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WASHINGTON (April 9, 1998) -- The 1-800-311-4CCC movie line reviews Barney's Great Adventure: The Movie for the week of April 10-16. Also included on the toll-free line is a review of Godspell, this week's suggested home video for family viewing.
The 800 movie review line is a project of the Catholic Communication Campaign (CCC).
The April 10-16 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.
- Barney's Great Adventure: The Movie -- The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. Barney's Great Adventure: The Movie brings the popular TV show to the big screen as the friendly purple dinosaur visits the circus with three children who use their imagination to take flight in a hot-air balloon. Pre-schoolers will certainly enjoy the colorful musical numbers but the syrupy proceedings are less likely to entertain their elders.
- Lost in Space -- Because of frequent fantasy violence, mild sexual references and occasional coarse expressions, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned that some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Lost in Space follows a family of five rocketing from earth to a space colony who along the way get hijacked by a stowaway causing their craft to careen into various life-threatening situations. In this noisy, big-budget version of the mid-sixties TV series, the special effects win out over a jumbled, overly busy storyline.
- My Giant -- Because of fleeting violence and occasional profanity, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. My Giant is a sweet-natured but cloyingly sentimental comedy in which talent agent Billy Crystal hopes to make the big time with an 8-foot tall Romanian he's lured to the United States with promises he can't keep. The comic proceedings suffer from excessive sentimentality as the manipulative agent learns to put his client's needs first.
- The Odd Couple II -- Because of mild sexual innuendo, occasional profanity and a few instances of rough language, 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. The Odd Couple II is a genial comedy sequel reuniting Jack Lemmon's fastidious Felix with Walter Matthau's cantankerous Oscar as they trade insults on a journey periodically interrupted by the police hauling them off to jail. The formula vehicle serves mainly to provide a context for the veteran actors' delivery of zesty one-liners.
- City of Angels -- Because of minor violence, restrained sexual situations and fleeting 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. City of Angels offers the wispy tale of angel Nicolas Cage who longs to become human after falling in love with Los Angeles heart surgeon Meg Ryan. Though the treatment touches on the limitations of science and the mystery of faith, the result is little more than a visually striking but ultimately sappy love story.
- 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain -- Because of much slapstick violence, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain is a boring formula sequel in which four youngsters use their martial arts skills and computer savvy to outwit a band of terrorists holding hostages in a theme park. The result showcases constant physical aggression in a predictable action fantasy.
The family video of the week is Godspell -- The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. Godspell is the sparkling screen adaptation of the stage musical based on St. Matthew's Gospel, with the entire city of New York serving as the stage for high-spirited performances by an off-Broadway cast. The 1973 production strikingly presents the Gospel events as part of the contemporary scene, freshly retelling the parables in imaginative skits and offering such irresistible songs as "Day by Day" and "God Save the People!"
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 movie 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."