Call the Midwife

Call the Midwife
Season 1
My Rating: *** (out of 4)

Television shows like Downton Abbey and Mad Men have inspired numerous other period dramas. What makes those shows work so well is not only the meticulous attention to period detail but also character development and good storytelling. While no American series has lasted long enough or been popular enough to match the success of those two shows, a new British series looks like it may have what it takes to be the next Downton.

Set in the late 1950s, Call the Midwife tells the story of a young woman just out of nursing school who goes to work as a midwife in London’s East End . She is not a very religious person and is surprised to discover her post is at a nursing convent. Nevertheless, she is eager to help the women in one of London’s poorest districts. As she gets to know the nuns and her fellow nurses, she is often startled by the living and working conditions of the women there and encounters all manner of pregnancy related situations. The show is a testament to the hard work of the midwives of the era.

For the most part, Call the Midwife is compelling, emotional drama. Several episodes have riveting childbirth scenes as one or more of the midwives tries to help a woman deliver a baby, often in difficult circumstances. These scenes feature a combination of real babies and some very realistic special effects. You may find yourself holding your breath waiting for the baby to be delivered.

Some parts of the series do not work as well. The later episodes of the first season have more conventional stories. The main character, Nurse Lee, is not given much to do and spends way too much time in a romantic subplot that isn‘t very interesting. Thankfully, there’s Nurse “Chummy”, played by Miranda Hart, who steals every scene she’s in. Chummy was raised in an upper-class home but decides she would rather be a midwife. She’s self-conscious about both her background and her size but that doesn’t stop her from using deadpan humor and self-deprecation as only the British can do.

The show has been extremely popular in both Britain and the U.S. The first season (or series if you prefer UK terminology) is available on DVD and through streaming services. The second season has already aired in Britain and PBS will air it in America beginning March 31.

Age Level: In general, Call the Midwife is the equivalent of a PG or PG-13 movie depending on how well your kids can handle the harrowing childbirth scenes. One episode deals with a sex education class and one storyline involves incest.
　

Flight movie review

Flight

**

R

138 minutes

Robert Zemeckis made a name for himself in the 1980s and 90s directing special-effects driven blockbusters like Back to the Future and Who Framed Roger Rabbit before winning an Oscar for Forrest Gump. After spending many years making motion-capture style animated films (like The Polar Express) he returns to live action with Flight. In this drama, Denzel Washington plays an airline pilot addicted to alcohol and drugs. In a spectacular crash sequence, Washington miraculously lands a plane while still intoxicated from the night before. The rest of the movie follows his attempts to stay clean during the investigation of the crash. Unfortunately, he relapses time and time again with numerous scenes of him falling off the wagon with a complete disregard for his own health and reputation.

While the plane crash is well-filmed, the rest of the movie is slowly paced. The many alcohol and drug abuse scenes become repetitive and Washington’s character is never all that likeable. Supporting characters come and go but don’t add much to the story. Since it is made clear from the start that the plane would have had mechanical problems regardless of whether or not the pilot was drunk, there is little suspense created by the investigation. Stories of redemption are fine, but this one takes its time getting there and by the time Washington finally admits his problem we don’t care.

Age Level: Flight is most definitely NOT for kids. Aside form the plane crash (which will ensure that your kids never set foot on an airplane again) the movie contains nudity, lots of profanity and frequent scenes of drug use.

PG Means “Pretty Good” Right?

It is becoming increasingly difficult to find family-friendly movies at the theater or on home video. Parents often turn to the MPAA rating for guidance. (Whether that’s entirely a good idea is a subject worthy of debate but for now, let’s assume that movies with a rating of “G” or “PG” are at least supposed to be suitable for both parents and children.) More and more it is animated films that make up the bulk of G and PG movies. For example, in 2012, 7 of the 10 highest grossing PG rated movies at the box office were animated films.
How appropriate are these movies? Are parents safe renting a PG movie for their kids without first pre-screening it? This column is the first in a planned series reviewing recent PG films.

Paranorman *½

Paranorman was the first of three “kiddie-horror” animated films released in late 2012. (The others are Hotel Transylvania and Frankenweenie.) The lead character is an 11 year old boy named Norman who has the ability to see and talk to ghosts. This makes him very unpopular and his only friends are similarly bullied kids. He lives in a New England town notorious for its Salem like witch trials, one of which is about to be commemorated by the town. Norman learns that before her execution, the witch cursed the town to be overrun by zombies (in this case, the resurrected corpses of the men who condemned her.) Naturally, Norman’s abilities help him and his friends to save the town.

While the stop-motion animation is outstanding, there are several aspects of Paranorman that should concern parents. First is the horror imagery seen throughout the film. Images and references (some intended to be humorous) of zombies, ghosts, witches and the undead pervade the film. While not all children will be frightened by these images, young children most likely will not understand the morbid humor. It doesn’t seem necessary for kids to see these images without the cultural context by which adults view them. In fact, the movie gets increasingly scary as it goes on with some particularly frightening scenes near the end. Christian parents should take note that the witches’ condemners who turn into zombies are Puritans at their most stereotypical. (They’re bigoted, hateful, mean, etc.) The movie also does not portray a Christian worldview of death and the afterlife.

Even more troublesome is the alarmingly inappropriate humor. Keep in mind the most of the film’s characters are eleven years old with two older siblings being no older than 16 or 17. Here are a few exemplas of the jokes.

The school bully says he wants to go the adult video store instead of the library.
One character is seen watching his mom’s aerobics DVD with the image paused so he can stare at the woman on the screen.
An older boy reveals he is gay at the end of the movie. (He mentions having a boyfriend.) I do not think jokes about puberty, pornography and homosexuality are appropriate in a PG movie aimed at kids.

Needless to say, I do not recommend Paranorman for adults or children.