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WASHINGTON (July 25, 1997) -- George of the Jungle leads the July 25-31 movies on the 1-800-311-4CCC movie-review line. Also included on the toll-free line is a review of The Swan Princess, this week's suggested home video for family viewing.
The 800 movie review line is funded by the Catholic Communication Campaign (CCC).
The July 25-31 list includes the following theater releases and their classifications according to moral suitability. Movies are evaluated according to artistic merit and moral suitability by the U.S. Bishops' Office for Film and Broadcasting.
- George of the Jungle. Because of occasional slapstick violence, some mild sexual references and bathroom humor, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested.
George of the Jungle is an engagingly silly live-action version of an old TV cartoon series about a jungle-raised primitive (played by Brendan Fraser) who falls in love with an heiress on safari and follows home to San Francisco. It's a good-natured spoof of jungle adventure movies, though the pace flags when the action moves to the big city.
- Air Force One -- Because of intense violence, some rough language and occasional profanity, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.
Air Force One is a violent political thriller with Harrison Ford playing a President whose plane and passengers are hijacked by terrorists unaware the President is aboard and determined to stop them The bloody confrontations in the air are intercut with escalating complications on the ground, but none of it is very credible and the suspense grows tiresome.
- Operation Condor -- Because of much comic-book violence, sexual references and brief nudity, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned that some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
- Operation Condor stars Jackie Chan as a secret agent battling various villains with the help of three bickering women while seeking gold buried by Nazis in the Sahara Desert. The dubbed, jokey action movie is full of dopey stereotypes in a nonsensical plot offering little but Chan's dexterity in the martial arts.
- Good Burger -- Because of some slapstick violence, mild sexual innuendo and a few crude expressions, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested.
Good Burger is a thin but good-natured comedy about two teenaged fast-food workers trying to keep a rival burger joint from stealing the recipe for their secret burger sauce. With their jobs at stake, the bumbling buddies go to comic extremes and the result offers some goofy fun.
- A Simple Wish -- Because of some coarse language and mild menace, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested.
A Simple Wish is a weak though innocuous comic fantasy in which Martin Short plays an inept male fairy godmother trying to grant a little girl's wish for her dad to star in a Broadway musical. The comic special effects are more amusing than the flimsy story and all the frantic antics of Short's klutzy character.
- The Swan Princess: Escape from Castle Mountain -- The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences.
The Swan Princess: Escape from Castle Mountain is an animated sequel to the 1994 original whose prince and princess are now threatened by a villainous wizard after a magic ball hidden in their castle. Though there's nothing very imaginative about the story or the animation, the fairy tale adventure will keep young children entertained fairly well.
The Family video of the week is The Swan Princess. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences.
The Swan Princess is an animated tale of a beautiful princess changed into a swan by an evil sorcerer while a valiant prince attempts to break the spell. The lovely graphics are animated in the style of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," with the heavily romantic story paced by some lighthearted humor from an animal trio assisting in the rescue.
The classifications are A-I - general patronage; A-II - adults and adolescents; A-III - adults; A-IV - adults, with reservations (an A-IV classification designates problematic films that, while not morally offensive in themselves, require caution and some analysis and explanation as a safeguard against wrong interpretations and false conclusions); O - morally offensive.
The movie reviews are produced by the U.S. Catholic Conference (USCC) Office for Film and Broadcasting, which each week provides full length movies reviews, brief capsules and film classifications of new theater releases.
Reviewers include Henry Herx, Director, and Gerri Pare, Associate Director, of the Film and Broadcasting Office, which is funded by the CCC.
The capsule reviews are available on the World wide Web. They can be found on two sites: http://www.nccbuscc.org and http://www.CatholicDigest.org/stops/movies/movies1.html.
Full-length reviews of the above and other movies are available through America Online at the Catholic News Service site on AOL, and can be accessed by AOL members using the keyword, "CNS."