The Matrix

Though this movie is pretty dated, the special effects are top notch. I was actually very surprised I was watching something that wasn't just made! There is quite a lot of violence, and it was particularly gruesome when the bug crawled in the protaganists belly button, but other than that, this movie should have been rated PG-13, because I have seen many PG-13 movies that are worse than this R one.

It's impossible to talk about the Matrix and kids without discussing the violence portrayed in this film. This film depicts martial-arts fighting scenes, point blank shooting and machine-gun volleys of destruction with a vividness that cannot be down-played. My wife and I are in a heated debate about whether or not this film is appropriate our oldest of three children. My 12 year old is growing up in a culture that provide 12 year-olds with a near limitless connectivity to the big, big world of the Internet. There are very few parents that have adequate technical skills to fully monitor / constrain access to the Internet from an averagely adept 12 year old. Personally - I'd rather pick my battles (no pun intended) and be there for my kid as he's growing up. Waiting until he's 17 and just about to head out the door… I don't think so. I happen to be a science fiction fan. Over the years, I've found a lot of joy in some of the wonderful stories, messages and mind-bending philosophies that are the hallmark of great science fiction. The Matrix is one of the works of science fiction that captures a lot of the greatness from different works across the genre: like a "highlight real". At the centerpiece of this film are characters that are filled with goodness, human self-doubt and in the end, a heroic commitment towards positive goals. In the review under the "Families Can Talk About" section above - the reviewer does a nice recap of some of those classic science fiction themes that find their way into The Matrix. Based on where my son is, I believe that this is going to lead to a lot of great discussions between the the two of us. I do not believe that the graphic violence will be part of those discussions. If you follow the plot of the film, the violence in this film occurs in a computer generated virtual-reality - not to "real" people. If this concept is too much to understand for your child, then I wouldn't recommend the film at this time. My feelings on this front are greatly influenced by the fact that my son is an extremely kind and thoughtful person - even more so when considering his age. I think this film offers more common ground for the two of us to engage than it will be a bad influence on his development. I don't know if I'm going to get agreement from my wife for another 5 years, but I do know I look forward to sharing it with my kid - whenever that happens and do hope that it's not too far in the future.

Suggested MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi violence and some language.

The Matrix is a classic action film that's great for teens, and in no way does it deserve an R rating. There are a lot of fist fights and shootouts here, but there's almost no blood and nothing graphic is ever shown. The violence in this film is stylized and intense, but is still easily within PG-13 territory. Moderate coarse language is used throughout the film, including the s-word. The music during the closing credits includes a song with stronger language (though this will go unnoticed by most viewers). There are two drug references and one sexual innuendo, but those are closer to PG than R. The film has positive main characters who are willing to sacrifice themselves to save others (though there is one rotten apple in the bunch), and the film contains a lot of thought-provoking philosophical content that will interest intelligent viewers.