 | 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. |
Stealth
- Review Date: November 18, 2005
- PG-13
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- 2005
Common Sense Media says
Explosion movie is too violent for little ones.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this movie features lots of fighter jet action, explosions, drinking (martinis, beer), smoking, tough fighter language, and sexual references, sometimes raunchy (ménage a trois).
What's the story?
Full of explosions and video game-like fighter jet scenes, STEALTH poses a serious problem beneath its giddy surface. That is, does the escalation of war by technological advances lead to more or fewer human costs? The movie sets off three excellent Talon pilots -- Kara (Jessica Biel), Henry (Jamie Foxx), and Ben (Josh Lucas) -- against their new "wingman," the UCAV (Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle) nicknamed EDI, a newfangled robotic fighter jet. Touted by Captain Cummings (Sam Shepard) as "the future of digital warfare. EDI is all blinking lights and silky vocals. Once struck by lightning, though, EDI goes off grid, and begins seeking out all sorts of targets, thus threatening to start a world war. Ben and Cummings discuss the uses of robot weapons, Cummings believing that they will reduce "body bags," while Ben (like Kara) thinks the human element of piloting is crucial. During their search for EDI, the three pilots are separated, which makes for multiple action scenes with characters in peril.
Is it any good?
The action bits are predictably well-choreographed and boisterous, but also distracting (yes, even in an action movie, too much of a good thing is still too much). Stealth wants to be a smarter movie than it is, posing the cases for and against technological warfare, tracing foibles not only of individuals within the financing and command systems, but also in the systems themselves. A self-declared post-9/11 action movie, it's mightily conflicted, exhilarating in the visuals and visceral effects, but stubbornly clinging a core idea, that war is actually bad -- for everyone.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the gendered differences between attitudes toward war (the girl pilot is more emphatically moralistic and humanistic than the boys). Also worth considering is the film's framing of war as a series of choices, and how technology can enhance, exacerbate, and (ideally) alleviate human costs. How is the robot pilot's disobedience singular or systemic? How does the film produce viewer pleasure in the battle images, but also ask you to consider the victimization of farmers and other civilians?
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- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
Better for older than 15
I am not a shoot-em-up fan, but the idea that you never go back on your word and never leave a friend to fend for themselves, is good enough, but still I think too violent for anyone under the age of 16... and even then, there are a few scences that are not even appropriate for that age and overall too many curse words.
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AGE
Went with the family
It was a good action flick for the family. Nothing amazing, but not horrible.
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AGE
really good!
the storyline was completely different than the trailer depicts it.....and in a good way!!!
this is a good summer movie with a great cast.
the special effects are awesome but the intensity of the movie may be too much for some kids under 11-12 range. 12+.
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AGE
ZZZZZ Boring
I saw this movie with my mom, hoping it would be something like "XXX"...
its not anything like it. I felt like i
I was watching the same thing over and over and over again. the acting was pretty good though.
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AGE
Stealth in the Pit of Horrible, Horrible Movies
I could not follow this movie at all! One minute they're in Alaska and some guy is giving this other guy a toxin for no reason whatsoever, and the next a woman is in North Korea trying to escape with her life. The movie description said that a futuristic plane went haywire and just killed 1 person, and I found this to be particularly racist sense it was the african american. Do not waste your money or any time of your life wathcing this bullcrap. It's probably not even worthy of 1 star.
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AGE
Bad Plot, Good Special Effects, Bad Acting *Very Minor Spoiler Warning*
Well, it was not a great movie, especially if you are going for something with a good plot or good acting. If you want to see things blow up, this is a movie for you. The three main characters are loyal to each other and show some good characteristics, but at the same time showing they are human. When one of them dies (sorry about the spoiler), he is likable enough that you actually care (he also happens to be the only one who gives anything close to a good acting performance). There is a lot of drinking and language.
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AGE
Nothing but a terrible, lengthy action scene
"Stealth" is one of Hollywood's attempt to get money without even having a script, a plot or actors. Though there are actors, they never have any chance to act, for there are actually no actors needed. Explosions, a hilariously predictable "story" and actors that seem to do nothing dominate the film.
Even for an action blockbuster, this is nothing but boring.
The movie itself has some violence like explosions that end up in visible wounds. However, nothing R-Rated.
The language is exactly what you would expect from a PG-13 movie.
Teens and up.
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| Studio: | Columbia Tristar |
| Director: | Rob Cohen |
| Cast: | Jamie Foxx, Jessica Biel, Josh Lucas |
| Genre: | Action/Adventure |
| Run time: | 121 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | July 29, 2005 |
| DVD release date: | November 15, 2005 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | intense action, some violence, brief strong language and innuendo |
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