The Wild

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about The Wild's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of The Wild completed by Young Media Australia (YMA) on 15 September 2006.

Overall comments and recommendations

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 The Wild contains the following information:

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

A synopsis of the story

Sampson the Lion (voiced by Kiefer Sutherland) is the star attraction at New York 's City zoo. Ryan (Greg Cipes) is Sampson's lion cub son, who worships the ground his father walks on. The film opens with Ryan listening to fantastic tales of his father roaring wild wildebeests into submission on the African savannah. Unfortunately the best roar that Ryan can generate resembles that of a house cat, and as such Ryan tends to be somewhat of a joke amongst the other zoo inhabitants. Disillusioned with his self-worth, Ryan decides to go see “the wild” for himself and leaves the zoo, subsequently finding himself locked in a crate aboard a ship headed to Africa .

Themes

Children and adolescents may react adversely at different ages to themes of crime, suicide, drug and alcohol dependence, death, serious illness, family breakdown, death or separation from a parent, animal distress or cruelty to animals, children as victims, natural disasters and racism. Occasionally reviews may also signal themes that some parents may simply wish to know about.

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.

There is some slapstick violence in this movie including:

• a squirrel is propelled through the air and becomes lodged in a lion's nostril
• a koala is pecked and kicked by a flock of flamingos
• a group of penguins punch a koala in the face.
• a squirrel slaps a pigeon
• a squirrel is accidentally knocked from the back of a moving truck and bounces along the road
• a koala hits numerous other animals over the head with a club
• a mother hippo tries to squash Ryan with her bottom.

There are also some instances of more threatening violence, including:

• several savage looking dogs chase Sampson and his friends and then corner them in an alley
• two savage looking crocs threaten Sampson and his friends
• a group of evil looking vultures threaten Ryan
• the head wildebeest kicks one of its followers over a cliff for failing to bring back Sampson
• a group of wildebeests push animals towards a fire pit
• Ryan is threatened with being cooked alive
• Ryan is knocked unconscious when thrown against rocks
• Sampson's roar hurls the head wildebeest against rocks
• Sampson breaks a horn from the head of the head wildebeest. It is inferred that the wildebeest is then crushed under rocks
• a group of zoo monkeys belittle and bully Nigel the koala
• a group of wildebeests push Sampson over a cliff, apparently to his death, while Ryan looks on.

Material that may scare or disturb children

Under five

Children under five are most likely to be frightened by scary visual images, such as monsters, physical transformations.

In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children under the age of five, including the following:

• Sampson tells Ryan stories of how his roar could repel giant wildebeests. The wildebeests are shown as giant demon-like creatures with four horns, red eyes and green flames coming out of their mouths.
• the street dogs that chase the zoo animals are very scary looking, frothing at the mouth and with large sharp teeth
• the initial image of the sewer crocodiles is very threatening.

Aged five to eight

Children aged five to eight will also be frightened by scary visual images and will also be disturbed by depictions of the death of a parent, a child abandoned or separated from parents, children or animals being hurt or threatened and / or natural disasters.

In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes and scary visual images children aged five to eight could also be concerned by Ryan being separated from his father, and his belief that his father has been killed. Ryan is shown at one time looking very scared and distressed and calling out for his father to save him.

Over the age of eight

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 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.

It is unlikely that anything in this movie would scare or disturb children over the age of eight.

Product placement

The following products are displayed or used in this movie:

• Toys ‘R' Us
• the movie “The Lion King.”

Sexual references

There are some sexual references in this movie, including:

• the koala refers to the mating habits of the female spider which eats her mate after the act of mating, stating “At least he dies happy.”

Nudity and sexual activity

One scene in which a group of monkeys tease Nigel the koala, grabbing and squeezing his buttocks.

Use of substances

None

Coarse language

There is occasional use of the word ‘bloody' and several instances of toilet humour, put downs and sarcasm.

The movie's message

The Wild is a computer animated movie that will be particularly appealing to children eight to thirteen years of age, with its likeable and entertaining characters. However, the movie appears at times as a random assortment of skits and jokes and some of the humour may be more suited to an adult audience.

The message of The Wild is about confronting and struggling with personal identity, and finding your own way. It could give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children the importance of loyalty and friendship, perseverance, finding inner strength (finding our own roar that comes from within), and the acceptance of cultural diversity.