Rango, an animated story with a Wild West setting is under fire from the AAP and other organizations for scenes that depict characters smoking. An email from the AAP cites a grim trend:
"Rigorous research finds grade-schoolers exposed to on-screen smoking are more likely to start smoking as teens. Researchers have also found that each instance of bad guys' smoking in films has more impact on teens than good guys' smoking. A surprising number of kid-rated movies feature cigars, attractive to new young smokers."
Cheryl G. Healton, DrPH, President and CEO of Legacy (an anti-tobacco organization) says that, "Paramount's decision to include smoking in a movie designed for kids is really troubling." She goes on to say that the public health community has made progress in letting the television and film industries know of the dangers posed to kids by depicting characters smoking, so it is a "mystery why Hollywood's masters of storytelling and visual effects have not found a better way to depict their characters without the danger of influencing young people to light up." Further, Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, calls on the MPAA to require an R-rating for any movie that depicts smoking.
I fully get what the AAP and others are saying about Rango. And, it wasn't just the smoking; the alcohol references in the movie (even though they call it cactus juice) are just as bad, and the movie also has a whole lot more language and crude jokes than are present in most animated family films. Now, I thought the town of Dirt, the saloon and the little western critters were genius (although the storyline was lacking). But, whether the characters were good or not isn't the issue here. The issue is should kids see this kind of stuff?
Personally, I took my kids to see this movie knowing that it had scenes with smoking. I definitely wouldn't do this on a regular basis, nor do I think it's at all good idea for an animated film to depict smoking in general. But, I knew I had to see either way, so my choice was leave the kids at home or take them. I took the context of the movie into account; an Old West setting is removed from my kids' daily lives, and I am easily able to explain to them that tobacco use was common before people got smart and figured out it was killing them. Also, my kids are the ones who see a smoker across the parking lot and immediately (and very obviously) hold their breath and walk past said smoker like one whiff of the second-hand-smoke will kill them dead on the spot. They have been brainwashed by their parents, their extended family and their teachers. They don't personally know a single person who smokes in real life. So frankly, I don't see them making the choice to smoke in a! few years because they saw Rango. That being said, there were plenty of other things in the movie in addition to the smoking that makes the movie not-so-great for kids. In all, my oldest daughter said of the movie, "It's just a bunch of lying and bad words."
I don't think that smoking in an animated movie warrants an R-rating, PG-13 would do it. Let's face it, without kids, a movie like Rango doesn't stand a chance at the box office. Putting a PG-13 minimum on an animated film depicting smoking would be a strong deterrent for filmmakers, and it would better warn parents of content that generally has no business being in an animated movie that is marketed to kids and families.
Family Films
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