Monster House - PG

Frightful fun for tweens and up.

Watch Video Review

Rating: PG for for scary images and sequences, thematic elements, some crude humor and brief language. Studio: Sony Pictures Directed By: Gil Kenan Cast: Steve Buscemi, Jason Lee, Catherine O'Hara, Fred Willard, Jon Heder, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mitchel Musso, Sam Lerner, Spencer Locke Running Time: 91 minutes Release Date: 07/21/2006 Genre: Family and Kids

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know this is a pretty scary movie, and the last 20 minutes, in particular, take a turn for the dark. With windows like eyes and a flying carpet that unfurls tongue-like out the front door to scoop up trespassers, the house is a wonderfully alive structure. But it's creepy. You don't want your kids waking up in the middle of the night freaked out that their house is going to eat them. Most of the PG content comes from the scariness; there are very few crude jokes or language issues.

The kids are in constant peril, and they're not exactly role models. They break and enter, steal cough medicine, operate heavy machinery, and use sticks of dynamite. Likewise, the adults in this movie are creepy –- not just Old Man Nebbercracker, but also the uninterested babysitter, detached parents, and clueless cops.

Families can talk about what the kids could have done differently. When the adults in their lives brush off their concerns about the house, is it okay for them to figure out a solution on their own that puts them in danger?

And where WERE the adults anyway? What should THEY have done differently to help the kids through this situation?

Rate It!

Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Jane Boursaw

You know that scary old house down the street? Turns out, it's a real live monster! This animated family horror movie –- yup, that's what it is -- centers around three kids who discover that a neighbor's house is actually a living, breathing monster.

It all begins when DJ (Mitchel Musso) looks out his window at the creepy house across the street. It's old. It's run-down. And it's owned by "Old Man Nebbercracker" (Steve Buscemi), the meanest guy in town who loves terrorizing the neighborhood kids. And heaven forbid any toys should land on his lawn or he'll snatch 'em away forever.

DJ starts keeping track of all the lost items, so much so that he becomes a bit of an outcast. But his parents (Catherine O'Hara and Fred Willard) have other things on their mind and pay no attention to his crazy ideas. Right before Halloween, they head off to a dental convention and leave him home with a Goth babysitter, Elizabeth (Maggie Gyllenhaal), who prefers the nickname "Zee". His parents think she's an angel, but DJ knows better. Her slacker boyfriend, Bones (Jason Lee), grew up in the neighborhood and knows all about the house. And oh yeah, he's in a band.

DJ's friend, Chowder (Sam Lerner), comes by and joins in the house observations. In the nick of time, they stop a neighbor-girl, Jenny (Spencer Locke), from trying to sell Halloween candy at the house. A Westbrook prep girl, she doesn't normally hang out with boys, but reluctantly joins them in the house mystery. Before long, the three kids discover that Nebbercracker isn't the only thing that's creepy about the house. The house, it seems, has a life of its own.

Rounding out the cast are Skull (Jon Heder - sweet!), a pizza delivery guy and video game champ; Officer Lister (Nick Cannon), a rookie cop; Officer Landers (Kevin James), a jaded cop who's seen it all; and the house itself (Kathleen Turner, the original Jessica Rabbit).

This is one of those movies where all the planets align: a top-notch crew (director Gil Kenan; executive producers Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis), memorable voices that fit the characters perfectly; and a great story, ingenious backstory, and twisty-turny ending. The motion-capture animation is the same as that used in The Polar Express, where the characters have so much personality you feel like you're watching real people. But even more important is the story, which is approaching Pixar quality. The characters and animation revolve around the story, rather than the other way around.

Families who enjoy this movie will also like Toy Story, Toy Story 2, and Monsters, Inc.

Rate It!

Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content The boys are at an age where they're starting to think about girls, which comes out in their dealings with Jenny. Also, the babysitter's boyfriend tries to put the moves on her, and she kicks him out of the house.
Violence The house is a nightmarish creature that gobbles up neighborhood toys, pets, even people that trod on its lawn. It's scary, especially the last 20 minutes. The storyline includes dead and dying people; violent video games, guns and explosions; and there's a supernatural undercurrent to the movie that isn't appropriate for young kids. Nebbercracker and the babysitter's boyfriend make physical and verbal threats to the kids.
Language Verbal threats to the kids, name-calling, potty humor, terms of deity used as expletives, and other words such as "suck," "moron," "kiss my butt," and "crap".
Message
	Social Behavior In their investigation, the kids steal, operate heavy machinery, break and enter, even use sticks of dynamite. The adults are unreliable and absent in their lives. The babysitter is mean, self-absorbed, and doesn't care about the kids. She allows her boyfriend in the house at night; he gropes her and is generally disrespectful. The kids display crude humor relating to bodily functions, and they pee in bottles to avoid leaving the room all night. A dad refuses to say "I love you" to his son.
	Commercialism Very few pop culture references, which is refreshing.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco The boyfriend drinks beer and appears drunk when he leaves the house. The kids plan to use cough syrup to put the house to sleep. A cop takes a drink of the cough syrup when no one is looking.