 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
All About Steve
- Review Date: August 26, 2009
- PG-13
- Genre: Comedy
- 2009
Common Sense Media says
Sandra Bullock plays a stalker in unappealing romcom.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this offbeat comedy includes some sexual content (Sandra Bullock strips down to her bra, and Bradley Cooper is shirtless in the film's one love scene), as well as humorous but continuous references to sex, dating, and unrequited, obsessive infatuation (i.e. stalking). Language includes frequent use of words like "s--t" and "a--hole," and there's a brief glimpse of adults drinking beer with meals. There's a little bit of mild peril when characters get stuck in potentially dangerous situations, as well as a few cartoonish pratfalls.
What's the story?
Mary Horowitz (Sandra Bullock) is a know-it-all crossword-puzzle editor at a small Sacramento newspaper. Temporarily living with her parents (Howard Hesseman and Beth Grant), Mary agrees to go a on a blind date they've set up with Steve (Bradley Cooper), a cameraman for a cable news channel. Mary immediately realizes that Steve is a catch and aggressively pounces on him, only to turn him off when she won't stop talking. After losing her job for making the weekly crossword all about her new crush, she decides to stalk him as he tracks down news stories with cocky on-air reporter Hartman (Thomas Haden Church).
Is it any good?
Without denying the considerable comic talent of Bullock and Cooper (for proof, see their far better comedies The Proposal and The Hangover), this film is neither funny nor romantic. Instead of seeming nerdy cute like so many male protagonists in romantic comedies, Mary just seems stunted and desperate. It's disingenuous to believe that a walking encyclopedia who loves words so much would be so shallow. One meaningless tussle in the back of a car does not a romance make.
Bullock, so charming even in her lesser films, can't save this nearly unwatchable mess. Cooper does his best acting either put-upon or crazed, and Church earns the movie an extra star for actually eliciting a few laughs. His ambitious, arrogant reporter is a caricature, sure, but he's a welcome break from the train wreck that is Mary and Steve.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about obsessive relationships. Is Mary a stalker? Do you think that it's OK for the movie to find humor in that situation? What would be the consequences in real life?
How would the movie change if the main characters' genders were reversed? Would it be just as funny, or would it seem scary if a man was doing the stalking?
Does the movie send a negative message to "book smart" young women, or is it a positive one?
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Kid, 10 years old
June 17, 2010
AGE
the girl who has been waiting for 40 years is about to get what she wants
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AGE
This movie sucked!!!!! And the car scene is R' ish because he has no shirt on (but pants) and she has a skirt and a bra thats all!!!And they are making out for like minutes. And the movie is not funny nor romantic
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AGE
Romantic comedy?? I think not. Not romantic and I certainly didn't find it funny. Sandra Bullock is MUCH better than this movie.
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AGE
Depends....
They do give some iffy messages like cussing is sometimes okay.
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AGE
For the Dry Humored
Really funny. The only sexual scenes that everybody is worried about are fine! They are sexual, but in a funny way. Like she gives notice to the twinkie in the van. I love it. If your kid has a very kiddish sense of humor, like Monsters vs. Aliens, or Shorts- then I would say they wouldn't enjoy it. But if they are dry humored or like films like Legally Blonde, or Miss Congeniality then it will be fine. I am 11 and I personally loved it!
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AGE
ok first of all the little kid who keeps trying to reveiw it whos like 7 dont listen to a crap of wat shes gotta say! shes like 7 and she says its anapropite for 16 year olds! LOL....
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AGE
funny and not that bad
This movie had a lot of funny parts in it. I would recommend it for ages 12 or 13 and above.There is no nudity in this film. Only twice in the movie there is suggestive content.
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AGE
Not typical romcom
I liked this better than most reviews, (spoiler alert) because it doesn't have a traditional romcom ending--i.e.wacky, obsessed girl wins boy. Here, Mary -- and others-- realize that a kind, smart, even quirky girl is worthy of friendship, and that hav ing friends might be more important then having the "ticket to normal" boyfriend. And she's funny.
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| Studio: | Twentieth Century Fox |
| Director: | Phil Traill |
| Cast: | Bradley Cooper, Sandra Bullock, Thomas Haden Church |
| Genre: | Comedy |
| Run time: | 99 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | September 4, 2009 |
| DVD release date: | December 22, 2009 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | sexual content including innuendos. |
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