USCCB - (Office of Media Relations) - Family Video Pick is Hercules

Family Video Pick is Hercules

WASHINGTON (May 7, 1999) --The 1-800-311-4CCC movie line reviews Pushing Tin for the week of May 7-13. Also included on the toll-free line is a review of Hercules, this week's suggested home video for family viewing.

The 800 movie review line is a project of the Catholic Communication Campaign (CCC).

The May 7-13 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.

Pushing Tin Because of brief violence, its theme of infidelity, fleeting nudity and some profanity and rough language, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Pushing Tin is a quirky comedy in which the intense professional rivalry between air traffic controllers John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton spills over to threaten their respective marriages (to Cate Blanchett and Angelina Jolie). The characters' finely tuned performances poke fun at the macho world of controllers whose split-second decisions mean life or death in the skies.
Life -- Because of some violence, mild sexual innuendo, intermittent profanity and recurring rough language, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. In Life, Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence spend six cantankerous decades stuck together on a Mississippi prison farm after being wrongly convicted of murder. The foul-mouthed comedians display some chemistry together but the bittersweet tale is often shapeless in its scattershot focus on racism and injustice.
Entrapment -- Because of a romanticized view of crime, fleeting violence and a few instances of rough language and profanity, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-IV, adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned that some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Entrapment is a mindless escapist caper in which a wily insurance investigator (played by Catherine Zeta-Jones) appears to join forces with the world's craftiest art thief (played by Sean Connery) to nail him red-handed. The glossy fantasy of double-crossing daredevils is sluggishly directed which limits the suspense.
The Mummy -- Because of recurring stylized violence and fleeting partial 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. The Mummy is a spirited horror adventure set in 1920's Egypt where a treasure hunting Yank (played by Brendan Fraser) is confronted by a revived 3,000 year-old mummy whose evil powers seemingly know no bounds. The lavishly shot action movie is stuffed with spooky special effects and comical moments that downplay horror in favor of rousing, old-fashioned entertainment.
Election -- Because of several sexual situations, fleeting nudity, crude sex references, recurring rough language and an instance of profanity, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-IV, adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Election is a biting satire in which idealistic but flawed teacher Matthew Broderick goes overboard in trying to prevent scheming senior Reese Witherspoon from being elected president of the student council. The sharply observed comedy examines with ironic, sometimes nasty wit such human foibles as sexual obsession, hypocrisy and rationalization of such behavior.
Idle Hands -- Because of nasty violence with much gore, pervasive teen drug abuse, crude sexual references, brief nudity, occasional profanity and recurring rough language, the U.S. Catholic Conference classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Idle Hands is a gross horror-comedy in which a pot-smoking teen (played by Devon Sawa) cannot control his murderous hand and even after he chops it off the disembodied hand continues its bloody killing spree at the Halloween school dance. The sick humor isn't funny and a tasteless parade of death scenes just adds insult to injury.

The family video of the week is Hercules -- The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general Audiences. Hercules is a buoyantly animated tale about the ancient Greek hero of the title who is kidnaped from Mt. Olympus as a baby and raised as a mere mortal until, with a little help from a wise-cracking teacher, he proves himself a true hero by rescuing a damsel from the fiery god of the underworld. The colorful adventure is a music-filled celebration of today's pop culture, using toga-clad figures from a mythological past. There is also a shamelessly blatant plug for Disney products and a few scenes of menace may frighten toddlers.

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.usccb.org and http://www.CatholicDigest.org/stops/movies/index.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."