Parents Television Council Reviews

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Spy Kids 3-D is Cool for the Kiddies!

By Carl Monaco

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over is the third installment of the successful Spy Kids franchise, created by Richard Rodriguez. It delivers all the goods, except this time it is in 3-D!

In the film, Juni Cortez (Daryl Sabara) had been brought out of retirement and back into the spy agency known as the OSS. While at first he is reluctant to return, once he learns that his sister's life hangs in the balance, he is up to the task.

We follow Juni as he tries to rescue his sister Carmen (Alexa Vega) who is trapped inside a virtual reality videogame called "Game Over." We learn that the creator of the game, a man known only know as the "Toymaker" (Sylvester Stallone) has a devious plan to brainwash all the children who play his game and trap them inside the game itself. Juni's mission is to shut the game off to save his sister and the world's children.

Through the help of other youngsters in the game, his family, and friends, Juni is able to save his sister and protect the children of the world from a terrible fate.

The movie is a fantastic piece of creativity and it manages to entertain without offending. The 3-D effect gives the movie a great appearance, and it makes you feel more like you are on an amusement park ride than sitting in a theater. The film is also filled with very unique and fun computer graphics that are vibrant and make for exciting action sequences.

On top of all of this, Spy Kids 3-D manages to weave some very positive messages into the storyline. Concepts of sacrifice, honesty, forgiveness, commitment, and loyalty are all covered.

Children are also taught the value of friendship. In the end of the movie the Cortez family (including cameos by Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino, Cheech Marin, and Ricardo Montalban) is unable to defeat a robotic monster, and Juni must call up his "extended family" – his friends -- to help save the day.

In a scene involving a handicapped Grandpa Cortez (Montalban) and the Toymaker, it is revealed that the Toymaker was responsible for putting Grandpa Cortez in a wheelchair. Grandpa Cortez tells the Toymaker that even though his handicap caused him to miss the birth of his daughter and her wedding day, he has forgiven the Toymaker, and the experience has taught him to be humble, spiritual, and understanding. He tells the Toymaker that he does not want revenge, just that he is forgiven.

Grandpa's display of compassion puts an end to the Toymaker's villainy forever. Instead of some outrageous battle sequence, where the bad guy dies in a hail of gunfire, Rodriguez ends his movie with a positive message about forgiveness.

Through the trilogy, the films have all focused on the value of the family unit, the bond therein, and the things that can be accomplished when you have the support of your loved ones. Richard Rodriguez should be commended for showing that an individual can successfully produce high quality films that still have popular appeal. 

The movie is rated PG by the MPAA for some tense action scenes and depictions of peril. The movie is devoid of any foul language.  The only sexual content consisted of a mild, off-color remark made by Dr. Giggles (Mike Judge) that would most certainly blow right over the head of most youngsters. 

Violent content consisted of an extensive race scene that does involve some crash sequences; a jousting scene with light-swords; a battle with a giant machine monster; and some frightening "Tinker Toy" robots.

It should be noted that a large portion of any violence in the movie takes place in the game, where the consequences of violence are not death, but being eliminated from the game.

Spy Kids 3-D is high-tech fun with 3-D glasses and an absolutely fantastic movie to watch with the whole family. 

For more detailed information concerning specific content in the film, visit http://screenit.com/movies/2003/spy_kids_3d_game_over.html.

Other opinions on this movie:

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over By Holly McClure

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over By Michael Medved

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