Watching a movie with the kids can be difficult if you don’t know whether the movie is appropriate enough for them. You may be worried about violence, sexual content, or inappropriate language. Ratings help you determine how good a movie is for your kids. Children are easily influenced by what they see and they may also not understand why characters said something.
Movie ratings system
The majority of the media consumed is from the West and this informs the ratings of the movies distributed globally. However, different countries set up their own ratings system. For instance, Kenya has the Kenya Film Classification Board. Hollywood uses the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) rating system. Here are what their ratings represent for movies.
G- General Audiences
This is a film that contains nothing upsetting in theme, language, nudity, sex, or violence. This doesn’t mean that the film is still appropriate for children or that it’s good for children. The language used is frequently used but it may be unpleasant for little kids. However, films listed G are safe to leave kids to watch. This is also labelled under U for some European films.
PG- Parental guidance is recommended.
Some materials may not be appropriate for children. It’s important to watch this before letting your kids see it or watch it with them. This is especially important for kids under 13.
PG 13- Parental guidance recommended for children under 13
These movies may contain material objectionable to teenagers. You may need to watch this before letting your kids under 15 or 16 watch them. Movies with a PG-13 rating are allowed to show some nudity or graphic language and are allowed one F-bomb. They may also have more dark themes such as death, suicide, war, or drug use.
R- Restricted
Rated R movies are what nearly every teenager wants to watch without their parents. They’re movies where people under the age of 17 aren’t allowed to watch it or can only watch it in the company of an adult. Rated R movies contain violence, nudity, sex, adult activities, and other elements completely inappropriate for children. Most movies meant for adults will contain this rating. Some societies are unbothered by this.
For instance, the romantic sex drama Fifty Shades of Grey is rated R in most countries but France gave a 12 rating, declaring 12-year-olds can watch it while Lebanon gave it an NC-21 rating. If your teen expresses interest in such a movie, try to find out if they’re curious about sex or other adult themes and have a discussion with them. These movies are intended for adults who can extrapolate that it’s fiction and shouldn’t internalise the themes of the movie.
NC-17- Adults only
If a movie has this rating, a cinema doesn’t admit non-adults into it. Children aren’t allowed to watch it at all. This can also be rated 18.
TV ratings system
TV shows have a different rating system compared to movies.
TV-Y
This is a TV show appropriate for all children. It’s likely also meant for children. It doesn’t have any adult themes and is suitable for children as young as 2.
TV-Y7
This is a show suitable for children aged 7 and above. It’s a show suitable for children who can tell that a TV show is fictional. It also doesn’t contain dangerous stunts but may contain comedic violence.
TV-Y7-FV
These are the programs that contain fantasy violence and have more grown-up themes than TV-Y7 shows. Because of how much more intense they can be, it may be suitable to watch them before your younger children or watch with them and explain when there is more objectionable content.
TV-PG
Under this rating, a TV show requires parental guidance. There may be mild violence, some sexual content, a little coarse language, and suggestive dialogue. The full rating will look like TV-PG VSLD.
TV-14
This is a TV show that contains material unsuitable for children under 14. Parents should watch this content with their teens to ensure it’s suitable for them. This rating is similar to the PG-13 rating in movies. It is a show that may have intense violence, intense sexual situations, coarse strong language, and intense suggestive dialogue.
TV-MA
When you watched Game of Thrones, you saw this rating a lot. A lot of explicit shows contain this rating. In full, it’s a mature audience only. It’s similar to R or NC-17 for movies. This is content that is recommended for adults only or at least people over the age of 17. This is a show that will have graphic violence, explicit sexual activity, and crude language completely unsuitable for children. If the TV show contains the rating TV-MA VSL it means it has graphic violence, explicit sex, and coarse language.
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