The Great Debaters (PG-13, 2007)

This movie was an hand up and all around great movie. It is a inspiring movie for kids and adults. It demonstrated how immoral people can be and it showed change. It was inspiring for American African to go to college and do well but realize it is not easy. Overall this movie is the best movie that both actors has done in their collection of flims.

We watched this movie in school, that's how educational and powerful it is. Although there's a lot of violence, such as gun shots, lynching, and fist fights, as well as some sexual and squeamish scences, it doesn't take away from the powerful messages this movie presents about racism and acceptance. There are some great role models, such as Samantha, the first female member of the Wiley College debate team, and James Jr, who's attending college at the age of 14, and one of the brightest debaters on the team. Some stuff might be a little tough for younger kids to chew, like views on communism and scenes of rebellion and a barn burning resulting from it, but with a little bit of explaination and education on the topics, this movie proves to be very intresting and valuable in the lessons it teaches. This definetaly made my "Best Movies" list!

It looks like a real boring film just from the title and subject matter of it, but it truly is a fantastic film that shows racism the door, and proving that you can achieve anything if you put enough effort into it. Definitely not for children by any means.

This Movie teaches a lot about how evil racism is. it lets you know how hard it was even for kids and teens. they language and violence in this movie is needed to make the viewers fully understand how terrible it is. Younger kids would not understand this so 11+

A little disturbing, violent images of African Americans. One was hung and burned. All in all, everyone over 12 should see it. The N word a few times.

My husband and I saw this movie at a Hollywood industry screening before it was released to the general public. We thought it was a fantastic movie that leaves you feeling like it was worth your money. The story and acting are stellar. The movie makes you think hard about the type of person you are and the struggles of black history in the U.S. (I'm white and my husband is Mexican). As a parent, I probably wouldn't take my 13 year old girl, but I wouldn't disagree letting my 17 year old son watch this movie. Although this movie is rated PG-13, it has a lot of talking and the theme is for an audience that can handle more critical thought and get enjoyment out of it. There's one sex scene, but it doesn't show any nudity -- it's in dark lighting under the sheets -- but it happens. There's a lynching scene, which could be shocking for a younger person -- though the scene shows the end of the lynching, not the actual lynching. Letting an older teenager see this film could actually prove beneficial in demonstrating how unfair black segregation was -- lest we all forget.