G-Force

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about G-Force's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of G-Force completed by The Australian Council on Children and the Media (ACCM) on 8 September 2009.

Overall comments and recommendations

About the movie

This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Australian Government Classification Board and the associated consumer advice lines.

ACCM review

This review of the movie G-Force 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

G-Force, directed by Hoyt Yeatman and produced by Jerry Bruickheimer, is an animated film that follows the adventures of a group of animals who have been specially trained to work as US government agents.  Under the direction of animal behavioural researcher Dr. Ben Kendall (voice of Zach Galifianakis), this crack team uncovers an evil plot linked to the launching of a new wireless communication system, “Cluster Storm”, developed by electronics entrepreneur Leonard Saber (Bill Nighy). 
 
The animals discover that the new Saber system has the capacity to remotely communicate with every “Saber” brand household appliance, converting harmless goods such as coffee machines into deadly weapons.  Together, the G-Force operate covertly to prevent the destructive plan for world domination.  This secret anti-espionage group consists of guinea pigs Darwin (Sam Rockwell), Blaster (Tracy Morgan) and Juarez (Penelope Cruz), Speckles the mole (Nicholas Cage) and the blowfly Mooch (Edwin Louis).  Along the way, the team are hampered by the efforts of FBI agents Trigstad (Gabriel Casseus) and Carter (Jack Conley), who aim to shut down the G-Force operation. 

As the situation becomes critical, the G-Force team realises that one of their own members has betrayed them, resulting in a bitter battle to save the world.

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.

Death of loved ones; Betrayal

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 frequent mild animated and comedic violence in this movie including:

• Guinea pigs smash through a large plate-glass window, scattering shards of broken glass over two human FBI agents.
• Guinea pigs lead FBI men on wild car chase that results in a forceful crash and car roll.
• FBI men yell at each other during car chase scene.
• Guinea pigs fight against robotic creatures.

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.

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:

• A coffee machine is transformed into a deadly robot that pursues guinea pigs, shooting coffee beans at them like a machine gun and then hurling metal razor-like blades at them.
• Several household appliances come to life, grow deadly arms and legs and jump off their shelves to attack humans and animals.
• A pet shop carpet snake with its mouth open in a threatening pose is pictured extremely close-up.
• A guinea pig is launched across a pet store by a boy.
• A guinea pig catches fire.
• A guinea pig is placed in a remote-control car and driven around a dangerous obstacle course and over jumps by a young boy.
• A guinea pig is dressed up and made to wear make-up against her will.
• Three guinea pigs parachute into a yard containing savage dogs.
• A guinea pig seeks to escape a pet store cage by launching himself at high speed into the cage’s glass wall.
• A guinea pig falls through a trap-door onto a hard floor below.
• Three guinea pigs are cornered by vicious guard dogs.
• A guinea pig is trapped in a microwave oven that may start a cook-cycle.
• A guinea pig is placed roughly into a plastic bag and thrown into the back of a garbage truck.
•  A man dressed as an animal exterminator approaches the guinea pigs, spraying clouds of smoke or gas at them.
• Nazi-like human characters are depicted marching moles off to be put to death.

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.

There are no additional scenes that are likely to scare or disturb children aged eight to thirteen.

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 in this movie.

Product placement

None of concern

Sexual references

There are some implicit sexual references in this movie, including:

• Some mild flirting scenes between male and female guinea pigs.
• A male guinea pig refers to a female guinea pig as “fine china”.

Nudity and sexual activity

None of concern

Use of substances

There is some substance use in this movie, including:

• A guinea pig uses a food pellet as a cigar.
• A group of humans drink alcoholic cocktails.

Coarse language

There is some suggestive and mild coarse language in this movie, including:

• Shit
• Suckers
• Holy foxes
• Hell blasters
• Farty
• Hot Canadian girlfriend
• Pimp my ride
• Bring down big mama with baby disease

The movie's message

G-Force is an entertaining light-weight animated comedy adventure with impressive special effects but little storyline.

Values in this movie that parents may wish to reinforce with their children include:

• loyalty
• family bonds
  
  

This movie could also give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children attitudes and behaviours, and their real-life consequences, such as:

• Cruelty to animals is depicted as comedy here, but in real life has serious impacts on animals who are unable to defend themselves.
• Betraying friends and family leads to loneliness.