No, but not letting them watch a movie such as this as a part of a greater scheme to "shield" the kid from all input the parents see as negative, is indeed zombification.
I would agree with that. However, that's not what I'm suggesting. Personally, I wouldn't want my 12-year-olds watching it because it's unlikely that they're ready to deal with topics of sexuality like B&D and S&M, let alone exhibitionism and voyeurism. Admittedly, my kids are already in college, so for me the question is moot.
I would like to hear for once from someone like you what exactly you think would happen to these "damaged" kids.
Ah, careful where you tread, please. You're making unwarranted assumptions. You have very little idea who I am or what I'm "like." You'll also please note that I never said the experience would "damage" them. I would argue that it's simply unnecessary for them. And, of course, if I'm watching it with them, then that's an entirely different story. Remember, the purpose of the "R" rating is to simply weed the unescorted little beggers out of theatrical viewings.
Would seeing a humorous depiction of a woman fake-spanking another make them into child molesters when they grow up?
Nope, hopefully not. But, in return, is there any particular positive aspect of seeing such a scene for a 12-year-old?
Or would they be more prone to be into spanking?
Certainly a possibility if the exposure was repetitious, but no, I doubt that seeing the scene once would twist their psyches exceedingly.
Most twelve year olds I´ve ever met already know the basics of sexuality so it´s not that big a deal in my opinion.
The "basics," perhaps, but I doubt that many of them are conversant with the wider world of deviant sexuality. Most 12-year-olds I know (friends' kids) are, in fact, remarkably (how shall I put this kindly?) ignorant about so many things that it's hard to put a value on their knowledge of human sexuality.
I´m not saying we should let our five year olds watch hardcore porno here,
Glad to hear it.
...but it seems they just slap some rating on there that seems safe, so they don´t have to deal with the real issues in society.
Why do you think it's worthwhile for 12-year-olds to be dealing with the various issues in society that are raised by "The Notorious Bettie Page"? Just wondering...
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Threedots-dead
18 years ago
Thanks for butchering up my post :p
It´s hard to argue with you because you´re not a hardliner, but I must say that I still think this was a completely harmless movie. Sure, some kids might be wondering why these people do these things, but that´s not the same thing as not being able to handle it. When I saw Jack Nicholson go berserk with an axe in The Shining as a kid for example, i had no idea why he did it, and the consequences where far "worse" than what we saw in Bettie Page. Still, it didn´t give me any emotional scars or KILL KILL MUST KILL!!!! screwed up views on human violence or murder. I just saw it as part of a nutty movie and moved on. I think that your view is a slight overreaction to the fact that the material in question is sexual in nature. In many peoples eyes that has to be dealt with differently from acts of human violence or cruelty, which is just silly.
And by "people like you" I just meant people who want to keep twelve year olds from watching movies like these, believe it or not.
"Did I leave the gas on? No, I´m a @#¤%ing squirrel!"
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MrGKB
18 years ago
Thanks for butchering up my post :p
You're welcome. I used Jack's axe.
It´s hard to argue with you because you´re not a hardliner, but I must say that I still think this was a completely harmless movie.
I tend to agree. "TNBP" is basically a modern look at the censorious 50s through the prism of Bettie Page, one of the period's most enduring icons.
Then again, I tend to believe that ALL movies are "harmless," even the really, really deviant ones. What can be harmful is the people watching them.
Sure, some kids might be wondering why these people do these things, but that´s not the same thing as not being able to handle it. When I saw Jack Nicholson go berserk with an axe in The Shining as a kid for example, i had no idea why he did it, and the consequences where far "worse" than what we saw in Bettie Page. Still, it didn´t give me any emotional scars or KILL KILL MUST KILL!!!! screwed up views on human violence or murder. I just saw it as part of a nutty movie and moved on.
And yet I knew a kid who saw it when he was about eight, and because of his particular family situation, was seriously terrified and transferred that reaction to his stepfather for a good number of months. Which is probably one of the reasons that our culture professes to believe that young children are better off not viewing such entertainment until they're a little more emotionally mature enough to deal with it. Of course, with the rise of home video and the Internet, controlling what young people see and hear has become a lot more problematic.
I think that your view is a slight overreaction to the fact that the material in question is sexual in nature. In many peoples eyes that has to be dealt with differently from acts of human violence or cruelty, which is just silly.
Although I also tend to believe that sexuality and violence are inextricably linked in the human psyche, I will cede your point. We definitely live in a society that seems to turn a blind eye to some of the most outrageous violence in our popular entertainment while frothing at the mouth at the exposure of a bare female breast. Our commercial culture exploits and seduces us constantly with sexualized imagery, all the while piously preaching one hypocritical standard or another; small wonder our children engage in sex at younger and younger ages and are producing more and more children out of wedlock. Meanwhile, we wallow in ultraviolence and periodically churn out Columbines and Virginia Techs. And then whine about it.
You reap what you sow.
And by "people like you" I just meant people who want to keep twelve year olds from watching movies like these, believe it or not.
I understood that, which is why I refrained from going postal on you.
Anyway, I don't have much interest in keeping other people's twelve-year-olds from watching films like "TNBP" or "The Shining." Heck, it keeps them off the streets and my property.
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