Few Would Recommend ‘Jurassic’ for Children

Since its opening over the weekend, opinions on the mega-flick “Jurassic Park”--offered up by critics, psychologists and the media--have been almost as prevalent as the dinosaur soda cups, toys and T-shirts accompanying the $60-million movie. Below is a sampling of the public’s view garnered via TimesLink, the phone-in reader opinion line, which took 43 calls Saturday about the film:

Hope McArdle, Chino Hills: “As a woman who still remembers Bambi’s mother dying, (‘Jurassic Park’) made me nervous, but my children loved it. They thought it was a great movie. Would I recommend it for kids under age 6? No.”

Lisa Puchalski, Mission Viejo:

“I do not think it’s appropriate for children under 10. I am an elementary teacher, and I teach 7- and 8-year-olds. . . . We teach dinosaurs as extinct animals and how fun it would be if they were alive . . . but we don’t really go into what their behavior would be like if they were here today. . . . I think it would be a horrible shock for these kids.”

Jim Macdonald, San Clemente:

“My wife and I went to the movie last night, and unfortunately, there were many children, and we didn’t enjoy the movie because you couldn’t hear. . . . I think the parents are copping out by not saying no to their children when they really ought to be.”

Christina Bannigan, Balboa:

“It’s about the most violent movie I have ever seen in my life. I took my 9-year-old and he seemed to be handling it, but all night long he was talking about it, about different parts of the movie and how violent it was.”

Cathy Smith, Laguna Niguel:

“I really enjoyed it. But I have two small children; I definitely could not take them. They would love to go see it because of all the hype about it, but it’s pretty dark. . . . Maybe the older kids could handle it, but not the younger ones.”

Beth Finser, Fullerton:

“We have two children, 2 and 5, so obviously it’s not for them. My 5-year-old is a dinosaur nut, and he keeps thinking he’s going to talk us into seeing it, but I knew before we saw it that it wasn’t appropriate, and now I know for sure.”

Lynda Cooper, Laguna Hills:

“It was very good, but it is definitely not material for children. A 12-year-old would be the youngest child I would take. It would be too frightening for younger ones.”

Sam Tinterte, Huntington Beach:

“I think the movie was great. I don’t think it was that violent. . . . I think children around 10 or 12 could see it, possibly 8. It was no worse than some of the cowboys and Indians movies I saw as a kid when I was 8 or 10 years old. I’d recommend it.”

Gail Ogle, Tustin:

“I’m a first-grade teacher, and I saw the film Thursday night, and I told my class yesterday that it was very, very scary and I did not think they should go. I believe that it would be appropriate for children over the age of 10 to 12.”

Kevin Warner, Huntington Beach:

“I took my two boys, 13 and 12, and all I can say is I’m very glad I did not take my 6-year-old daughter, which I almost did. That is not a movie for anyone probably 8 and under, with a borderline at 9 and up.”

Allen Murray, Newport Beach:

“I think it is quite appropriate for many children as young as perhaps 11 or 12 years old who are academically advanced, and understand recombinant DNA concepts. However, I think the movie is inappropriate for many adults and many parents who would miss the whole concept of the movie.”

Tom Lichtenberger, Cypress:

“I have two children, 8 and 2, and I would not take a child under probably 8 to this movie. The first scene where the tyrannosaurus rex eats the lawyer was very disturbing. There was a small girl there, about 3, sitting in front of us who got very scared.”

Lynn Coulter, La Habra:

“We have two young children, ages 4 and 2, that we did not bring along, and I was horrified. I cannot believe they would bill a movie like this using the ploy of dinosaurs to lure young children. . . . I saw several parents in line with small children and I urged them not to take them in the movie.”

John Russell, Costa Mesa:

“I’m a schoolteacher, parent and grandparent. I know that there’s a wide range of maturity and sensitivity levels for children between the ages of 5 and 15, so I think it just depends upon the individual child. Some will not be affected by it as young as 10 or 8, but others might be bothered at 11 or 12.”

Ruth Shatin, Orange:

“I have not seen ‘Jurassic Park.’ I do not intend to see it . . . . I think it is very sad that my little grandchild who is 3 and loves dinosaurs can’t go to see a movie about them because of the violence.”

Linda Cummings, Irvine:

“I loved the movie. I think it’s fantastic, but I would not recommend it for children. I think the PG-13 is an excellent rating. There are some very graphic portions of the movie. . . . I was scared, and I’m definitely over PG-13.”

Luigi Schiavo, Fullerton:

“I would recommend it for children if they saw it with their parents and they were at least above the age of 9 where they could understand that these dinosaurs aren’t real.”