Cyber Space Play

You never know what you’re going to find when you take the kids to the movies - or turn on the TV in the evening.

Here are four useful online resources to help you avoid surprises and find the best family-friendly films.

1. Kids-in-Mind.com

http://www.kids-in-mind.com
This informational website provides a factual, objective synopsis of the content of a film in the each of three categories (sex/nudity, violence/gore, and profanity) on a scale of 1 to 10. Specifics are offered in each of the write-ups as to why a film received a particular rating. There are also discussion topics, as well as an overview of the messages that the movie conveys. The details provided can really help you avoid surprises, and they give you the information you need to make an informed decision for yourself about whether you deem a movie appropriate for your family.

Cost: Free

2. Reel-Appeal

http://www.spiritualparenting.com/resources/reel_appeal.html
Reel-Appeal is a movie companion created by Mimi Doe (the author of 10 Principles for Spiritual Parenting) and writer/producer Jennifer Marquis. The website provides the names of family-friendly films that correspond with the spiritual parenting principles in Doe’s book. Each of these films then has an in-depth PDF discussion guide that helps parents teach critical thinking as it relates to entertainment choices, and it’s bound to create some thought-provoking family conversations, too.

Cost: Free.

3. CleanFlicks.com

http://www.cleanflicks.com
This is the Netflix for family-edited Hollywood films. Cleanflicks works much the same as Netflix. There are no late fees, you’ll have several different subscription plans to choose from, and returning the movies is as easy as slipping it into a prepaid return envelope. Except, with Cleanflicks, the film’s profanity, nudity, graphic violence, and sexual content have been removed. Edited movies are available to buy or rent at the Cleanflicks site.

Cost: Subscription plans range from $20 to $40 per month. A free trial is available.

4. Spiritual Cinema Circle

http://www.spiritualcinemacircle.com
This monthly DVD club features films selected specifically for their spiritual and psychological value. Each shipment includes a special newsletter with reviews and information about spiritual cinema, plus an online members-only resource area. Subscribers receive 4 movies each month (to keep). For parents of younger children, a Kids Spiritual Cinema package is available as well.

Cost: $20 per month, plus shipping/handling. A free trial is available.

Note: Fees for each of these services are valid at the time of writing but are subject to change at any time.

One of the funniest TV comedies ever produced, Cheers is essential viewing for anyone who’s ever frequented a hangout “where everyone knows your name”. The shows focuses on a friendly neighborhood Boston bar named Cheers (the Bull & Finch Pub in real life). Owned by former Boston Red Sox reliefer Sam Malone (Ted Danson), Cheers has three employees other than Sam: Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson), Carla Tortelli (Rhea Pearlman), and Diane Chambers (Shelley Long). Celebrated psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammar) and his wife Dr. Lilith Sternin Crane (Bebe Neuwirth) are regular customers of the bar (with Dr. Crane later playing the lead role in his own series, Frasier). Norm Peterson (George Wendt) and Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger), regular barflies, round out an excellent supporting cast of characters.

The Cheers (Season 5) DVD offers a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere in which the audience discovers that Sam’s marriage proposal from the previous year’s season finale was directed at Diane. However, Diane feels that Sam is on the rebound from Janet, so she declines - requesting a more romantic setting for their engagement. When Sam proposes on a boat, Diane turns him down again then spends several episodes attempting to get Sam to propose once again. Meanwhile, Carla falls in love with Boston Bruins goalie Eddie LeBec (Jay Thomas) and John Cleese makes a guest appearance as a famous marriage counselor and friend of Frasier Crane. The season ends with Diane leaving Sam at the altar in order to finish a novel a publishing house is interested in…

Below is a list of episodes included on the Cheers (Season 5) DVD:

Episode 96 (The Proposal) Air Date: 09-25-1986
Episode 97 (The Cape Cad) Air Date: 10-02-1986
Episode 98 (Money Dearest) Air Date: 10-09-1986
Episode 99 (Abnormal Psychology) Air Date: 10-16-1986
Episode 100 (House of Horrors With Formal Dining and Used Brick) Air Date: 10-30-1986
Episode 101 (Tan N’ Wash) Air Date: 11-06-1986
Episode 102 (Young Dr. Weinstein) Air Date: 11-13-1986
Episode 103 (Knights of the Scimitar) Air Date: 11-27-1986
Episode 104 (Thanksgiving Orphans) Air Date: 11-27-1986
Episode 105 (Everyone Imitates Art) Air Date: 12-04-1986
Episode 106 (The Book of Samuel) Air Date: 12-11-1986
Episode 107 (Dance, Diane, Dance) Air Date: 12-18-1986
Episode 108 (Chambers vs. Malone) Air Date: 01-08-1987
Episode 109 (Diamond Sam) Air Date: 01-15-1987
Episode 110 (Spellbound) Air Date: 01-22-1987
Episode 111 (Never Love a Goalie: Part 1) Air Date: 01-29-1987
Episode 112 (Never Love a Goalie: Part 2) Air Date: 02-05-1987
Episode 113 (One Last Fling) Air Date: 02-12-1987
Episode 114 (Dog Bites Cliff) Air Date: 02-19-1987
Episode 115 (Dinner at Eight-ish) Air Date: 02-26-1987
Episode 116 (Simon Says) Air Date: 03-05-1987
Episode 117 (The Godfather, Part III) Air Date: 03-19-1987
Episode 118 (Norm’s First Hurrah) Air Date: 03-26-1987
Episode 119 (Cheers: the Motion Picture) Air Date: 04-03-1987
Episode 120 (A House is Not a Home) Air Date: 04-30-1987
Episode 121 (I Do and Adieu) Air Date: 05-07-1987

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of the Cheers (Season 5) DVD.

Nominated for 20 Emmys and 6 Golden Globes, including Best TV Series - Drama, CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) quickly rose to become the number one show on television following its Fall 2000 premiere. The brainchild of creator Anthony Zuiker, the show follows the investigations not of traditional TV detectives working the streets, but forensic scientists who unravel complicated crime mysteries in their ultra-modern laboratory. Either the #1 or the #2 Nielsen rated show since the start of its second season, CSI has helped CBS to reemerge as the #1 network television station, spawning (similar to predecessor Law & Order) two series spin-offs CSI: Miami and CSI: New York. Each exciting hour-long episode begins with the theme song “Who Are You” by The Who, a song more than befitting of a show where criminals are aggressively tracked down, sometimes years after committing their crimes…

CSI focuses on the Las Vegas Police Department’s Crime Scene Investigation nightshift unit headed by Gil Grissom (William Petersen), a quirky outsider whose obsessive quest for the facts and dedication to his work dominates his life. The CSI team is composed of a number of individuals with differing backgrounds and personalities - single mother Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) specializes in blood-splatter analysis, the highly competitive Nick Stokes (George Eads) specializes in hair and fiber analysis, recovering gambling addict Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan) specializes in audio/visual analysis, and the rambunctious Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) specializes in materials and element analysis. Throw in hard-nosed homicide captain Jim Brass (Paul Guifoyle), CSI understudy Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda), and lab coroner Al Robbins (Robert David Hall) and all the ingredients are present for a show wrought with suspense, drama, and tension. As transients from all walks of life travel to Las Vegas to enjoy the wonders of its adult playground, increased levels of crime accompany them, and the team at CSI is determined to stay a step ahead of the criminal element…

The CSI (Season 2) DVD features a number of dramatic episodes including the season premiere “Burked” in which Grissom and company are called in to investigate the death of a high roller and known drug addict found dead in his own home. With drug paraphernalia on the premises, detectives initially suspect an overdose, but further probing leads them to believe the man was restrained by duct tape and forced to ingest lethal amounts of drugs… Other notable episodes from Season 2 include “And Then There Were None” in which Grissom investigates a casino heist that left several innocent bystanders shot while Catherine and Sara investigate a murder in the rural desert region, and “Stalker” in which a stalker somehow infiltrates a heavily secured home and murders his victim, prompting the CSI to take over the investigation…

Below is a list of episodes included on the CSI (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 24 (Burked) Air Date: 09-27-2001
Episode 25 (Chaos Theory) Air Date: 10-04-2001
Episode 26 (Overload) Air Date: 10-11-2001
Episode 27 (Bully for You) Air Date: 10-18-2001
Episode 28 (Scuba Doobie-Doo) Air Date: 10-25-2001
Episode 29 (Alter Boys) Air Date: 11-01-2001
Episode 30 (Caged) Air Date: 11-08-2001
Episode 31 (Slaves of Las Vegas) Air Date: 11-15-2001
Episode 32 (And Then There Were None) Air Date: 11-22-2001
Episode 33 (Ellie) Air Date: 12-06-2001
Episode 34 (Organ Grinder) Air Date: 12-13-2001
Episode 35 (You’ve Got Male) Air Date: 12-20-2001
Episode 36 (Identity Crisis) Air Date: 01-17-2002
Episode 37 (The Finger) Air Date: 01-31-2002
Episode 38 (Burden of Proof) Air Date: 02-07-2002
Episode 39 (Primum Non Nocere) Air Date: 02-28-2002
Episode 40 (Felonius Monk) Air Date: 03-07-2002
Episode 41 (Chasing the Bus) Air Date: 03-28-2002
Episode 42 (Stalker) Air Date: 04-04-2002
Episode 43 (Cats in the Cradle) Air Date: 04-25-2002
Episode 44 (Anatomy of a Lye) Air Date: 05-02-2002
Episode 45 (Cross-Jurisdictions) Air Date: 05-09-2002
Episode 46 (The Hunger Artist) Air Date: 05-16-2002

About the Author

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of the CSI (Season 2) DVD.