• Is it age appropriate?

  About our ratings

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  Not age appropriate for kids under 8, age appropriate for kids over 11; suggested age 11.

• Is it any good?

  3.0

• Common Sense says

  Family comedy hits home run; product placement strikes out.

Why We Rated This for Ages 11 and Up

The good stuff

• Messages:

  When a scrappy boy becomes owner and manager of a Major League Baseball team, players are skeptical of his ability; some of them insult and tease him. Later, the boy abuses his power, neglects his friends, and misses being a kid. Overall, characters behave in positive, supportive, well-meaning ways. A mother and a grandfather are nurturing, loving, and encouraging to a young boy. Even kids treat each other fairly well, with most teasing being good-natured and friendly. However, a hostile coach yells at his players. Also, a player performs poorly on purpose to make the young owner-manager look bad.

What to watch out for

• Violence:

  A boy lives with his mother; the plot reveals that the father has been dead for an unspecified amount of time. The same boy's grandfather dies, presumably of factors related to old age. The death is not shown on-camera, but there is a funeral scene and the mother and son discuss the emotional impact of these deaths. Two boys playfully torment a friend -- sitting on top of him, bopping him on the head with a balloon bat, instructing him not to speak -- but their actions seem more good-natured than cruel.
• Sex:

  A boy who's either 11 or 12 years old rents pay-per-view "dirty" movies in his hotel room. One scene in the rented movie shows two female nurses unzipping their uniforms to reveal white lace bras; another scene shows a clothed nurse, displaying ample cleavage, leaning over a patient. A boy refers to a female classmate as a "babe."
• Language:

  Some profanity, such as "piss," "goddamn," and "hell."
• Consumerism:

  Brand-name products or advertisements are clearly visible throughout the movie; in fact, the camera often lingers on these items. Kids eat McDonald's hamburgers and visit an ice cream vendor selling Dove Bars and Blue Bell ice cream. Ballparks feature several advertiser signs, including those of beer and cigarette brands Budweiser and Marlboro. Gatorade is visible in the players' locker room. Other products include a Payday candy bar and Coca-Cola.
• Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

  A baseball player and a team manager are shown chewing tobacco.

What Parents Need to Know

About Little Big League

Families Can Talk About