Movie Review Resources
God doesn't print out an annual list for us of acceptable and unacceptable movies. He's given us his Word and He's equipped us with discernment. And when it comes to that discernment, the scriptures are pretty clear about not flirting with disaster. We need to be careful of what we see and listen to. Not only for our own sake—but for the sake of others. So how do we draw the line when discerning what to watch? Let's look to the scriptures for our guidelines. Ephesians 5 is a good passage to consider.
" [1]Follow God's example in everything you do, because you are his dear children.
[2] Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ, who
loved you and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins. And God was pleased,
because that sacrifice was like sweet perfume to him. [3] Let there be no sexual
immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God's people.
[4] Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead,
let there be thankfulness to God. [5] You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or
greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person
is really an idolater who worships the things of this world. [6] Don't be fooled
by those who try to excuse these sins, for the terrible anger of God comes upon
all those who disobey him. [7] Don't participate in the things these people do.
[8] For though your hearts were once full of darkness, now you are full of light
from the Lord, and your behavior should show it! [9] For this light within you produces
only what is good and right and true. Love the Lord Your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. This is
the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor
as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these. "
(Ephes. 5:1-9 (NLT))
Still a little confused? Here are some resources for finding all the information you want about the latest movies.
Plugged in Online
Plugged In is a Focus on the Family publication designed to help equip parents, youth leaders, ministers and teens with the essential tools that will enable them to understand, navigate and impact the culture in which they live. Entertainment is a potent influence on our culture for both good and evil. Through our reviews and discussions of that entertainment, we hope to spark intellectual thought, family discussion, spiritual growth and a strong desire to follow the command of Colossians 2:8. "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ."
Screen It
Screen It! was created to give parents a way to access the content of popular entertainment their kids are exposed to. It is not intended as censorship. Rather, it is designed to allow Hollywood and Record Labels to continue to produce movies, videos and music while informing parents of the content in them. Some people argue over the moral quality of films while others want to ban certain albums that contain material that particularly offends them. That's why we created Screen It!. An unbiased, easy to use, yet heavily detailed and complete look at popular entertainment your kids might see, rent, or buy. And this applies to kids from one to seventeen. We offer detailed content listing in many categories for every movie, video and album we review. Each category is then assigned a rating that summarizes the quantity and degree of the content.
Internet Movie Database
The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is a HUGE collection of movie information. We try to catalog every pertinent detail about a movie, from who was in it, to who made it, to trivia about it, to filming locations, and even where you can find reviews and fan sites on the web. We then do our best to present this information in a manner that is easy to search and access.