CAPCon ALERT

Click on CAPCon Alert image for explanation
ChildCare Action Project:
Christian Analysis of American Culture (CAP Ministry)
www.capalert.com/
Entertainment Media Analysis Report
A service to His little ones (which includes at-home teens) through you, their parents and grandparents, in His name by His Word

MAR24031
(2004), PG
WITH COMPARATIVE

Analysis Date
CAP Final Score
CAP Influence Density
MinMax
March 20, 2004
74 out of 100
0.47
-73

Give your visitors full access to over 800 CAP movie analyses! Place this image on your website and link it to
"http://www.capalert.com/
now_playing.htm"
Target="_New"


Click it to try it!



Click for more information

UPDATED regularly!
We exist only by your
tax-deductible donations.
PLEASE .......


Features PayPal!
Stay informed ...OBJECTIVELY...
on what Hollywood feeds your kids. SUBSCRIBE
to our FREE newsletter.
Please tell a friend about the CAP Ministry:






SUMMARY / COMMENTARY:


If Scriptural references appear, the full text appears at the end of the Summary / Commentary likely using a mix of KJV and NIV.



(2004), PG -- ...much better...
WITH COMPARTIVE



Cast/Crew Details Courtesy Internet Movie Database
Production (US): Warner Bros., Mosaic Media Group
Distribution (US): Warner Bros., Warner Bros. Pictures Inc.
Director(s): Raja Gosnell
Producer(s): James Gunn, Brent O'Connor, Charles Roven, Kelley Smith-Wait, Richard Suckle
Characters: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera
Written by/Screeplay: James Gunn
Cinematography/Camera: Oliver Wood
Music: David Newman
Casting: Heike Brandstatter, Coreen Mayrs, Mary Vernieu
Production Design: Bill Boes
Art Direction: Don Macaulay, Michael N. Wong
Viewed at: Loews Keystone Park 16, Dallas, TX


The Mystery, Inc. gang is back; Fred (Freddie Prinze Jr.), Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Shaggy (Matthew Lillard), Velma (Linda Cardellini) and Scooby-Doo (Neil Fanning voice). This time, Sarah Michelle Gellar does not show us as much of Sarah Michelle Gellar. She wears very short skirts as does Linda Cardellini, but none of the plunging necklines.

The Gang thwarts the evil plans of the evil masked figure (Scott McNeil) to wreak havoc in Coolsville by creating monsters with the Monster Machine using Radomonium from certain silver mines. If you watch the show and want deeper detail into the plot, note Dr. Jonathan Jacobo (Tim Blake Nelson), Patrick (Seth Green), curator of the Coolsonian Museum and Reporter Heather Jasper Howe (Alicia Silverstone) who apparently has intentions on Fred.

The Gang are led by their investigations to the Coolsonian Museum which displays many of the costumes worn by villains the Gang had defeated: Captain Cutler, the 10,000 Volt Ghost (Dee Bradley Baker), a pterodactyl, the Creeper, the Tar monster (voice of Michael Sorich), the Black Knight (voice of Bob Papenbrook) and others. At a book release and full red carpet formal affair at the Coolsonian, the evil masked figure announces his plans as several of the costumes come to life and wreak mayhem. The Cotton Candy Glob (also the voice of Michael Sorich) should never have threatened Shaggy and Scooby.

I am not going to present as much detail of the plot as usual since this film has not yet been released. I will, however, provide all that was noted regarding morally questionable presentation.

Scooby-Doo 2 is much better than the original Scooby-Doo (2002) not only because of the measurably lesser and fewer issues of assault on ethics and morality but because of just a plain better job at film making and story-telling. To help you see the difference in the moral quality between the two films, following is a comparative display of the scoring:


For example, note in particular the glaring lesser content of sexually questionable material and imagery [Sexual Immorality (S)] in Scooby-Doo 2 as compared to the same for Scooby-Doo (2002). The thermometers reveal a score of one left out of 100 for Scooby-Doo (2002) and 77 for Scooby-Doo 2. Scooby-Doo 2 is noticeably more violent than Scooby-Doo (2002) but is less evil as revealed by the large improvement of of the Offense to God (O) score. I will leave the rest of the comparison to you. Confidence is high our readers are quite capable of comparing the scores on their own. I provide the above comparative display simply as a matter of convenience.

The filmmakers were even considerate when the camera was viewing Velma from below while she was hanging from a catwalk -- she was wearing shorts under her short skirt. The filmmakers were even more modest this time during the more acrobatic scenes, keeping exposure of the girls to a relatively respectable minimum. About the most sexually suggestive matter in the whole film was Velma in a skin-tight red leather outfit trying to vamp it up to attract a man and the camera forcing the viewer to focus on her posterior as she climbed into a van from the side door. These matters of improved morality are of significant curiosity since the screenwriter is the same as for Dawn of the Dead, namely James Gunn.

There was only one use of the three/four letter word vocabulary and it was only a euphemism of a truly dirty word. [Prov. 22:11] There was, however, one clear use of God's name in vain but without the four letter expletive. There are a number of examples of crude and toilet humor such as Shaggy using Scooby as a source of compressed flammable gas and a bulldog barking in subtitles "Sniff my [euphemism of posterior]" at Scooby. Dart players throwing darts at a photo of Fred and landing one on his crotch could well have been left out. And one of the girls clamping an electric cable to the crotch of the metal clad Black Knight was a little gross. When Scooby ran between the legs of one of the monsters, the monster's pants dropped, exposing his underwear and some curvature of anatomy. A vomit shower given to one of the reporters was maybe more gratifying than offensive, but offensive crude humor nonetheless. [Eph. 5:4]

About the monsters, while they are ho-hum for the adults, though clearly comical they are likely scary for the really young ones and might invoke nightmares for them. And some sequences of action violence involving the monsters were quite strong with rather graphic battle sequences. But since in the plot they were manufactured by a machine using Randomonium how could I, with a clear conscience, call them occult or Satanic.

One issue I would especially like you to know about was Velma's comment about mysteries when trying to dodge a social affair with Patrick. She said "A mystery is my mistress and I must hear her sweet call." Why would a woman say she must hear the sweet call of her mistress if it were not intended to be a token reference to lesbianism/homosexuality which is subtly, almost invisibly becoming even more common in movies for the young (and public school programs). I guess it all depends on how you define "mistress." At least you know it is there. As always, we tell you about the content of films from a moral standpoint by His Word so you can be in a better position to make an informed moral decision whether a film is or is not fit for your kids and/or yourselves.

By the way, a final score of 74 places Scooby-Doo 2 squarely in the scoring range (86 to 68 out of 100) earned by PG movies in the comparative baseline database circa 1996.

The listing in the Findings/Scoring section will reveal all that was noted regardless of whether the listed items threaten to spoil the plot.

SPECIAL NOTE: We will be reducing the volume of coverage in the Summary/Commentary section of our reports and the number of reports generated in an effort to reduce costs until full funding can be achieved. The Findings/Scoring section of each report, the heart of the analysis model, will NOT be reduced in any way.

Thank you for your patience as we diligently search for funding. Anyone who wishes to volunteer to help us locate 501(c)(3) nonprofit funding and sponsors is encouraged to notify me.



ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo


SCRIPTURAL APPLICATION(S)
If needed to focus or fortify, applicable text is underlined or bracketed [ ]. 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.

  • Prov. 22:11 He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.
  • Eph. 5:4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.

    ***Selected Scriptures of Armour against the influence of the entertainment industry***
  • Ps. 12:8 The wicked freely strut about [e.g., create progressively vile/offensive entertainment with impunity and no consequences and present it to younger and younger audiences every year] when what is vile is honored among men [when enough people continue to defend it, embrace it, pay for it, enjoy it, want it, submit to it. I call attention to Ps. 12:8 to warn of the creeping desensitizing power of "entertainment."]
  • Col. 2:8 Beware lest any man [by his influence] spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
  • 1 Cor. 15:33 (KJV) Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. (NIV) Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character.
  • Rom. 5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
  • Jude 4 For certain men* whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change [warp, distort, falsely represent, situationally redefine, counterfeit, conditionally apply] the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. [*men: anthropos {anth'-ro-pos}, generic, a human being, whether male or female]
  • Matt. 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto [or for] one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto [or for] me.
  • Luke 17:2 It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. [cause by teaching or example]
  • Ps. 119:133 Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.
  • John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
  • 1 Thess. 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.


    ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo


    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.
  • FINDINGS / SCORING:


    Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004) CAP Thermometers

    Wanton Violence/Crime (W)
  • action violence, repeatedly
  • axe and sword attacks, repeatedly, once by an invisible swordsman
  • threat to kill
  • animal attack
  • several monsters

    Impudence/Hate (I)
  • toilet humor, repeatedly
  • crude humor, repeatedly
  • flatulence, repeatedly
  • hatred
  • one use of the three/four letter word vocabulary but of a common euphemism rather than the "dirty word" for human waste
  • tattoos

    Sexual Immorality (S)
  • very short skirts, repeatedly
  • crotch kick
  • camera angle to force viewer on to private parts
  • male changing to female with commentary about it
  • "Mystery is my mistress and I must hear her sweet call"

    Drugs/Alcohol (D):
  • smoking
  • booze

    Offense to God (O)
  • one use of God's name in vain and without the four letter expletive

    Murder/Suicide (M)
  • none noted




  • Please visit our sponsor(s):

    ACCEPTING SPONSORS AND SEEKING VOLUNTEERS TO HELP LOCATE 501(C)(3) FUNDING!




    And please visit also these links.







    CLICK HERE


    SEARCH FOR CHRISTIAN LYRICS
     Artist:   Album:   Title:   Lyric:  



    Single Christian Network




    Kids, Teens and Home Vertical Portal
     Click Here for a Quality Christian Site





    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 more than eight 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.



    Join Christian Banner Exchange Network Today!




    The ChildCare Action Project (CAP) is a nonprofit Christian ministry. We rely on public support. If you wish to contribute to the CAP, please send your donations to
    ChildCare Action Project
    Post Office Box 177
    Granbury, TX 76048-0177

    Your gifts are tax deductible in accordance with Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Service Tax Codes. Please feel free to write to us.



    You are welcome to go to the
    CAP Reports page
    or go to the
    Top of the CAP Home Page
    or the
    CAP Site Map (Table of Contents)
    or leave me an email message or comment at
    cap@capalert.com



    Thank you for visiting us and may God bless you. Prayerfully, we will provide you with some of the most revealing commentary and investigative reporting you have ever read.

    In the name of Jesus:
    Lord, Master, Teacher, Savior, God.
    Tom Carder
    President
    ChildCare Action Project (CAP): Christian Analysis of American Culture
    100% dependent on your tax-deductible financial support

    Copyright ChildCare Action Project (CAP) Ministry





    Since December 5, 2000

       The Fundamental Top 500