Parental Guidance

Parental Guidance: Need For Speed and Veronica Mars

We give you what you need to know about the family-friendliness of this week's new releases.

by | March 14, 2014 | Comments

In Theaters This Week:

Need For Speed

23%

Rating: PG-13, for sequences of reckless street racing, disturbing crash scenes, nudity and crude language.

The exotic sports cars go very, very fast — hence the title — which inevitably leads to some very, very serious crashes. In his first major role post-Breaking Bad, Aaron Paul stars as a small-town drag racer and mechanic who must take part in one last high-stakes competition in order to redeem himself and save his family’s shop. While the drivers put themselves in danger — and some of them don’t make it out alive — they also have a general carelessness for the safety of pedestrians and other motorists who have the misfortune of sharing the road with these idiotic adrenaline junkies. This is probably OK for viewers around age 10 and up.

Veronica Mars

80%

Rating: PG-13, for sexuality including references, drug content, violence, and some strong language.

You don’t have to have been a fan of the Veronica Mars TV series — or even have seen a single episode — to enjoy the snappy banter and twisty mystery offered here. Kristen Bell returns in the title role as a former girl detective who returns to her secluded beach town of Neptune, Calif., to solve a murder. A pop star is found dead in a bathtub, there’s plenty of language and sexual innuendo and multiple references to a sex tape in which Veronica unknowingly starred. There’s also a fistfight, several shootings and a very bloody, serious car accident. And Bell gets to drop the one, well-placed F-bomb you get with a PG-13 rating. This is probably best for tweens and up.