Jingle All the Way - PG

Ahnold terminates the holiday spirit.

Rating: PG for action violence, mild language and some thematic elements Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Directed By: Brian Levant Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rita Wilson, Phil Hartman Running Time: 85 minutes Release Date: 11/21/1996 Genre: Comedy

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that this film offers nothing in the way of genuine family fun. Young kids may enjoy the action, car chases, and explosions, but they aren't worth it for the miserable messages about consumerism and buying your child's love.

Families can talk about the movie's message. Is Christmas really all about getting THE toy? How do parents make time for their kids and show their love without gifts? What are your favorite things to do, especially during the holidays, that don't require spending money?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Heather Boerner

If you don't have to watch JINGLE ALL THE WAY during the holidays, don't. It's everything that's wrong with the holiday season: It's competitive, it's stressful, it's desperate, and it's all about consumerism.

Harold Langston (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is a pandering, workaholic dad who, despite his best efforts, misses his son's karate test and never shows up when he says he's going to. In order to win back his son's love, Harold offers to make it up to Jamie for missing his events by buying him anything he wants for Christmas.

Jamie knows what he wants immediately. In an excited voice, he recites the TV ad for a new toy: "I want the TurboMan action figure with the arms and legs that move and the boomerang shooter and the rocket jet pack and the realistic voice activator that says five different phrases, including, 'It's Turbo Time!' Accessories sold separately, batteries not included."

So, just days before Christmas, Harold makes it his goal to find that doll -- which, he soon discovers, is the Tickle Me Elmo of the season: hot, hot, hot, and impossible to find. Harold roams from store to store, chasing ping pong balls for toy lotteries, visiting a Santa's toy shop of stolen and broken gifts with some crooked Santas, and rushing to a radio station to try to win a TurboMan for his son.

Along the way, he meets and becomes rivals with a mail carrier dad, Myron (Sinbad), who quite literally goes postal. When he's still sane, he explains the moral of the story: "You know it's all a ploy, don't you?" Myron chides. "We are being set up by rich and powerful toy cartels. They spend billions of dollars on TV advertisements, and then they sit there and use subliminal advertisements to suck the children's minds out. And then they sit there and make [your kid] feel like garbage" if you don't get it for them.

You'd think a film with that kind of clarity would offer an alternative to the reality these beleaguered dads face -- and Jingle does, in the form of a womanizing next door neighbor (Phil Hartman) who uses his good-dad persona to try to seduce Harold's wife, Liz (Rita Wilson). He's no role model, either.

In short, there's no one in this movie for kids to look up to. And what that means is that, despite being about getting toys, this is a movie for adults who've been in Harold's position and who desperately want to be their sons' heroes. But it's not fun to watch for anyone.

If you want a more heartwarming movie that gets its message across much better, consider Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas or The Muppet Christmas Carol.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Some brief kissing between parents. Ted is constantly hitting on Liz. Some unwitting double entendre by Jamie.
Violence Lots of punching, kicking, threats, and one explosion. While pervasive, the violence is comic, and no one actually gets hurt.
Language Liz utters "damn" once, but other than that, it's mostly clean.
Message
	Social Behavior Harold yells at his son and neglects him but eventually redeems himself by dressing up like a superhero and procuring the prized holiday gift. Jamie learns that the gift is less important than the love of his father, but only after parents and kids obsess over getting the gift.
	Commercialism Gumby, the Cat in the Hat, and Crayola are all prominently displayed during a holiday parade. Two dads go to extremes for a toy.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Harold and Myron sneak liquor into their coffee after a long day of toy hunting. In a fantasy sequence, Jamie drinks liquor from the bottle.