ChildControls.com - Keeping one step ahead!

Yahoo Movies has both the user and critic ratings at B-. However, I found the movie to be more C level. The idea was a good one and like many other movies, the preview were more exciting than the actual movie. It just seemed to drag on and on. On the good side though, my kids seemed to be engaged throughout and although agreed that it was not as good as it could have been, did not think too badly of it either.

The plotline goes something like this. A good-hearted but bumbling security guard at the Museum of Natural History accidentally trips an ancient curse which causes the animals and gigantic insects on display to come to life, causing havoc in the city.

Research has shown that nearly two-thirds of all children under the age of 2 watch TV more than an hour a day. With electronic media becoming more and more prevalent amongst kids, what conclusions can be drawn about the effects of TV on kids? A panel of child experts called together by the National Institutes of Health on Monday debated just that.

"Content does matter. Television designed to enhance cognitive development does so," said University of Massachusetts psychologist Daniel Anderson, referring to the well-studied preschool shows "Sesame Street" and "Blue's Clues."

Children who watch more than 2 hours of TV a day are at additional risk for obesity, experts warned. The research, from University College London, found that four hours of inactivity each day at 16 was linked to increased body mass at age 30.

Dr Russell Viner of University College London, said that the study, conducted by researchers at the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, also found that the risk of children turning into obese adults increases by 7 per cent for every hour of television watched at weekends by five-year-olds.

More than a few parents ask themselves the same question during TV Turnoff Week, which starts today and goes through the end of the month: "Does that mean us too?"

TV: Could you live without it for a week?
Gary Ruskin says, yes, of course. He is the executive director of Commercial Alert, the Portland-based non-profit organization devoted to protecting kids from exploitation through marketing and advertising.

"I think of the question in two parts," says Ruskin, a veteran of Washington, D.C., activism who has found larger measures of peace and sanity on the West Coast. "The first is what can parents do as parents (about kids watching too much TV). The second is what can parents do as citizens."

Kid's TV shows and cartoons are becoming an increasingly popular source of kid's entertainment. Other major sources include web and video games and movies.

Overall, kids' viewership is climbing, suggesting that the new generation is becoming even more adept at watching TV while instant-messaging, Web surfing or gaming. Planned kid's shows include "Tak and the Power of Juju," due next year, which is based on a video game and "Mr. Meaty," a comedy about teenage slackers in

Ice Age 2 picks up where the first part left off with Manny not knowing if he is the last one of his species or not. However, bigger problems lie in story for him as the ice is melting and they must make a journey of survival on a boat along with the rest of the animals living in the valley.

With voices by Ray Romano, Queen Latifah and Jay Leno, Ice Age 2 promises to be as entertaining as the first part. The film is rated PG and is available in theaters by March 29.

From the article,

The aim of the specials, Marlon Wayans said in a statement, is to get kids laughing "by creating characters they can relate to while entertaining their parents at the same time."

"I wanted to make the show that I want my kids to watch," he said.

"As a parent, I think it's important for kids to have a source of entertainment that deals with life in positive and comedic ways," said Keenen Iv

Aisha from Columbus, Ohio writes,Howl's Moving Castle is an imaginative fairy tale about a hat mender, Sophie, whose youth is taken by a wicked witch. She calmly then leaves the town to find her destiny elsewhere and falls in company with the inhabitants of Howl's Moving Castle, including Howl, who is not quite as evil as rumored to be. With them, she attempts to find ways to lift the curse over her and help her new friends in defeating the wicked witch.

Chronicles of Narnia: The lion, the witch and the wardrope (2005) has B by critics and B+ by users on yahoo ratings. What did you like about the movie and what did you dislike about it? What rating would you give the movie?