Big Momma’s House 2

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about Big Momma’s House 2's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of Big Momma’s House 2 completed by Young Media Australia (YMA) on 28 January 2006.

Overall comments and recommendations

Big Momma’s House 2 is an action comedy which falls short in terms of adult entertainment, being little more than a series of barely related skits in which Martin Lawrence, dressed as a fat African American senior citizen, is placed in a number of ridiculous situations. The film’s drug and sexual references are specifically targeted at an adult audience. Some people could find the idea of making old, fat African American women appear ridiculous offensive.

About the movie

This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) and the associated consumer advice lines.

YMA review

This review of the movie Big Momma’s House 2 contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• use of violence
• material that may scare children
• product placement
• sexual references
• nudity and sexual activity
• use of substances
• coarse language
• the movie's message

A synopsis of the story

This sequel to Big Momma’s House (2000), finds FBI agent Malcolm Turner (Martin Lawrence) confined to a desk job in FBI public relations, presenting safety lectures to primary school children. When Malcolm’s ex- partner from the original Big Momma film is murdered, and Malcolm is refused the right to investigate the murder, he decides to take two-weeks leave to investigate the murder on his own. Malcolm tells his eight months pregnant wife Sherrie (Nia Long) that he has to go out of town to a work related convention, packs up his Big Momma’s costume and head off in to investigate the murder.

Malcolm discovers that a deadly new computer program known as the “worm” is being developed, with the intention of accessing secret government files. At the centre of his murder investigation is computer expert Tom Fuller (Mark Moses). Tom and his wife Leah (Emily Procter) are in need of a nanny to look after their three children, 15 year old Molly, 11 year old Karri and 3 year old Andrew. Donning the disguise of Big Momma, Malcolm wins the position of nanny to the dysfunctional Fuller family and immediately begins to bond with the neglected and troubled children, with very specific problems: fifteen year old Molly has low self esteem and is naïve when it comes to the opposite sex, eleven year old Karri is desperate to gain her fathers attention, and three year old Andrew does belly whackers from the top of the highest cupboards and is not yet able to speak.

In the meantime, Malcolm/ Big Momma discovers that Tom has been working with a young computer hacker and that the worm is now complete and ready to hand over the real bad guys of the film, a number of mean looking characters who pretend to be working for Tom Fuller. Big Momma must stop the worm being handed over and protect the Fuller family from harm.

Use of violence

Research shows that children are at risk of learning that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution when violence is glamourised, performed by an attractive hero, successful, has few real life consequences, is set in a comic context and / or is mostly perpetrated by male characters with female victims, or by one race against another.

Repeated exposure to violent content can reinforce the message that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution. Repeated exposure also increases the risks that children will become desensitised to the use of violence in real life or develop an exaggerated view about the prevalence and likelihood of violence in their own world.

Big Momma’s House 2 contains infrequent low to medium level violence, mostly at the end of the film. Violent scenes include:

• in the opening scene of the film there are sounds of gunshots being fired, followed by a dead body being dumped into the sea.
  
• an intoxicated female senior citizen confronts Big Momma with the accusation that Big Momma ‘stole her man’. The woman then physically threatens Big Momma and punches her in the face. An exchange of punches to the face follows and the intoxicated senior citizen is eventually knocked out.
  
• Molly Fuller and Big Momma are abducted at gun point
  
• a bad guy holds a handgun to Tom Fuller’s head, while threatening to kill him
  
• Big Momma rams a jet ski into the middle of a group of bad guys, knocking them flat on their backs
  
• Big Momma engages in a fistfight in which a series of hard hitting blows to the face and stomach are exchanged
  
• Big Momma knocks a bad guy unconscious by smashing him over the head with a piece of wood
  
• Malcolm appears to have been shot, but is saved by the vast amount of padding required to make up his disguise as Big Momma.

Material that may scare children

Under eight

Children under eight are most likely to be frightened by scary visual images, such as monsters, physical transformations, the death of a parent or child abandoned or separated from parents, children or animals being hurt or threatened and / or natural disasters.

Younger children may be scared by some of the more brutal or threatening violence, as listed above. Other than this, there are no visual images of concern.

Aged eight to thirteen

Children aged eight to thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic threats and dangers, violence or threat of violence and / or stories in which children are hurt or threatened.

Children closer to the age of eight years may be scared by some of the violent scenes as listed above.

Over the age of thirteen

Children over the age of thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic physical harm or threats, molestation or sexual assault and / or threats from aliens or the occult.

Children over the age of thirteen years should not find any of the film’s content scary, or threatening.

Sexual references

The film contains a number of sexual references, usually made in a comic context. Many of the sexual references are aimed at an adult audience and use specific cultural slang. Sexual references include:

• Perk D’S (referring to breasts)
  
• Butt naked butter ball
  
• Butterball naked pictures of Billy D
  
• “Boys of that age want only one thing, and it ain’t meaningful conversation”
  
• Malcolm says to his wife “You were naked when most of those promises were made”
  
• A female dancer rubs her leg erotically against Big Momma’s leg. Big Momma says “Excuse me that’s my leg you are humping.”
  
• “And now I’m going to get VD” The abbreviation refers to “visual display” but is used as a sexual reference, with comic intent.
  
• Big Momma describes how she has been sexually molested on a bus concluding the story with, “that’s one pervert who won’t be playing the flute for a while.”
  
• Big Momma refers to her falling bust line, “Keeping these fun bags off the floor is a full time job”

Nudity and sexual activity

Big Momma’s House 2 contains no sexual activity, although there is some partial nudity:

• “Victoria’s Secret lingerie models” parade around a spa wearing sensual lingerie
  
• a model asks Big Momma to unclasp the front of her bra, pushing her breasts together to make it easier for Big Momma to achieve the task
  
• Big Momma accidentally rips the bikini bras off two model-like women walking along the beachfront. The two women quickly cover their hands over their naked breasts.

Use of substances

There are some scenes depicting substance use and references, including:

• an intoxicated female senior citizen abuses and then attacks Big Momma
  
• Big Momma cures the family dog’s depression by filling the dog’s drinking bowl with tequila
  
• a nanny is being interviewed by Mrs Fuller, and part way through the interview, Big Momma suggests that the applicant is a cannabis user, indicating that the dark stain on the woman’s fingers are the result of using a “roach clip” (device for smoking cannabis cigarettes). Big Momma then sings a Bob Marley song that refers to passing around a cannabis cigarette.

Coarse language

The film contains some very occasional mild coarse language and put-downs, including:

• damn
  
• arse
  
• suck
  
• butt
  
• morons
  
• crap
  
• bastard.

The movie's message

The movie’s main message is how Big Momma helps each of the children deal with their problems and turns a dysfunctional family into a loving and caring one. Parents could discuss with their children the various problems that each of the three children suffered, and how with Big Momma’s help they were able to overcome them.

Parents may wish to discuss with very young children that in real life, jumping from the tops of cupboards to land on your face, as the three year old character Andrew does, would lead to serious injury and hospitalisation.