Bless the Child (R)

No way if your kids get nightmares.

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Movie details

Studio: Paramount Pictures
Directed By: Chuck Russell
Cast: Kim Basinger, Jimmy Smits
Running Time: 107 minutes
Release Date: 08/13/2002
Video/DVD Release Date: 08/13/2002
Genre: Horror
MPAA Rating: R
MPAA Explanation: violence, drugs, sexuality, language

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that grisly images and the portrayal of a drug addict make this inappropriate for many younger teens. Parents should know that creepy images abound: flying satanic creatures, swarming rats, child corpses scarred with symbols of evil, etc. A 6-year-old is repeatedly threatened, at one time she's dangled from a rooftop. Good and evil spirits often appear.

Families can talk about what they like in a spooky movie. What are some of your favorite scary movies, and why?

Message
Violence
Sex
Language

Message

Social Behavior:

Consumerism:

Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:

The lead's sister is a junkie; the villain injects her with heroin. Another character's infected track marks are shown.

Violence

Stabbings and gunfire seem tame in comparison to knitting needles being thrust into a good guy's eyes, and one character getting decapitated. The villain pours gasoline on and burns a homeless man. Creepy images abound: flying satanic creatures, swarming

Sex

Language

Harsh but infrequent.

Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Todd S. Yellin

Given up by her unstable mother, Jenna is raised by Maggie (Kim Basinger). When Jenna turns 6, her birth parents steal her away from Maggie, who turns to detective Travis (Jimmy Smits) for help. Together, Maggie and Travis learn that other children born on the same day as Jenna have also been abducted, and the clues lead them to a group of Satan worshippers.

Is it any good?

If your teen is at all prone to nightmares and can't stomach moderate gore then this movie isn't for your family. And search elsewhere for your thrills if you're at all offended by any of the following: the Catholic church's struggle against actual forces of darkness; an unconvincing Kim Basinger as an overwrought mother-figure; a frightfully uninspired script; and a movie that shamelessly manipulates audience emotion by rolling out the issue of child abduction.

So who will get some enjoyment out of this one? Fans of Jimmy Smits' character from NYPD Blue. Smits plays the same character here--understated professionalism, low-key sense of caring, and humorless sex appeal. Also, B-movie horror buffs who will take their chills in any form and enjoy a few laughs at the movie's expense should get their money's worth.