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Parents' Guide to

Lucky Duck

By Emily Ashby, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 4+

Cute movie uses mild bullying to promote self-esteem.

Movie NR 2014 43 minutes
Lucky Duck Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

age 8+

Based on 4 parent reviews

age 18+

18+ film!!!!!!!

This movie scarred not only my 2yr old, but also my 17yr old, this movie has to be 18+, i refuse to believe that a young child could watch ducks being grossly munched by a massive sea mammal. God bless them for all the bullying the experienced at the beginning of this tragic piece of video recording

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
age 5+

Mishmash of themes

The positive themes of self-image are outweighed by the frightening scenes at the beginning. I'm not sure which audience/age range of kids this movie was targeting, with the odd mix of scary scenes, cute characters, and positive messages.

This title has:

Great messages

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (4 ):
Kids say (1 ):

It's impossible to overlook any of the many positive messages in this TV movie, what with the characters' constant affirmations. ("Different is good," "You're beautiful because you're different," and "There's only one of me," for example) and a handful of catchy tunes that reinforce the same themes. It does the trick for the younger crowd, even if it gets to be a bit sugary for the grown-ups who watch alongside them. But there's never any harm done in a sweet story about liking yourself and embracing the qualities that make you unique.

The movie's creators took a thoughtful approach to presenting the issue of bullying to a young audience, and doing so through a cast of adorable bathtub toys helps them ease into content in a nonthreatening way. Even so, kids will feel for Lucky, Snap, and Flo as they're teased and shut out by peers for being what the toys call "rejects" because of small differences such as non-conforming eye color and a malfunctioning squeaker. But, with your help, little kids can make the connection between the characters' experiences and the movie's broader message of embracing diversity.

Movie Details

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.

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