What parents need to know about ‘Ballerina,' ‘Wylde Pak' and more
Strong woman anchors fun but violent, bloody Wickian action.
'Ballerina' (also known as 'From the World of John Wick: Ballerina') is the fifth movie in the John Wick series. It focuses on a different character, Eve (Ana de Armas), but has similarly over-the-top action. Expect lots of deaths, with blood spatter/sprays; bloody wounds; gore; characters being blown up by explosives; a severed hand; guns and shooting; crossbow bolts to the head and eye; characters getting burned by flamethrowers; intense fighting (with punching, kicking, flipping, slamming, broken limbs, eye gouging, strangling and more); and clashes with swords, axes, knives, mallets, ice skates and other improvised weapons. A character also cauterizes a wound, and someone prepares to die by suicide. Language includes occasional uses of 'f---,' 'motherf----r,' 's---,' 'bulls---,' 'Christ,' 'oh my God,' etc. People smoke cigarettes and cigars, and a character has a martini on his desk. (125 minutes)
Available in theaters.
Age 16+
Bloody, nonstop violence, death in animated alien film.
'Predator: Killer of Killers' is an animated film in the Predator universe based on characters created in the 1980s by Jim and John Thomas. The film is full of the franchise's usual gore, bloody violence and death, including scenes involving children as both witnesses and participants. While characters are driven by revenge, they ultimately learn to sacrifice for others and discover that vengeance doesn't bring satisfaction — nor does it bring back the dead. Gory battle scenes involve death by beheading, sword wounds (including a father who forces his daughter to help wield the fatal blow), falls, near drownings, arrows (including into eyes), amputations (a main character loses an arm, and another is sliced in half in front of a child), plane crashes, fires, explosions, being eaten and more. Entire villages are slain. The film's second half also includes regular use of strong language including 'f---,' 's---,' 'damn,' 'hell,' 'a--,' 'b----,' 'b-----d,' 'sucker' and 'anus.' (90 minutes)
Available on Hulu.
Age 8+
Charming series about blended family; cartoonish violence.
'Wylde Pak' is an animated series about a blended family learning to live together. Half-siblings Lily Pak (voiced by Nikki Castillo) and Jack Wylde (Benjamin Plessala) are thrown together after summer plans go awry, and they're figuring out how to share space at the family home and pet care business, Wylde Pak Groom & Board. This cute comedy has great messages about accepting change and sacrifice, as well as many nods to Korean culture, especially thanks to K-drama-loving grandmother Halmoni (Jean Yoon). There's a lot of chaos and cartoonish violence that may be too intense for younger kids: Characters careen down a dangerous waterfall, a runaway trailer zips across town, and there's lots of physical play fighting between characters. There's also a bit of romance in a K-drama that the characters watch. (26 episodes)
Available on Nickelodeon.
Common Sense Media helps families make smart media choices. Go to commonsense.org for age-based and educational ratings and reviews for movies, games, apps, TV shows, websites and books.
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