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Degrassi Goes Hollywood

(Rated NR, Drama, Starring Stacey Farber, Lauren Collins, Cassie Steele, Where to watch: TeenNick)
  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 12, age appropriate for kids over 14; suggested age 14.
  • Is it any good?

    3.0
  • Common Sense says

    Brush with fame teaches teens lessons in TV movie.

Themes in this show include:   dating/crushes, friendship, growing up, substance abuse

Why We Rated This on for Ages 14 and Up

The good stuff

  • Messages:

    The movie touches on serious issues like post-traumatic stress disorder, war, alcoholism, relationships, and the uncertainty of entering adulthood. Many characters wrestle with personal dilemmas, and for the most part, they’re handled in a frank, responsible manner. Characters learn important lessons about friendship and self-reliance.
 

What to watch out for

  • Role models:

    Adults are entirely absent from the movie, so the teens/young adults are left on their own to make decisions. Not exactly realistic, but they do find that every move they make incurs consequences of some kind.
  • Violence:

    In one scene, a man punches another for flirting with his girlfriend. In another, a woman slaps her friend when he tells her she’s being selfish. An apparent suicide attempt (a girl downs a bottle of alcohol and walks into the ocean) is thwarted by a friend’s good timing.
  • Sex:

    Many couples kiss, and, in one instance, a boy kisses a girl’s neck while she talks on the phone. Terms like "I’d like to get with her" and "the chicks are really hot" are common, as are slang terms for body parts like "boobs" and "melons." A girl removes her panties under her dress in preparation for flashing the media (which never really happens). A teen’s physical relationship with her professor is mentioned.
  • Language:

    Occasional profanity includes "hell" and "damn," as well as words like "sucked," "pissed off," and multiple uses of "oh my God."
  • Consumerism:

    Yahoo and Apple computer logos are shown a number of times.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Characters’ ages are never divulged, so it’s uncertain whether the borderline teens/young adults are legal to drink by U.S. standards, but one drowns her sorrows over family issues in a bottle of hard alcohol, which apparently leads her to try to kill herself (she wades into the ocean until a friend pulls her back to safety). In another scene, a character sips a mixed drink with her meal. A guy refers to past problems with alcohol by saying he’s been sober for a year.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About Degrassi Goes Hollywood

Parents need to know that this TV movie set in Hollywood offers less of the frank content that teens -- and their parents -- have come to expect from the series it's based on, Degrassi: The Next Generation. Still, you can expect some kissing and making out, occasional strong language, and intermittent alcohol use -- including one scene in which it plays a role in a young woman’s apparent (but unsuccessful) suicide attempt. Some of the movie's story details are a bit of a stretch (unaccompanied teens head across country lines in a borrowed school bus, for instance), but most of the weightier stuff is handled respectfully. Many characters face personal dilemmas (a father’s mental illness and an identity crisis, for example), and they learn difficult lessons in friendship and self-reliance.

Did this review help you decide?

Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about some of the issues the movie raises, including teen dating and sex, coping with family issues, friendship, and alcohol use. Do you think the movie paints an accurate picture of teen life? How would you help a friend who was struggling with these or other issues?
  • Teens: What celebrities do you admire most? What do you like about them? What messages does it send to young fans when a star does something wrong?
  • What makes something "good" entertainment? Teens: Did you like this movie? How did it compare to the Degrassi series? Do you think the media has a responsibility to produce positive TV shows and movies? Why or why not?

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Our Members Say

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See all 11 member reviews

Most Recent Reviews

  1. I rate this title on for age 12 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    Good more mainly one for the girls

    I watched this thinking this was going to be even boys and girls but it was mainly girls but I enjoyed it anyway

  2. I rate this title on for age 12 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    Good more mainly one for the girls

    I watched this thinking this was going to be even boys and girls but it was mainly girls but I enjoyed it anyway

  3. Teen Reviewer Age 17
    Lives in California
    I rate this title on for age 12 and give it 3.0
    My concerns are:
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    The movie is a bit unrealistic, and i would say the actual show Degrassi TNG is far better (or at least it used to be -_-), but I did enjoy this movie. There are some serious issues involved, but I would say it's on for 12 and up.

  4. Kid Reviewer Age 11
    I rate this title on for age 11 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    its ok for tweens and older

    Its very positive at the end and is very good

  5. Teen Reviewer Age 15
    I rate this title on for age 10 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use

    Loved it :D

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