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Parents' Guide to

Freakonomics

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Engaging economic docu is too complex for young kids.

Movie PG-13 2010 86 minutes
Freakonomics Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

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age 9+

Based on 1 parent review

imw1984
imw1984 Parent of 6 and 10-year-old
September 4, 2017
age 9+

Like Common Sense said, too complex for young kids

Both my 6.75yo and my just-turned-10yo watched this with me the other day. We paused it a lot to talk about things. They both enjoyed it, but I feel the younger kid didn't really grasp everything, whereas the older did, and probably would've while he was still 9yo as well. So, I don't think there are any major issues (Kijkwijzer (the Dutch ratings agency) rates it as safe for all ages), though if you have a very sensitive kid, murder and abortion are mentioned, but I suspect most kids under 9 are likely to be quite bored with the movie. Also, the movie mentions cheating (as in rigged matches in sumo wrestling and teachers bubbling in answers in kids' answer sheets to make the school look good), which could potentially upset kids who have a strong sense of fairness (or parents who would rather that their kids are not aware of those things - basically, those are some bad role models, though the movie doesn't advocate cheating). Also, the book is better, imo, but since my 10yo wanted to read one of Levitt and Dubner's books (When to Rob a Bank), I thought the docu would be a good intro to make the book easier to read (he hasn't read the book yet, and neither have I, so I'm not sure how that'll work out). I think both the book Freakonomics, its sequel, Superfreakonomics, and the docu do a good job making people aware of economics and incentives and the like in daily life - they're not at all boring or stuffy, but if you're a little kid, it's a little complex.
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What's the Story?

Based on the bestselling book of the same name, FREAKONOMICS attempts to break down dense economic theories and data into digestible bits. Comprising four main documentary segments, each made by a different director -- including Super Size Me's Morgan Spurlock, Taxi to the Dark Side's Alex Gibney, Why We Fight's Eugene Jarecki, and Jesus Camp's Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady -- the film examines trends and widely held assumptions and arrives at useful wisdom. Subject matter ranges from real estate to abortion to sumo, and along with the standard interviews and scenes of real people doing real things, the film also uses animated sequences to illustrate some key points.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (3 ):

As good as such wonky material can get, Freakonomics is an admirable attempt at discourse, relying not just on the printed page but also visuals. In many ways, it succeeds: The four main segments are weighty, interesting, and, yes, sometimes controversial, including Levitt's theory that legalized abortion led to decreased incidents of violent crime 20 years later. And some insights are meaty: Reading parenting books won't help you raise a child who's better and cooler; causation isn't correlation; the sport of sumo is artful, yes, but quite possibly troubled; social and moral incentives matter.

Nevertheless, Freakonomics lacks cohesion, which may not be all that surprising given how it stitches disparate "episodes" fashioned by different directors sourced from a book written by two authors. Having a handful of directors with different storytelling techniques makes the movie feel disjointed; of all of them, Gibney's sumo expose is most lyrical and Jarecki's most surprising. It feels like five episodes from a TV series that we'd love to follow. Flaws aside, it's worth watching, if only to give your brain an entertaining workout.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the difference between correlation and causality. Do you understand why things that happen at the same time might not be related? Can you explain the difference between these two key concepts?

  • Do you think that the book Freakonomics was a good choice to make into a movie? Do you think these complex concepts work well on the screen? Can you think of any other unlikely books that were made into movies, good or bad?

Movie Details

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