Parental Guidance - Are You Showing Your Children Inappropriate Films?

Something that has become apparent in my time working with movie memorabilia, action figures and associated merchandise, is the number of parents who are allowing their children Out of Body Experience watch inappropriate films and TV shows. In this age of the DVD box set, movies on demand via digital TV and the like, something negative has happened to the attitudes of many people in regard to the things that their children are able to view.

Films are given a rating for a reason, be they R or NC17 in the US or PG, 12, 15 or 18 here in the UK. These films are deemed suitable for people over those ages and no younger. Sadly it is becoming ever more apparent that very young children are allowed to watch things that are intended for adults. This is irresponsible and needs to be stamped out in order to ensure that the films these children are exposed to contraceptive patch not have a detrimental effect on their upbringing.

The argument is that 'It is only a film' and 'they know the difference between films and reality'. The truth is, no they don't. You expose an underage child to something like A Nightmare on Elm Street, and then they suddenly want a razor-blade glove with which to slash their friends to pieces. You show them a Friday the 13th movie, and they will want a Hockey mask and a machete. This is wrong, and is deeply abhorrent behaviour for any parent. Some people will argue that their kids love watching Chucky films, but the fact remains that these films are about a psychopathic murderer who possesses a doll via satanic ritual in order to continue killing after the police have killed his human body. Does that sound appropriate for a child to see? No, it doesn't.

Saying that 'every kid knows who Freddy and Jason and Leatherface and Chucky are', and they aren't scared of them, doesn't settle it. The thing is, they know who these characters are because they have not been taught that these things are intended for adults. The exact same thing goes for violent video games. After GTA, kids are starting to think its okay to steal cars and shoot people. How about some common sense? Exposing kids to such violence ends up desensitizing them to how wrong violence is, and we end up with a culture in which it is deemed okay to attack people.

But it isn't just down to the parents, at least not in the case of video games. Many of these ultra violent games, such as Halo 3, Gears of War and the like, seem to be marketed directly at the underage market. While I can see their way of thinking, it doesn't make it the right thing to do. While some may argue that the media is causing the downfall of decency and values, it The Black Hole be aid that parents play a massive part in what they let their children see and do. Indeed it may well be that very lack of supervision that has led us to be trapped with such a violent society. Please, keep an eye on your kids. Make sure they are not exposed to things that are completely inappropriate. Help them be educated. Take an interest in their development. Find things you can enjoy together- there's certainly hosted exchange services entertainment out there. Sitting them in front of a horror DVD or that shiny new Xbox 360 is not really the sensible thing to do.

Andrew writes for the pop culture/memorabilia site starstore.comstarstore.com and its blogs, covering the latest and greatest in film, TV, music and comics merchandise and collectibles.