The Prince and the Surfer

Parents need to know that The Prince and the Surfer is a 1999 modern-day retelling of Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper." Less than two minutes after the actor Jon Voight introduces the film as part of a wholesome, family-oriented attempt to update Mark Twain's stories for modern audiences, the movie's theme song -- played three times during the movie -- talks of how a girl doesn't like the singer's "retard dance." Aside from this, there is some brief violence -- a rich bully has it out for "the surfer," and there's some pushing and shoving between characters. The antagonist of the movie is hit in the groin with a golf putter -- which leads to a double entendre involving golf balls. Also, for the record, aside from a father telling his son about the days when he used to surf, there is very little in the way of actual surfing, as the teens in the movie are always on or near skateboards. Finally, part of their attempt at "modernizing" Twain's novel here is by substituting Twain's narrative voice for the voiceover of a narrator attempting a very stereotypical "Californian" voice peppered with "dude," "totally," etc. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.