Scoop

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about Scoop's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of Scoop completed by Young Media Australia (YMA) on 18 March 2007.

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 Scoop contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• themes
• 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

Sondra Pronsky (Scarlett Johansson) is an American  journalism student on holiday in London with her friend Vivian (Romola Garai). On a trip to the theatre to see Sid Waterman (Woody Allen) perform a magic show Sondra has an unlikely encounter with recently deceased Joe Strombel (Ian McShane).

Joe was a renowned journalist famed for getting the latest ‘scoop’ and he has returned to tell Sondra that Peter Lyman, (Hugh Jackman) son of Lord Lyman, is in fact the ‘Tarot Card Killer’. This killer has murdered a series of prostitutes, but left a clue at the latest murder. His secretary, who is also now dead, discovered the clue and has now passed the information to Joe. Sondra, of course, finds this hard to believe but with the help of Waterman, who poses as her father, sets out to find the truth.

Sondra manages to set up a meeting with Peter Lyman who is instantly attracted to the beautiful young woman and dazzles her with his charm and good fortune. Sondra falls in love with Lyman and is very relieved when someone else is arrested for the murders. However, not all is at seems and Sondra finds herself in great danger.

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.

Murder; ghosts

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 violence in this movie including:

• Talk of women being murdered (nothing actually shown)
• Sid dies in a car crash, again not actually shown.
• Peter pushes Sondra into the lake to drown her

Material that may scare or disturb 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.

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 eight, including the following:

• There are scenes of the grim reaper standing with a group of ‘dead’ people on a ship in the ocean with swirling mists.
• Joe Strombel, who is dead, appears to Sondra on several occasions, fading away as he leaves.

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.

• Some children in this age group may also be disturbed by the scenes of the grim reaper and ‘dead’ people although it is done in a comic fashion.

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 in this age group are unlikely to be disturbed by anything this movie.

Product placement

• Walkers chips
• Cobra beer

Sexual references

There are some sexual references in this movie, including:

• Sondra goes to interview an actor called Michael Tinsley who plies her with alcohol. Vivian later asks her how the sex was but Sondra can’t remember because she was too drunk. Vivian says she wouldn’t mind a roll in the hay with Michael Tinsley.
• Sid says Sondra has a problem with promiscuity.
• Sid asks Sondra if she gained anything from her weekend other than the chance of pregnancy.

Nudity and sexual activity

There is some nudity and sexual activity in this movie, including:

• Sondra and Peter are shown kissing and sleeping together apparently naked although covered by sheets.

Use of substances

There is some use of substances in this movie, including:

• Alcohol is drunk in a number of different settings.

Coarse language

There is some coarse language in this movie, including:

• God
• Jesus
• Bloody

The movie's message

Scoop is a black comedy about life and death, which shows that reality isn’t always what it appears to be.
This movie could also give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children the real-life consequences of casual sex and beliefs about life after death.