Kangaroo Jack

Negative—My family saw Kangaroo Jack the day after it was released. I would definitely not recommend this movie for children under the age of 10. In fact, after reviewing the MPAA ratings, I would suggest that it is inappropriately rated; it should be PG-13. There are positive aspects of friendship explored, and my children enjoyed watching the virtual kangaroo (Jack) perform. However, too much of the plot revolves around the “kosmos” worldview: criminal activity (paying off the mob to maintain a business, eluding the law, paying someone to kill) and lust (clearly grabbing a woman’s breasts, slow-motion wet t-shirt/underwear scene.) I wish I had waited a bit longer to read reviews and speak with other parents before taking my 5 and 8-year olds to see this movie. It is another example of Hollywood pushing the limits of the rating system and attempting to expose our children to more worldly choices.
My Ratings: [Average / 3]
—J. Bradon Barnes, age 35

Negative—I thought it was somewhat offensive. I took my daughter, age 4, to see it because I thought it was a good family film about a little kangaroo. I was wrong. This movie wasn’t really worth seeing. Spend your free time watching a movie like “Catch me if you can” or “Two weeks notice.” If you have young kids, go see “Larryboy and the Yodelnapper” or “The Wild Thornsberrys.”
My Ratings: [Average / 4]
—Monika Shellbie, age 26

Positive—Let’s not overreact here. The bad guys act like bad guys and get what they deserve in the end. Most of the jokes other reviewers complained about are really mild, and go right over the heads of kids anyway. Strong message on value of friendship. No sex whatsoever except two kisses. Morally neutral, weak plot, but has some laughs for the kids… hey, it’s PG. You could do worse.
My Ratings: [Average / 3]
—GK, age 41

Neutral—On the positive side, this movie was a good kick back, relax and laugh type. The main character learns to face himself where he is inadequate and chooses to change himself for the better. His friend in the end of the movie learns what true friendship is really all about. On the negative side, the “heros” of the film are involved in criminal activity, flatulance is used for humor, sensuality is utilized (as other reviewers have reported), and in the end the “heroine” seems to totally forget about her mission to restore the endangered bilbies to be with her new love (or at least the movie could have mentioned the foundation she worked for was actually given the money the two “heros” promised to her, but it didn’t). Likewise, the movie contains bad geography. The movie makes it seem like one can drive from Sydney to Alice Springs in a day; in reality it takes about four days, as I understand it. In the movie, Alice Springs appears more like an Old West town than the modern city that it is. In the movie, King’s Canyon and an area called the Devil’s Marbles (named so for the rock formations there, which you do not see in the movie) are a reasonable distance from each other when in fact they are a few hundred miles apart! In fact, the encounter with the kangaroo should have been east of Alice Springs, yet King’s Canyon, near where most of the action of the movie is supposedly taking place, is too the far south and west of Alice Springs. The movie also contains one scene of bad astronomy: a sky full of stars is seen next to a full moon. In reality, the light reflecting off a full moon washes out most of the stars, especially the ones in close proximity to it. The movie had potential for being a fun family flick, but the worldly-mindsetedness of it killed that.
My Ratings: [Average / 2]
—Deanna, age 32

Negative—This movie is definitely not for youngsters and I resent the movie industry targeting pre-teens with their advertisements and trailers. The Lord’s name was taken in vain numerous times and profanity was obvious and muted throughout. In addition, sexual innuendo, suggestiveness and tensions were prevalent in many parts of the movie. Worst of all was the implied and overt violence. Numerous scenes of physical violence, both implied and actual, as well as threatened violence are in this movie. I do not recommend taking pre-teens to see this movie. It should have a PG-13 rating. It’s definitely not a kids movie.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive / 2½]
—Rob, age 40

Negative—I could stand a sloppy story line—even a really corny one if it at least stood on good moral ground. That is what I thought we were going to get. Sadly—Hollywood continues to sneak in any cheap garish moments it can. What specifically we found objectionable were the following: 1) One of the “bad” guy was wearing an upside down cross. 2) The word “as*” was used once. 3) The term testicles was used and while alone that term isn’t offensive, the context they used it in was. “Drink this and the swelling will go down, but your testicles will fall off.” 4) A waterfall/spring “bath”—well endowed female character was braless in a TIGHT white sheer tee-shirt (like tank top). 5) We were subjected to one of the lead characters deciding that the female character was a mirage and after a close up of just her breasts, they showed him grabbing them with his hands—saying “they’re real!!!” 6) There was one very violent scene where 2 sets of “bad” guys decided to punch each other out, one pistol whip and a poor display of “solve your problems with guns.” Turns out that the story line is about a step-son of a mobster and the step-son’s side kick. They are sent to Australia to pass over $50K. Oh the joy when we learn [what it’s for].
My Ratings: [Excellent! / 4½]
—Sheryl Lilly, age 38

Negative—I took my two children, ages 5 and 4, to see a movie that I thought was geared to children about a cute kangaroo. Well, the kangaroo was the only moral person in the movie. The human characters use some mild profanities and sexual innuendos, and in one scene a man grabs a woman’s breasts! The rating was PG. It should have been rated PG-13 or R.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive / 2½]
—Sandy, age 40

Negative—I came into this movie thinking it was going to be a cute, funny family film. Well, it is funny but only in some few parts of the film. The plot is as thick as a bowl of chicken soup. Plus, the PG rating is extremely misleading. Kids aged under 10 shouldn’t see the film due to some profanity and a very sensual moment (played for laughs, though). I also wonder why Christopher Walken, with all his talent, chooses to star in B-films such as “The Country Bears” and this one. My advice is to skip this movie and wait for it to come out on video or rent something family-friendly, like “Monsters, Inc.” or “Ice Age.”
My Ratings: [Excellent! / 4½]
—Shannon Hammell, age 21

Positive—Kangaroo Jack was a great movie. I saw previews for weeks and I wanted to see this movie pretty badly. I went on opening weekend, and the movie lived up to the previews. Kangaroo Jack was extremely hilarious, there was literally a laugh a minute. I think anyone who likes a good comedy, with slapstick humor, should see this movie. As far as being offensive, it was not. Nothing at all was offensive, unless you think some crude humor is offensive. I would recommend this movie to any family that wants some great laughs.
My Ratings: [Excellent! / 4½]
—Jordan, age 15

Neutral—I thought it was a good movie. It was funny. It did have a scene of a woman wearing tight, wet clothing, but other than that, I thought it was great! (It may not be ok for kids 10 and under.)
My Ratings: [Better than Average / 4½]
—Natalie Barmen, age 14

Positive—I thought it was a good movie. It was funny all through the movie. There was nothing at all offensive unless you call some crude humor offensive. If you like hilarious movies, I recommend this to you.
My Ratings: [Better than Average / 4½]
—Aaron Vollie, age 13

Negative—I thought that the movie had no plot and it did not keep my interest. There was one bad word. The movie was too stupid for pre-teens and adults but not a children’s movie either. The good guy thought stealing was bad. He had some morals. The bad guy got caught.
My Ratings: [Average / 2]
—Kathryn Lutrick, age 11

…With content inappropriate for youngsters and a story too inane for grownups, the filmmakers seem to be targeting immature adults…
—Michael Elliott, Movie Parables

…mild expletives… colorful phrases and brief, sexually related dialogue… slow motion sight of a woman in wet, clingy clothes…
—ScreenIt!

…Without the salacious stuff, “Kangaroo Jack” would be an essentially harmless kiddie B-movie. But apparently, that’s too square for the happening folks around the swimming pool…
—Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal Constitution