Kernel Rating (out of 5):
MPAA Rating: R Length: 90 minutes
Age Appropriate for: 14+. Let me explain myself—the movie is rated R, because the characters curse, do drugs, discuss sex, and are implied to be having it. However, I think this is also a really opportune movie to see with teenagers as a way of deglamorizing the celebrity lifestyle. The teenagers in the film are obsessed with celebrity to the point of thievery, and it all rings very hollow and short-sighted; they come off looking like fools. It would be a good conversation-starter with teens about how and why people make these poor choices, and even though it’s rated R, the reason why it has that rating is what makes it so fitting for a family viewing and talk.
Director Sofia Coppola analyzes extreme wealth again, this time focusing on the teenagers who looted celebrity houses for millions in ‘The Bling Ring.’ The film is beautifully shot, extravagantly stylized, and totally—and satisfyingly—critical of these teens who were too caught up in materialism to understand their own decay. It’s amusing, unsettling, and extremely effective.
By Roxana Hadadi
Director Sofia Coppola’s films all deal with the complications of fame, with its glittery allure and emotional absence, and her latest, “The Bling Ring,” is no different. As beautifully stylized as her film “Marie Antoinette” and as critical of celebrity as “Somewhere,” “The Bling Ring” tells the true story of a group of teenagers who from 2008 to 2009 broke into the homes of people like Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom, and Rachel Bilson, stealing millions upon millions in clothes, jewelry, and other items. The teens just wanted to “go shopping,” and Coppola does an excellent job plopping us into their story—and making us hate them.