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| Dick Rolfe | Phil Boatwright | Sean Herriott |
Language,
the Final Frontier
By
Dick Rolfe
How
many times have you heard the expression, “Good movie, except for the rough
language”?
This
year, that phrase has become a daily mantra around the Dove offices. We
awarded the coveted Dove Family-Approved Seal to 33 movies out of 195 major
theatrical releases reviewed during 2000. Not bad, considering our strict
standards for content. Things could have been much better.
We
would have approved many more films, if it weren’t for the consistent abuses
of language in many PG and PG-13 movies, especially the misuses of God’s
name. Movie Reporter, Phil
Boatwright best expressed the Foundation’s position in his review of “An
Everlasting Piece” (rated R, mostly for language) released by DreamWorks.
Phil said, “when a filmmaker cannot set a mood or tell
a story without incorporating 50 uses of one abusive word, it’s time for him
to take a couple more writing classes.” He went on to express the
frustration of millions of discriminating moviegoers with moral and religious
convictions when he asked, “Why anyone would want to attend a movie that
blasphemes God, while treating the name of the Jesus as a mere expletive.”
Phil was referring to 21 biblical profanities uttered by characters depicted
in the film as being fairly religious. In every other respect, “An
Everlasting Piece” would have received the Dove Seal for ages 12 and above.
I witnessed what was, in my opinion, one of the
classiest movies of the year – next to “Remember the Titans.”
“Finding Forrester” is a sleeper film that literally sneaked into
the theaters in late December. Oscar-winning veteran actor, Sean Connery does
some of his finest work this screen gem. Connery portrays Robert
Forrester, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author whose eccentricity borders on the
mythical. Forrester becomes an unwilling, but influential mentor to a young,
talented African-American scholar-athlete. The old sage challenges and changes
the exceptional lad forever. Sad to say, the single reason this film does not
appear among the elite Five-Dove movies of 2000 is…language, or more
accurately, the misuse of it. While
I was totally engaged in the intriguing story, I was periodically jolted by
several painfully gratuitous injections of the F-word. The dialogue was also
salted with smatterings of biblical profanities and obscenities thrown in for
good measure – all done to garner the coveted PG-13 rating.
Discouraged
filmmakers who want to write and produce family-oriented material tell me the
major studios reject their work because their stories aren’t “edgy”
enough. Rougher language and illicit sexual situations are usually what the
studio execs. demand. To prove my point, there were nine movies
released during November and December that would have been added to the
Dove-approved list, except for language. They are, “Finding Forrester”
(PG-13), “An Everlasting Piece” (R), “Cast Away” (PG-13), “Family
Man” (PG-13), “Miss Congeniality” (PG-13), “Vertical Limit” (PG-13),
“Unbreakable” (PG-13), “Bounce” (PG-13), and “The Legend of Bagger
Vance” PG-13).
It would have
been easy for our reviewers to look the other way and approve these nine films
on their merits – entertaining stories, compelling plots, strong moral
messages, and great acting. To do so, however, would be to compromise our
mission by moving the line of acceptability to a new low. I believe Dove
Standards represent the mainstream values most Americans hold dear. The Dove
Foundation’s goal is to elevate Hollywood’s standards so that they more
accurately reflect those of Main Street, not Mean Street.
During 2001, The
Dove Foundation celebrates its tenth anniversary as an advocate for family
values in entertainment. In the meantime, we are launching a new national
campaign challenging filmmakers to create the best PG and PG-13 movies they
can, but without gratuitous obscenities and profanities – called, “Clean
Up Your Act.” If you would like to find out more about this campaign to
redeem family-friendly entertainment, write 535 E. Fulton, Suite 1A Grand Rapids MI
43512 - call (800-968-8437) - or email (movies@dove.org).