Issue with teen club on our NA cruise

[Netta7]

We had an incident on the teen club last week on the NA. It was the first incident on any cruise that caused me to go to a manager with a complaint. We went to check on our 13 year old in the Loft (the teen area of the kids club) to see if he wanted to join us for lunch. It was unscheduled time at the teen club. The kids were watching a movie and I walked over to the counselor sitting on the couch with the kids and asked her what time the movie ended. She said "in about 45 minutes." My husband stood at the back of the room.

 

When we walked out of the room, my husband asked if I saw the movie as he was shocked. When I walked into the room a sex scene was taking place on the screen, but I hadn't looked up at the movie. The kids were watching the movie "Stepbrothers" a movie rated R by the MPAA for “crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, and pervasive language."

 

When I spoke to the Events Manger who overseas the youth activities, she quickly agreed it was inappropriate said she would resolve it. She also followed up with a phone call to our room the next day and explained that she had put into place a procedure to ensure only appropriate movies were shown and would be speaking to the staff member involved. I really appreciated her quick response and ownership of the issue.

 

While my complaint was handled well, I remain disappointed that it happened in the first place. What kind of adult employed in a teen program would just sit with a bunch of 13 and 14 year olds and watch a movie with sex, profanity and graphic nudity?? Training, experience with teens, and judgement were clearly missing.

 

We had a great cruise and didn't let it ruin our good time, but it did influence our opinion of the quality of the kids programs on HAL.

[callmehalia]

Clearly a ball was dropped, and HAL should probably set out a list of acceptable movies for Club HAL.

 

It's worth bearing in mind though just how different ratings are in different parts of the world.

 

Canada:13+ (Quebec) / Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) / USA:R (certificate #44260) / Ireland:16 / UK:15 / Singapore:M18 / Philippines:R-18 (MTRCB) / Australia:MA / Sweden:7 / Portugal:M/12 / Peru:14 / Finland:K-13 / New Zealand:R16 / Netherlands:12 / South Korea:18 / Ireland:18 (DVD rating) / Italy:VM14 / Argentina:13 / Iceland:12 (re-rated) / Iceland:7 (original rating) / Iceland:L (video rating) / Mexico:B15 / Malaysia: (Banned)

[lvz2cruz]

I would have been very upset. Not only should these kids be subjected to such garbage, it shows very poor decision making skills on the part of the leader in the kids' club.

Personally, I think showing movies in the kids club is akin to using the TV as a babysitter and that the leaders are too lazy to actually do activities.

But this movie is far from age appropriate.

[sail7seas]

Glad this didn't ruin your cruise and you were able to enjoy much else on the ship/your travels.

 

Welcome back. :)

[serendipity1499]

We had an incident on the teen club last week on the NA. It was the first incident on any cruise that caused me to go to a manager with a complaint. We went to check on our 13 year old in the Loft (the teen area of the kids club) to see if he wanted to join us for lunch. It was unscheduled time at the teen club. The kids were watching a movie and I walked over to the counselor sitting on the couch with the kids and asked her what time the movie ended. She said "in about 45 minutes." My husband stood at the back of the room.

 

I agree it was totally inappropriate to be sown to a participant in the teen program! I also think that HAL Seattle should be made aware of this potential problem...Perhaps they should issue guidelines to the staff on all ships about the type of films, which should can be shown to anyone in their children & teen programs..

 

I would have been very upset. Not only should these kids be subjected to such garbage, it shows very poor decision making skills on the part of the leader in the kids' club.

 

Personally, I think showing movies in the kids club is akin to using the TV as a babysitter and that the leaders are too lazy to actually do activities.

But this movie is far from age appropriate.[/quote]

 

The OP stated it was unscheduled time in the teen club..Therefore, a judgment stating the leaders were too lazy to do activities is not appropriate either..

 

Cheers...Betty

[sun~]

I highly doubt any of the teens were remotely offended by that movie. After all 13 and 14 year olds were it's target market.

 

As an FYI it was rated G in Quebec, PG in Ontario.

[Appygirl]

I'm with you Sun. Pretty much any movie with Will Ferrell is crude comedy. For those who haven't seen it the movie is about a couple in their 60's who each have a 40 something son living at home with them, neither son has a girlfriend. They get married and move into the husband's house. The sex scene must have been where the sister in law jumps one of the step brothers for a quickie, no clothes removed but its suggestive. Then there's a scene where Will Ferrell unzips his pants and smacks himself on a drum set. Crude comedy. And mostly stuff that would appeal to teenagers who probably have already seen the movie before anyway. I saw it at the theatre and I've also seen it on TV sometime in the past year or so.

 

It sounds like the situation was handled appropriately. I'm surprised that a potential movie list isn't already made available ahead of time to the parents. Perhaps HAL should have a list of the movies to be played given to the parents at the start of the voyage and parents can sign something saying which movies they want their kid to see or not see. Rather than go by movie ratings that vary widely in different parts of the world.

[Typhoon1]

:eek::eek::eek:OMG. Nudity and foul language. Did you think that was the first time kids were experiencing that?

[Northshorecruisers]

According to Wikipedia, there were unrated versions distributed for home video/dvd sale. Possibly the movie didn't carry a rating and the person in charge had never seen the movie before.

[peaches from georgia]

Picking movies for teens can be hard, not so much because of the kids but the parents, especially of younger teens, have varying ideas of what is appropriate. Certainly the teens themselves don't want G-rated like you would get for children. Will Ferrell anything seems appropriate for most teens from what I know having teen grandsons- crude/dumb/comedic enough to appeal to teen boys yet nothing I ever have thought of as R-rated porn/sex. They are targeted exactly for that teen market.

[babyher]

Although I did not see the film, when the OP mentioned "Stepbrothers" , I though how hot and sexy could a Will Ferrell movie be.? :) They barely pass as comedy let alone porn *LOL*

 

As a few posters here have stated, kids today eat up that gross , potty humor with a little T and A thrown in for good measure.

[sail7seas]

<snip>

 

When we walked out of the room, my husband asked if I saw the movie as he was shocked. When I walked into the room a sex scene was taking place on the screen, but I hadn't looked up at the movie. The kids were watching the movie "Stepbrothers" a movie rated R by the MPAA for “crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, and pervasive language."

 

When I spoke to the Events Manger who overseas the youth activities, she quickly agreed it was inappropriate said she would resolve it. She also followed up with a phone call to our room the next day and explained that she had put into place a procedure to ensure only appropriate movies were shown and would be speaking to the staff member involved. I really appreciated her quick response and ownership of the issue.

 

 

<snip>.

 

 

Did you and your DH remove your son from the teen center when you realized you did not approve the movie?

 

[localady]

My bet is that she asked the teens what they wanted to watch. ;)

Not going to make a judgment call on the appropriateness, as that is a tough one.

What is appropriate for a 17 yo is different than for a 13 yo IMHO.

My feeling is at least it wasn't Pulp Fiction or any other movie with extreme violence.

[Netta7]

While clearly everyone has different standards for what is appropriate, I think this review by the Washington Post, a major US newspaper, states what could be offensive:

 

"The nonstop profanity and crude sexual slang make the movie problematic for anyone under 17. It also has a couple of explicit sexual situations, partial male frontal nudity, gag-inducing toilet humor, homophobic slurs, and on and on."

 

Sorry folks, while my 13 year old was not offended as the posters point out, I strongly believe this isn't what HAL staff should be showing in a supervised program. There was no question that the manager was not happy this was shown and took steps to ensure it didn't happen again. And yes, it was the R rated version and our son did not get to finish the movie. While teens may see and hear this stuff other places, it shouldn't be with a HAL employee sitting there and watching it with them.

[OCruisers]

Picking movies for teens can be hard, not so much because of the kids but the parents, especially of younger teens, have varying ideas of what is appropriate. Certainly the teens themselves don't want G-rated like you would get for children. Will Ferrell anything seems appropriate for most teens from what I know having teen grandsons- crude/dumb/comedic enough to appeal to teen boys yet nothing I ever have thought of as R-rated porn/sex. They are targeted exactly for that teen market.

 

Agree with the points you and Sher made on this.

Porn/sex and extreme violence would have bothered me much more.

 

LuLu

~~~~

[sail7seas]

 

 

<snip>

 

And yes, it was the R rated version and our son did not get to finish the movie. While teens may see and hear this stuff other places, it shouldn't be with a HAL employee sitting there and watching it with them.

 

Good you removed your son if you did not approve of him seeing that movie. That, of course, was the point..... that he not see it.

 

[Big Dawg CC]

My girls have grown up on HAL. They started cruising with us when they were 5 and 6 and they are now 15 and 14. They absolutely loved Club HAL when they were younger, but they have now lost interest. The reason? HAL groups 13 through 17 year olds together. The problem is that what may be “fun” or “appropriate” for one age group is not so for the other. You can imagine, for example, that having a 13 year old girl in the same group as one or more 17 year old boys may not make the 13 year old very comfortable. I think this movie thread is a fine example. I’d really like to see HAL come up with some better age groupings in Club HAL. Probably too late for my girls, but worth noting for others to suggest to HAL.

To the point of this thread, we have found some counselors who were “involved” and great with the kids, and others who were simply there to pass the time. Very hit and miss.

[serendipity1499]

I highly doubt any of the teens were remotely offended by that movie. After all 13 and 14 year olds were it's target market.

 

As an FYI it was rated G in Quebec, PG in Ontario.

 

Rather doubt that any teen would be offended, but that was not the point..An offensive movie is not appropriate for HAL to show to teens!

 

While clearly everyone has different standards for what is appropriate, I think this review by the Washington Post, a major US newspaper, states what could be offensive:

 

"The nonstop profanity and crude sexual slang make the movie problematic for anyone under 17. It also has a couple of explicit sexual situations, partial male frontal nudity, gag-inducing toilet humor, homophobic slurs, and on and on."

 

Sorry folks, while my 13 year old was not offended as the posters point out, I strongly believe this isn't what HAL staff should be showing in a supervised program. There was no question that the manager was not happy this was shown and took steps to ensure it didn't happen again. And yes, it was the R rated version and our son did not get to finish the movie. While teens may see and hear this stuff other places, it shouldn't be with a HAL employee sitting there and watching it with them.

 

I'm behind you & your DH 100%..It's about time that more Parents take a stand & put a stop to having their teens view these offensive type movies..

When our Son came home & said "all the kids are allowed to go to an "R" rated movie"..Our answer was: "We don't care what other kids do, we don't approve of your going to see them..."

Unfortunately, there are many Parents who don't agree with me..Yes they may hear & see these things outside of the home, but that does not mean a Parent should give a nod to that type of language & behavier!

Betty

[erin_cruisers]

While clearly everyone has different standards for what is appropriate, I think this review by the Washington Post, a major US newspaper, states what could be offensive:

 

"The nonstop profanity and crude sexual slang make the movie problematic for anyone under 17. It also has a couple of explicit sexual situations, partial male frontal nudity, gag-inducing toilet humor, homophobic slurs, and on and on."

 

Sorry folks, while my 13 year old was not offended as the posters point out, I strongly believe this isn't what HAL staff should be showing in a supervised program. There was no question that the manager was not happy this was shown and took steps to ensure it didn't happen again. And yes, it was the R rated version and our son did not get to finish the movie. While teens may see and hear this stuff other places, it shouldn't be with a HAL employee sitting there and watching it with them.

 

I agree. While this type of movie may be aimed at the 17's and above it is pure garbage and not worth the plastic it was printed on (in my modest and humble opinion :D )

And for them to show it where 13 yo are also around lacks proper judgement.

Glad you got your son out.

 

I dunno, there are SO MANY ways that the mind can be enriched on a cruise.

And then you hear of something like this happening. :(

 

Just as an aside, our TV in our stateroom doesn't get turned on once during a cruise. There is absolutely no reason to, as far as we can figure out.

However people cruise for different reasons, each to their own. :)

 

P.S. - Also glad you enjoyed the rest of your cruise. ;)

[dfish]

As a retired teacher, I see the dilemma. The movie may be marketed to teens, but what you do in a supervised program is far different than what is ok at the theater or in your own home. If a group of friends get together to watch it at home, fine. But, as a teacher, if I presented anything like this in class it had to hold to much higher standards.

 

No way would I show anything I had't seen before. I was being paid to know the content and make sure it was appropriate to the setting.

 

Debbie

[cruisingberger]

Wow.... I'm glad you went to the manager and equally glad that they did something. I am traveling with 14 and 15 year old girls this summer and really don't want to have them watching that.

[Himself]

We had an incident on the teen club last week on the NA. It was the first incident on any cruise that caused me to go to a manager with a complaint. We went to check on our 13 year old in the Loft (the teen area of the kids club) to see if he wanted to join us for lunch. It was unscheduled time at the teen club. The kids were watching a movie and I walked over to the counselor sitting on the couch with the kids and asked her what time the movie ended. She said "in about 45 minutes." My husband stood at the back of the room.

 

When we walked out of the room, my husband asked if I saw the movie as he was shocked. When I walked into the room a sex scene was taking place on the screen, but I hadn't looked up at the movie. The kids were watching the movie "Stepbrothers" a movie rated R by the MPAA for “crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, and pervasive language."

 

When I spoke to the Events Manger who overseas the youth activities, she quickly agreed it was inappropriate said she would resolve it. She also followed up with a phone call to our room the next day and explained that she had put into place a procedure to ensure only appropriate movies were shown and would be speaking to the staff member involved. I really appreciated her quick response and ownership of the issue.

 

While my complaint was handled well, I remain disappointed that it happened in the first place. What kind of adult employed in a teen program would just sit with a bunch of 13 and 14 year olds and watch a movie with sex, profanity and graphic nudity?? Training, experience with teens, and judgement were clearly missing.

 

We had a great cruise and didn't let it ruin our good time, but it did influence our opinion of the quality of the kids programs on HAL.

 

Opps, that should not have happened.

[lovetocruise2020]

It is a hillarious movie. it is NOT for children. 17 and up only.

[chrispb]

As a retired teacher, I see the dilemma. The movie may be marketed to teens, but what you do in a supervised program is far different than what is ok at the theater or in your own home. If a group of friends get together to watch it at home, fine. But, as a teacher, if I presented anything like this in class it had to hold to much higher standards.

 

No way would I show anything I had't seen before. I was being paid to know the content and make sure it was appropriate to the setting.

 

Debbie

 

 

Yes, have to agree. What you show/allow your own children to watch is entirely different to what you would show other people's kids, especially with mixed ages.

 

It is hilarious, though. One of the funniest films I've seen for a long time.

[catl331]

I worked in a 7-12 school library. A known company sent us a box of books that was part of a project to see what should be classified as YA (young adult). We had Srs and Jrs. in an Eng class each read a book and give their view. Most of the books came back with a rating--available for all students. Well, honestly some we adults definitely would have rated YA. We asked the readers why they rated all the books as okay. They all said they read more offensive books and saw movies that had worst things in them. So maybe the staff (who are young) thought nothing was offensive in the Will Farrell movie. (just a stupid movie). Don't forget: Ricky and Lucy had to have seperate beds!!!!