The Naked Brothers Band: Battle of the Bands

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Tween rockers' lifestyle warrants a reality check.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that you owe it to your kids to do a major reality check on this made-for-TV movie about the adventures of Nickelodeon's hugely popular The Naked Brothers Band. The young stars have no responsibilities whatsoever, live in the lap of luxury (big-screen TVs, indoor clubhouses stocked with games, etc.), and enjoy hordes of fans cheering them on wherever they go. Also, because the plot revolves around the "love life" of 11-year-old leader Nat -- he's devastated when his long-time crush falls for a flashy rock star -- there are more sexual references than you might expect for something aimed at tweens. A girl is called "hot" and "a good kisser," a tween pats a girl's bottom as she walks by (she responds by giggling and asking if she's being "punk'd"), and one scene shows a teen couple cuddled together and kissing passionately. Potty language is frequent (the main offender is the group's youngest member, 8-year-old Alex), partly thanks to a total lack of adult supervision.

  • Adult supervision is virtually non-existent; the only adult figure is onscreen for mere minutes of the movie, and he's cast as a goofball (his tween sons often poke fun at him). The movie's plot centers on an 11-year-old's full-blown obsession with his long-time crush, who's smitten with a teen rock star who's not exactly a perfect role model. The tween stars have no responsibilities (school, chores, etc.), but spend their days goofing off in their elaborate club room stocked with a TV, games, and food. Charitable work is placed in a negative light, as the penalty for losing a band competition is a forced monetary donation to a kids' foundation.
  • A couple of brief scuffles that don't result in injury.
  • A tween spends most of the movie mooning over his long-time crush, who's starry-eyed over a flashy but totally superficial teen music star. References include mention of a girl being "hot" and "a good kisser," a pat on a girl's bottom from an 11-year-old boy, and one scene showing a teen couple kissing passionately with their bodies pressed together suggestively.
  • No cursing, but lots of potty talk: "butthead," "kick their butts," and an apparent substitution for a red-letter word ("What in the poo-poo sauce?"). Yuck.
  • The guys enjoy lots of material luxuries, from big-screen TVs to games. The Naked Brothers are also part of an ever-expanding commercial empire, from a TV show to a CD and more.

What's the story?

In THE NAKED BROTHERS BAND: BATTLE OF THE BANDS, the popular real-life tween band is are back in an exaggerated tale of love, loss, and ultimate triumph of good over, well, not so good. The story picks up as the band -- comprised of real-life brothers Nat and four other members including Rosalina (Allie DeMeco)-- signs on to participate in a worthy charity event. The event brings the squeaky-clean group up against an edgier West Coast band whose heartthrob lead singer, Bobby Love (Keli Price), soon catches Rosalina's eye. Nat becomes jealous, and when the crush develops into an all-out romance, he decides to change his good-guy image to compete with Bobby's flashier one. When that doesn't work, he drops obvious hints about his rival's completely phony façade -- but starry-eyed Rosalina refuses to listen to Nat's claims that her boyfriend hires a songwriter for work he passes off as his own and that he isn't even the Brit bombshell he claims to be. Finally, fed up with Nat's rude behavior, she quits the band. Suddenly the battle of the bands takes on new meaning; Nat now sees it as an opportunity to win back Rosalina's heart -- and reveal Bobby for the fake that he is. But whether the girl of his dreams is ready to hear the truth remains to be seen.


Is it any good?

 

The Naked Brothers Band's latest made-for-TV movie may get cheers from their many young fans -- but for parents, the response to yet another glorified slice-of-life installment may be altogether different.Battle of the Bands takes the content viewers are used to from the band's previous TV efforts and gooses it even further. The movie glorifies the tweens' unrealistic lifestyle, in which school is never mentioned, parents are mostly absent (the kids are left to fend for themselves in their decked-out mini-bachelor pad), responsibilities of any sort (family commitments, chores, etc.) are non-existent, and they're revered by fans wherever they go. If that isn't enough to turn parents off, there's some pretty iffy sexual content (for tweens, anyway), too. The entire plot revolves around an 11-year-old's obsession with his crush -- to the point that when she takes an interest in someone else, he's rendered practically useless and resorts to staring out the window instead of interacting with friends. There are also a few kissing scenes, and Bobby refers to Rosalina as "hot" and "a good kisser." Even clean-cut Nat gives Rosalina's bottom a quick pat at one point, something that's totally out of character for the soft-spoken band leader.

On the (slim) plus side is the musicians' unarguable talent, particularly Nat, who penned most of the songs on the band's self-titled CD.

If your tweens are hardcore fans, be sure to do a reality check with them after this movie to remind them that the lifestyle they see isn't the norm. And if they haven't been bitten by the Naked Brothers bug yet, you might want to give this one a pass.


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What families can talk about

Families can talk about how the Naked Brothers' sense of reality compares with their own. Kids: Can you relate to the issues the characters have with each other, with the opposite sex, and with rivals? Do Nat and Alex interact like you and your siblings do? What do you think of the kids' lifestyle? How does it compare to yours? Would you like to be famous? What do you think would be the benefits of fame? What about the downside?


This review was written by Emily Ashby
Adult
April 9, 2008
 
Kids' movie contains iffy sexual content and bad role models.
Three words - know your kid. Nat hits Rosalina's bottom, a teen couple kisses passionately in a suggestive position, Nat and Bobby wrestle on stage and end up pouring food and drinks on each other, Bobby steals Nat's music after Rosalina throws it in the trash (after quitting the band). This is an unrealistic, inappropriate (for young kids), and overall pretty bad movie. The only good things about it are Allie DiMeco's acting and the sweet last scene with Nat and Rosalina (I almost teared up!).

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Parent of 19 year old
September 26, 2009
 
NAT WOLF IS LAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i hate this movie!!!!!!! an 11 year old boy having a girlfriend and being so seriouse about her???????? Nat wolf is LAME!!!!!!!!!!!

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Teen, 15 years old
April 9, 2008
 
NBBmania
The movie is not what other ratings say it is. When the boy grabs the girl's butt is because he was dared, not for personal pleasure. There is no language, and little bad Social Behavior. Good movie for NBB fans.

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Teen, 18 years old
April 9, 2008
 
Comeon people REALLY
ok this was a GOOD movie owhy are you so worried about the words "Hot" and "Good Kisser" that's what teenagers do they think about girls being "Hot" also "Butthead?" "Poo Poo Sauce" again what is the big deal!?! they're just words. Grow up, I'd understand if they used actual BAD language but please. About the materialism , these kids are ROCK STARS and im pretty sure ROCK STARS get whatever they want. And the "No Parents" issue, What kid wants to watch a show about parents?

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Teen, 15 years old
December 5, 2010
 
What in the poo poo sauce?
I have this on DVD. Being a huge fan of NBB, I have ever DVD and CD of The Naked Bros. So an 11 year old is crushing on a 13 year old. Doesn't every 11 year old? Okay, it's wrong to date an 11 year old boy when you're 13. (I also have NBB pajamas, no lie) This movie was kind of stupid. I admit all acting throughout the series is pretty terrible. So don't be suprised if you see this movie. It's just another Naked Brothers Band movie.

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Teen, 16 years old
June 12, 2010
 
A great movie! :)
This movie only had one questionable moment (in the beginning, when Nat was trying to prove he was a 'bad boy' in order to shift Rosalina's focus from Bobby Love, the rockstar, to him), and I have never heard of silly made-up words (i.e., 'poo poo sauce') upsetting anyone. This is a very age-appropriate movie. Whoever on the Common Sense staff that wrote the main review was obviously very biased against The Naked Brothers Band, and writing just to make this movie look bad. :/ This movie is hilarious (I love how Bobby Love is terrified of balloons and towards the end how the band uses that to their advantage), and the songs are great. The song L.A. is one of my favourites of theirs.

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Adult
April 9, 2008
 
Really bad
In the naked brothers band the sexual content is a big issue, when Nat slapped Roselina's bottom, was completely unnecessary and very inappropriate. my four year old son [who is very impressional i might add] has been going around slapping his sister's bottoms. and in the scene where "Bobby Love" and his band were trying to make a new song and a couple started kissing passionately on the couch when they're bodies were very close together, and, by the way, Nat is a young boy [11 years old] he shouldn't be worried about a 13 year old girl "in love" with a boy her own age. Nat keeps talking about how he loves her, and he's basically obsessed with her, which is vaguely creepy. i hoped this helped <3 ~~Marcia :)

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Kid, 11 years old
April 9, 2008
 
i stared
alex is good

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Teen, 14 years old
April 9, 2008
 
I want to be on the show!
It no big deal!I like it my brother,Justin, like it! So it not a bad or terrible movie! Get over yourself! We're kids we like what we like and don't like. Don't confess your child not to watch appropriate movie! Thanks,for listen,Jass

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Teen, 18 years old
April 9, 2008
 
I Dont know why I watched this!
I dont know why I used to like this. All it is now is Nat on his quest for Rosalinas Heart. She shouldn't be with a kid two years younger than her. And What is up with "I dont wanna go to school"? That is just a kid who would rather be with his meteocre band. Now kids will whine or should I say Yell "I dont wanna go to school"!

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This review was written by Emily Ashby
Studio:Paramount Pictures
Director:Polly Draper
Cast:Allie DiMeco, Michael Wolff, Nat Wolff
Genre:Family and Kids
Run time:70 minutes
Theatrical release date:September 4, 2007
DVD release date:September 4, 2007
MPAA rating:NR

This review was written by Emily Ashby
 

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ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
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