Dora (TV-Y)
Streaming
Age 3+
Fantastic reboot beats original, with extra energy and fun.
“Dora” is the reboot of Nickelodeon’s beloved show “Dora the Explorer,” with CGI versions of familiar settings and characters. It looks similar enough not to jar fans, with a few adjustments to improve pacing and storytelling. Episodes now run for just 11 minutes and focus on character-driven stories, and those characters are depicted in more detail. While Dora (voiced by Diana Zermeño) and Boots (Asher Colton Spence) sometimes stumble on spooky situations in the forest, they learn to overcome fear and make wise decisions. Expect some exciting moments, like flying on a dragon or riding a jaguar, but it’s all fun and characters are never in real danger. Always positive and unafraid, Dora is eager to help her friends and family with various tasks while they explore the fantastical forest. The show promotes themes such as persistence and compassion, provides exposure to the Spanish language, and celebrates Latino heritage. The series also incorporates Latino culture into its architecture, food and folklore. (26 episodes)
Available on Paramount Plus.
Civil War (R)
Age 16+
Grisly violence in dystopian war tale with profanity and smoking.
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“Civil War” is a grim, gruesome dystopian war drama set during an imagined second Civil War in the United States. Seen through the eyes and lenses of a team of combat journalists (Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny, Wagner Moura and Stephen McKinley Henderson), the wartime violence is raw, gory, intense and terrifying. Bombs catapult bodies through the air, a captive burns alive, torture victims are strung up (with an eyeball barely in its socket) and assault rifles fire constantly. Bloody and maimed corpses are seen throughout, including hanging off bridges, stacked in a pit and being dumped from a truck. Language is very strong throughout (“s---,” “f---” and more). The journalists smoke cigarettes, and one smokes a joint. Characters drink, sometimes from the bottle, and there’s vomiting. Dunst’s jaded war photographer has hardened from the horrors she’s witnessed over the decades, and writer-director Alex Garland shows viewers the worst of it — making clear the traumatizing toll this career path can take but underlining the importance of a free press and warning viewers that brutality ensues when a polarized country loses the ability to communicate. (109 minutes)
Available in theaters.
Música (PG-13)
Streaming
Age 14+
Quirky musical has romance, language, mature themes.
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“Música” is a charming romantic comedy about a Brazilian American man named Rudy (Rudy Mancuso) with a condition that causes sensory crossovers. He ends up with two girlfriends at the same time, kissing them both. Another woman, whom his mom sets him up with, comes on hard, squeezing his knee and trying to kiss him after only just meeting. Someone is randomly shot and rushed to the hospital but survives without serious injury. The same character occasionally has disturbing memories of an abusive man. Young adults drink (sometimes too much); one character asks another whether he’s high; and language includes “f---,” “s---,” “hell,” “a--hole” and “b----.” Characters speak English with some Portuguese, and the setting is a multiethnic neighborhood in New Jersey. One character, who’s Black, takes on different cultural identities when he goes from neighborhood to neighborhood to better sell food from his truck. In one scene, a White family makes insensitive, ignorant comments about Latinos. (91 minutes)
Available on Prime Video.
Fallout (TV-MA)
Streaming
Age 16+
Sly video game adaptation has tons of violence, language.
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“Fallout” is an action-adventure series based on the role-playing video game franchise of the same name. The show follows the trek of a young vault dweller (Ella Purnell) across a post-apocalyptic Los Angeles to find her father. In the vaults, order rules. Aboveground, groups like the Brotherhood of Steel and their technological knights manage to get by. Then there’s the Ghoul (Walton Goggins), an enigmatic mutant cowboy. The source material includes blood, gore and violence, and viewers will find the same elements here. Violence is frequent and brutal. Bloody hand-to-hand combat, lots of guns and gory wounds are all presented in great detail. Corpses of families, including children, are shown. Characters are shot in the head, bisected by doors and otherwise brutalized. A doctor injects a small object into his ear. Dogs are implied to be incinerated. Characters have sex, and a man’s butt is shown. Language includes “f---” and “s---.” (Eight episodes)
Available on Prime Video.
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