Time Kid

Review

Common Sense Media says

Action-packed time-traveling adventure with some fighting.
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

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Kids say

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this animated time-traveling adventure includes some cartoon violence and lots of action. One element of the story involves the loss of the main character's mother and his father's grief. Positive messages about being yourself and the importance of family poke through the adventure, and the time-travel theme should spark discussions and trigger imagination about the future.

  • Educational value0
    Intended to entertain, not educate, but kids might get an introduction to the H.G. Wells story A Time Machine, on which this movie is based.
  • Positive messages3
    Friends are more important than status and wealth. Instead of going into the future to change things for the better, Tom learns that "we have to make our world today."
  • Positive role models3
    Tom learns to be true to himself and his friends. His father learns the importance of family over the obsessions of his career as an inventor.
  • Violence & scariness3
    Cartoonish violence: falling, chasing, some fighting. There are also scenes of abductions that may be scary for younger viewers. Also, some sad elements having to do with the loss of the main characters mother and his father's search for a cure in the past.
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What's the story?

Tom Spender (voiced by Mochael Monroe Heyward) is a typical teenager from the year 1902. But when he discovers his father's time machine, he realizes his father is missing somewhere in the future. He embarks on a journey -- first to the year 2002, and then to the year 11,902, to find him and bring back to his own time. Along the way, Tom encounters skinheads, skateboards, and strange future-primitive tribes in the 120th century.

Is it any good?

 

Based on H.G Wells' classic story The Time Machine, this time-traveling adventure that originally aired on Nickelodeon is packed with non-stop action. The speculations as to what the future will be like around New York in 11,902 should spark imaginative discussions, and an opportunity to compare and contrast the world of today, the world of the past, and the world of the distant future.

The story does get a little strange -- both tribes Tom encounters in the future have rather eccentric belief systems and cultural trends -- and some of the storylines don't really go anywhere. But overall, TIME KID is enjoyable sci-fi entertainment.

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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about the future. How does this movie imagine it? How do you think things will change over the next 100 years? How about the next 10,000?

  • What kinds of messages are embedded in this movie? Does the non-stop action make the messages less clear?

This review was written by Brian Costello

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This review was written by Brian Costello
Topics:magic and fantasy, adventures
Studio:GAIAM
Cast:America Young, Michael Monroe Heyward
Genre:Science Fiction
Run time:75 minutes
DVD release date:February 12, 2008
MPAA rating:G
This review was written by Brian Costello
 

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About our rating system
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.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.
Our child development rating guidelines

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