in the Wanton Violence/Crime investigation area revealed the violence/crime content of Rango is beyond any shadow of a doubt equivalent to the violence content in many R-rated films (54 and below out of 100), not so much by the severity of individual examples of assault on morality and ethics but in the sheer number of examples (see our R-13 publication for more information on this content loading technique). The impudence/Hate content (which includes profanity) earned an investigation area score equivalent to the same content in some R-rated films. The use of a term of profanity is profanity whether spewed by a live actor/actress or an animated character. Likewise the Drugs/Alcohol content earned a R-equivalent area score as did the Sexual Immorality investigation area. On a positive note, the Offense to God investigation area (which includes satanism, occultism witchcraft, blasphemy, etc) and the Murder/Suicide investigation area found content to be equivalent to that of most G-rated films. While this film is one of the most violent PGs I have ever seen, it presents some of the most dazzling animated likenesses of animals and animation of real world things I have ever seen in film. A pet chameleon Lars (voice of Johnny Depp) is ejected from a vacationing family's car on a highway through the Mojave Desert. What is a city lizard to do to survive in the Mojave? A wise and sage old armadillo, Roadkill (voice of Alfred Molina) with a midsection crushed by a car tire advises Lars to look for dirt. After several episodes of desert peril, Lars runs into Beans (voice of Isla Fsher) while she holds a shotgun to his face. Beans leads Lars to the dirt for which he searches ... Dirt, California in the Mojave desert. A town dried up and without water. So dried up the cacti die of thirst. Upon walking into town a group of local kids terrorize the funny looking stranger. One of them is the little mouse, Priscilla (Abigail Breslin). Priscilla warns Lars that strangers don't last long there. At the town saloon Lars spins a tall tale of him being a bad hombre "from the West, out there, beyond the horizon. Past the sunset. The Far West" ... where they "kill a man before breakfast just to work up an appetite." He continues the tall tale to tell of killing seven men with one bullet. And now Lars becomes Rango, taken from "durango" on the side of a bottle of cactus juice. His bravado lends him up to be the new sheriff of Dirt, CA. His duty is to find the town's water. It turns out that the town Mayor (voice of Ned Beatty) has ulterior motives and has taken secret control of the town's water. There is so much programming compressed into 99 minutes it seems longer than that. There is not one moment of "nothing." A cleaver maneuver of the filmmakers was the Spirit of the West (voice of Timothy Olyphant) with the golden guardians and the alabaster carriage. The Spirit of the West was a satirical take on a very famous character known for "Do ya feel lucky, punk?" and "Go ahead. Make my day." Who is he? The star that has played the good guy and the bad guy in so many western movies that he might actually be figuratively called the Spirit of the West since he has helped us for years to 'live' the Old West through his performances. No, it is not John "Thank ya, li'l lady" Wayne. Wanton Violence/Crime (W) - Zero out of 100 There is a lot of gunfire to kill and to intimidate, brandishing of firearms and firearms and a knife to the faces of characters in this movie. At the intro section is a tale of preferring death over life without love. One character is frequently seen with an arrow in his right eye and through his skull. The mariachi band is seen being hung by the neck with nooses. A hostage is taken at gunpoint. This is a very violent movie. God warned us that violence is "catching" in Prov. 16:29: that violence can lead into "the way that is not good." Even man has chimed in on God's wisdom (2000 years later) by four public health agencies publishing a finding that states "viewing violence may lead to real life violence" and "viewing violence can lead to emotional desensitization towards violence in real life." When are we going to listen? Impudence/Hate (I) - 29 out of 100 Eleven times the characters use profanity plus one incomplete phrase of profanity. [Eph. 4:29, Eph. 5:4] Lars/Rango uses deception throughout. [Rom. 16:18] On top of the deception is lying. Repeatedly. God has harsh consequences for the unforgiven liar. So harsh that He will not let him/her into Heaven. [Rev. 21:8] Sexual Immorality (S) - 49 out of 100 There are several minutes showing a nude mannequin at the first part of the show as Lars performs a little "play." If it was not intended by the filmmakers to display nudity then why not use a clothed mannequin. And since a palm tree was one of the "actors" in Lars' little solo play why could they not have used a broom instead of a nude mannequin? Or a stuffed animal? I don't buy it for one second that the filmmakers did not intend to impart human nudity thinking using a mannequin absolved them of any guilt. Not for one second. There is also a bar maid with her gender-specific anatomy squeezing out of her clothing. And another character offers up his sister in exchange for a favor. And that is not all. God never intended for any of us to be anything less than sanctified in His Holiness. [1 Ths. 4:3] Drugs/Alcohol (D) - 39 out of 100 Smoking. Drinking. Drunkenness. It is all there for your children. At one time I had heard the MPAA was going to consider any movie with smoking in it to be R-rated. I guess I heard wrong. Or they were. The American College of physicians (ACP) did a study that revealed adolescent exposure to drinking in and as entertainment undeniably leads to abuse of alcohol among underage viewers. The finding entitled Relation Between Parental Restrictions on Movies and Adolescent Use of Tobacco and Alcohol reports that of 4544 youths from grades 5 through 8 of fifteen Vermont and New Hampshire middle schools (90% of the youths were under fourteen years old) only 16% were completely restricted in their entertainment diets. Within the ACP study population, the prevalence of having tried alcohol without parental knowledge was There is nothing to say that smoking in and as entertainment does not carry the same danger of influence as drinking. Offense to God (O) - 93 out of 100 There are a number of references to God and the Scriptures and even use of Biblical names. While some might seem a tad irreligious none seem to be sacrilegious. However, at a campsite on their journey to find the water thieves one of the characters offers up prayer to a false god. Also, the story speaks to evolution. Murder/Suicide (M) - 93 out of 100 One of the characters, the one portraying the Native American Indian which I think was Wounded Bird (voice of Gil Birmingham) was murdered by Rattlesnake Jake (voice of Bill Nighy) with gunfire. While Bird was noted as speaking to Beans after the fall from being shot off a tower, that was the last we see of him. SCRIPTURAL APPLICATION(S) If needed to focus or fortify, applicable text is underlined or bracketed [ ] or bold. If you wish to have full context available, the Blue Letter Bible is a convenient source. If you use the Blue Letter Bible, a new window will open. Close it to return here or use "Window" in your browser's menu bar to alternate between the CAP page and the Blue Letter Bible page. CHAPTER/VERSE ***Selected Scriptures of Armour against the influence of the entertainment industry*** As always, it is best to refer to the Findings/Scoring section -- the heart of the CAP analysis model -- for the most complete assessment possible of this movie. |
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(The objective heart of the CAP Analysis Model, independent of and insulated from the Summary / Commentary section.)  Wanton Violence/Crime (W) - Zero out of 100 Impudence/Hate (I) - 29 out of 100 Sexual Immorality (S) - 49 out of 100 Drugs/Alcohol (D) - 39 out of 100 Offense to God (O) - 93 out of 100 Murder/Suicide (M) - 93 out of 100 |
| There are some in the entertainment industry who maintain that 1) violent programming is harmless because no studies exist that prove a connection between violent entertainment and aggressive behavior in children, and 2) young people know that television, movies, and video games are simply fantasy. Unfortunately, they are wrong on both accounts." And "Viewing violence may lead to real life violence." I applaud these associations for fortifying 1 Cor. 15:33. Read the rest of the story. From our years of study, I contend that other aberrant behaviors, attitudes, and expressions can be inserted in place of "violence" in that statement. Our Director - Child Psychology Support, a licensed psychologist and certified school psychologist concurs. For example, "Viewing arrogance against fair authority may lead to your kids defying you in real life." Or "Viewing sex may lead to sex in real life." Likewise and especially with impudence, hate and foul language. I further contend that any positive behavior can be inserted in place of "violence" with the same chance or likelihood of being a behavior template for the observer; of being incorporated into the behavior mechanics and/or coping skills of the observer. In choosing your entertainment, please consider carefully the "rest of the story" and our findings. |
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| For G rated Films with G equivalence: G PG equivalence: PG-G PG-13 equivalence: 13-G R equivalence: R-G< | For PG rated Films with G equivalence: G-PG PG equivalence: PG PG-13 equivalence: 13-PG R equivalence: R-PG | For PG-13 rated Films with G equivalence: G-13 PG equivalence: PG(13) PG-13 equivalence: PG-13 R equivalence: R-13 | For R rated Films with G equivalence: G-R PG equivalence: PG-R PG-13 equivalence: 13-R R equivalence: R | For NR rated Films with G equivalence: G-NR PG equivalence: PG-NR PG-13 equivalence: 13-NR R equivalence: R-NR |