Parents' Guide to

2012

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Massive global destruction -- not for worriers.

Movie PG-13 2009 158 minutes
2012 Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

See all
age 12+

Based on 40 parent reviews

JovandriSusanto
JovandriSusanto Adult
March 7, 2023
age 12+
Too much destruction. And it is contain earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcano eruptions. It is not okay to watch this film for kids under 10.

This title has:

Too much violence
Stormyr89
Stormyr89 Adult
April 25, 2019
age 5+

Intense

I loved it from beginning to end, having a busy schedule the next day, I insisted on watching a little bit, well that didn't go as planned, I ended up watching the whole movie and found it extremely interesting "OBVIOUSLY", you don't usually see movies start with the exact events occurring right away, usually they start near the middle of the movie, but this one has you wanting to see what happens next.... MUST WATCH IT TO SEE FOR YOURSELF!!!!

This title has:

Great role models
See all 40 parent reviews

What's the Story?

When the sun suddenly begins bombarding Earth with a higher neutrino count, heating up the planet's core, it all-too-quickly leads to massive natural disasters -- from earthquakes to tsunamis -- and even shifting of the north and south poles. A secret project is underway in Tibet to build "arks" to rescue a certain number of people, but most of the seats have been reserved for the world's richest and most important people. While scientist Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) collects data and fights against greed and corruption, small-time Los Angeles author Jackson Curtis (John Cusack) tries to rescue his ex-wife (Amanda Peet) and their two kids, get them to Tibet, and secure them seats on one of the arks. But can he do this impossible task in time?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (40):
Kids say (173):

At best, it's a nearly three-hour film packed with several tons of clichés whose best features are explosions and general destruction. At worst, it's a gruesome, depressing subject as viewed from the seat of a passing roller coaster.

Disaster movies are usually very popular and have long managed to thrill plenty of people with their huge scale and awesome special effects. Since 2012 (which is tied to a much-debated Mayan prophecy that supposedly names that year as the one in which the world will end) is one of the biggest and most spectacular to date, it will no doubt follow suit -- and, in terms of visual effects and clear, exciting filmmaking, it is well done. And the impressive, appealing cast does its level best to read through the third-rate dialogue without too much eye-rolling. But anyone looking for character depth, powerful emotional content, intelligence, poetic images, or personal expression of any kind is advised to look elsewhere.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the movie's destruction and violence. Much of it is of a sci-fi/fantasy nature, but if you stop to think about it, the enormity and frequency of it can be overwhelming. Is this kind of violence more or less upsetting than gory horror movies?

  • One of the movie's major themes is the importance of family. Does that come through amid the chaos and destruction? Did the movie make you feel closer to your own family?

  • Why do you think the wealthiest and most important people were chosen for seats on the arks? Should other people have gotten a chance? What would have been a better way to go about the process?

  • Do you think a disaster like this could occur? If so, is it better to try and prepare or better not to worry about something we can't control?

Movie Details

Inclusion information powered by

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate