# How scary is Indy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 18, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760 "2008-05-18T17:02:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kbear)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/1 "2008-05-18T17:02:15Z")
Has anyone been to an advance screening of Indiana Jones? My daughter is desperate to invite her class for her 10th birthday. I have to send out the invitations before the movie comes out and I’m not sure it’s going to be appropriate for some of them. I took my kids to see Iron Man last night, which is rated the same (12A) and it was just a bit too much for them. Harry Potter is also rated 12A but nowhere near as scary as Iron Man was. This rating seems to have a pretty wide range…you never have to worry about sex scenes in 12A but you never know how much violence to expect. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/2 "2008-05-18T18:51:16Z")
I’m seeing it on Tuesday. (My company is a sponsor so we get a special screening.) I’ll try to remember to come back and comment in this thread, if somebody else hasn’t beaten me to it. For what it’s worth, I’ve heard Lucas downplaying the expectations of the hardcore fans, saying he basically made it for his kids. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/3 "2008-05-18T19:34:01Z")
It’s rated PG-13 “for adventure violence and scary images”. It just opened at the Cannes Film Festival today. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/4 "2008-05-18T19:44:55Z")
_The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian_ is rated PG, if you decided against _Indiana Jones_. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/5 "2008-05-18T20:10:13Z")
And it’s my experience that when a movie is marketed to kids, a PG-13 means it’s PG-13. In the Golden Compass, for example, a Polar bear gets its jaw ripped off in a fight. Now THAT’S a PG-13. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/6 "2008-05-18T20:15:10Z")
**lissener** Does it _show_ that happening? ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/7 "2008-05-18T20:34:24Z")
[QUOTE=Cervaise] For what it’s worth, I’ve heard Lucas downplaying the expectations of the hardcore fans, saying he basically made it for his kids. [/QUOTE] Lucas…really needs to stop doing this. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/8 "2008-05-18T20:43:12Z")
Well, it’s 200 laps around a 2.5-mile superspeedway with 33 cars running at speeds approaching 230 mph. If I were driving it, I’d be pretty scared. Oops, sorry. Wrong Indy. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/9 "2008-05-18T21:03:21Z")
[QUOTE=Lobsang] **lissener** Does it _show_ that happening? [/QUOTE] Well, you can see his jaw fly off, then the other polar bear rips his throat out. So…yes. ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/10 "2008-05-18T21:45:22Z")
Several early commentators (not speaking to its kid-friendliness, however, but just from a general moviegoer perspective) have complained to the effect that it’s not a great action/suspense movie because “there’s never really a moment when you feel he’s in true jeopardy or that you can’t readily see how he’ll get out of the ‘dangerous’ situation,” FWIW. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/11 "2008-05-18T22:00:40Z")
[QUOTE=Mahaloth] Well, you can see his jaw fly off, then the other polar bear rips his throat out. So…yes. [/QUOTE] So much for spoilers . . . ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2008, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/12 "2008-05-19T02:33:58Z")
[QUOTE=Huerta88] Several early commentators (not speaking to its kid-friendliness, however, but just from a general moviegoer perspective) have complained to the effect that it’s not a great action/suspense movie because “there’s never really a moment when you feel he’s in true jeopardy or that you can’t readily see how he’ll get out of the ‘dangerous’ situation,” FWIW. [/QUOTE] Are these commentators actually suggesting there’s a chance Indiana Jones could be killed off? Are they stupid or have they never seen an Indy movie before? ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/13 "2008-05-19T03:41:57Z")
[QUOTE=Justin\_Bailey] Are these commentators actually suggesting there’s a chance Indiana Jones could be killed off? Are they stupid or have they never seen an Indy movie before? [/QUOTE] Yeah, I was going to say…don’t you pretty much always assume in every situation that he’s going to get out okay? unless you’re a very small child or something. ---
**Author:** ![kbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kbear)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2008, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/14 "2008-05-19T06:34:10Z")
[QUOTE=Walloon] _The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian_ is rated PG, if you decided against _Indiana Jones_. [/QUOTE] That would have been my choice but it doesn’t open until June 26th here in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2008, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/15 "2008-05-19T08:21:25Z")
[QUOTE=Cervaise] For what it’s worth, I’ve heard Lucas downplaying the expectations of the hardcore fans, saying he basically made it for his kids. [/QUOTE] All of a sudden I wonder whether George Lucas’s kids get beaten up a lot by the children of angry Star Wars fans. ---
**Author:** ![shefDave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@shefDave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shefDave)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2008, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/16 "2008-05-19T08:35:59Z")
The BBFC go into a fair amount of detail [here](http://www.pbbfc.co.uk/filmDetail.asp?filmID=931) about the film’s violence, scariness etc. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/17 "2008-05-20T17:33:05Z")
[QUOTE=Cervaise] I’m seeing it on Tuesday. (My company is a sponsor so we get a special screening.) I’ll try to remember to come back and comment in this thread, if somebody else hasn’t beaten me to it. [/QUOTE] I’ll be leaving for the screening in a little over an hour, and will come back and post later this evening. For now, though, here’s a relevant comment from one of the advance reviews: > [@](#): > > One of the things that shocked me was how mild-mannered this film is considering it’s got a PG-13 rating affixed. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK is like a snuff film compared to this, in terms of onscreen brutality. It’s a real sign of how inconsistent the MPAA is when this gets a PG-13 and PRINCE CASPIAN, which is far more grim and ugly about its violence, gets a PG. I’ve long since given up trying to understand the actions of the ratings board, though. Suffice it to say, there’s no Wrath of God here and no Mola Ram yanking out hearts. Even in the darkest moments of this film, things stay bloodless and feather-light. [From here](http://www.aintitcool.com/node/36806); FYI, minor spoilers in the rest of the review (and beware the user comments following). ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/18 "2008-05-20T17:57:27Z")
I’m taking two 8 year olds and one 6 year old. They saw Iron Man last weekend, and the 6 year old told us afterwards that he didn’t think it deserved a PG-13 rating… he thought it was just PG. :eek: 😃 ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/19 "2008-05-20T18:09:44Z")
[QUOTE=Cervaise] One of the things that shocked me was how mild-mannered this film is considering it’s got a PG-13 rating affixed. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK is like a snuff film compared to this, in terms of onscreen brutality. It’s a real sign of how inconsistent the MPAA is when this gets a PG-13 and PRINCE CASPIAN, which is far more grim and ugly about its violence, gets a PG. I’ve long since given up trying to understand the actions of the ratings board, though. Suffice it to say, there’s no Wrath of God here and no Mola Ram yanking out hearts. Even in the darkest moments of this film, things stay bloodless and feather-light. [/QUOTE] I’ve seen it and largely agree. There’s no death in this film as “graphic” as what was seen in _Raiders_ or _Temple_. I would say the level of violence and action is on par with [this film](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/). ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760/20 "2008-05-20T19:27:13Z")
[QUOTE=ArchiveGuy] I’ve seen it and largely agree. There’s no death in this film as “graphic” as what was seen in _Raiders_ or _Temple_. I would say the level of violence and action is on par with [this film](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/). [/QUOTE] [grouchy digression] Not to specifically pick on you, **ArchiveGuy** , but you’re the straw that broke the camel’s back. WHY do so many Dopers do this? Can’t you just type “The Mummy” as the link text instead of being coy and euphemistic and saying “this film”? Then I wouldn’t have had to follow your link to see your point. I get tired of reading threads full of replies that say “[Another source](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/) disagrees” or “My [cite](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/) has different information” or “what about [this](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/)?” or sometimes even just “[no](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120616/).” Please, oh please, provide some hint of information about what your link is. We now return you to your regularly-scheduled thread. [/grouchy digression] [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-scary-is-indy/449760.md?page=2)