Power Rangers (2017) parents guide

Power Rangers (2017) Parent Guide

Although occasionally still corny, there's more disturbing content in this re-imagining of the Power Rangers franchise than what you might remember in the 1990's "Mighty Morphin" TV series.

Overall C-

A group of high school students are morphed into super hero and use their powers to save the world. The characters of cartoon and video game fame are Kimberly Hart / The Pink Ranger (Naomi Scott), Trini / The Yellow Ranger (Becky G.), Jason Lee Scott / The Red Ranger (Dacre Montgomery), Billy Cranston / The Blue Ranger (RJ Cyler) and Zack Taylor / The Black Ranger (Ludi Lin).

Release date March 24, 2017

Violence C
Sexual Content B-
Profanity C+
Substance Use C+

Why is Power Rangers (2017) rated PG-13? The MPAA rated Power Rangers (2017) PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, language, and for some crude humor.

Run Time: 124 minutes

Official Movie Site

Parent Movie Review

If you’re considering taking your kids to this big-screen reboot of Power Rangers, there’s a good chance you recall the television series from two decades earlier. Well, stop right there and understand these aren’t the mighty morphers of your childhood. Like so many franchises brought from the sunlit family room into the dark cinematic realm, you’ll quickly discover the biggest mission of the 2017 Rangers is to represent the gritty life of teenagerdom.

Moments after meeting Jason (Darce Montgomery), our lead guy and soon-to-be Red Ranger, we are treated to a tasteless joke about “milking” a bull that is being dragged into a competing high school’s locker room. (“I thought it was an udder!”) From there we work our way into issues of parental neglect, trespassing, stealing, reckless driving, bullying and (following the example set in the 2017 Beauty and the Beast) questioning of sexual-identity.

If, after reading that, you’re still game for the two-hour-plus tedium of this origin story, here’s the basic plot setup: Our first three Rangers meet in detention class. After the bovine incident, Jason is no longer the school’s star football player. Walking into the Saturday holding pen, he immediately takes care of a bully who’s harassing Billy (RJ Cyler), the future Blue Ranger. Kimberly (Naomi Scott), another troubled teen, notices the heroic effort and a trio is formed. And yes, she will be the Pink Ranger.

An evening runaway trip to a goldmine outside their small town of Angle Grove (thanks to a stolen family vehicle) unleashes an avalanche of coincidences. The ever-talented Billy, who earlier showed how he could hack Jason’s house arrest anklet, turns out to have pyrotechnic skills too. While he’s busy setting off explosives that reveal a mysterious glass-like wall that encases five glowing round stones, we meet the final two contestants. Yellow and Black Rangers, Trini and Zack (Becky G. and Ludi Lin) also happen to be in the mood for an evening adventure at the mine. It seems they have been brought together by a mysterious force that desires they discover the color-coded “coins” that will unleash their special powers.

From there we are led down a twisty plot path that involves a buried alien spaceship. Onboard are an instructive android (voice of Bill Hader) and a mentor called Zordon (voice of Brian Cranston) who has been turned into pixelated wallpaper by the prehistoric villainess Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks). Her name reflects both her sadistic personality and the scanty green and gold outfit she struts around in could easily have been worn on Star Trek by one of Captain Kirk’s other worldly seductresses.

Much like adding a multivitamin to breakfast cereal, there’s an overwrought message of teamwork mixed into this mess of adolescent sawdust. Before the Rangers can morph into their colorful protective suits and stop Rita’s plans for world annihilation, they must first demonstrate their love and concern for each other. For some bizarre reason, the quest for these abilities requires frequent fights with rock monsters. And because they have no armor, the trainees sustain numerous injuries while being tossed about and against all manner of immovable objects. The action turns more life-threatening after they meet the evil gold-obsessed woman who delights in killing (deaths by beating, exploding and turning humans into dust are implied and depicted) and drowns a bound character by dropping him off a boat dock.

By the time you slog through this content, which swings uncomfortably between corny and disturbing, you may be yearning for some closing credits. However, if you’ve seen other superhero origin stories, you know that the lengthy introductions are always followed by a battle. In Power Rangers, this isn’t just a simple skirmish, but an all-out, town-destroying slug-fest that pits Rita against our newly minted Ranger team. Assuming you upsized your concessions, this experience will be a test of both patience and bladder capacity.

Directed by Dean Israelite. Starring Bryan Cranston, Elizabeth Banks, Naomi Scott . Running time: 124 minutes. Theatrical release March 24, 2017. Updated

Power Rangers (2017)
Rating & Content Info

Why is Power Rangers (2017) rated PG-13? Power Rangers (2017) is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, language, and for some crude humor.

Violence: This film contains frequent depictions of violence and characters in peril.Teenagers engage in reckless and illegal behavior, including trying to out run a train. Car chases occur while characters are avoiding police/security guards.Vehicle accidents are shown. Frequent injuries are depicted, some with blood effects. Characters transform into grotesque creatures. Corpses are depicted. Battles and fist-fights are portrayed, some as practice, but most between superheroes-in-training and powerful enemies such as rock monsters, a golden giant and a villainess with super powers. A character is hit in the groin. Large machines and supernatural beings engage in conflict. Death, injury and property damage result from beating, stomping, hitting, crushing, explosion and turning things into dust. Weapon use includes guns, swords and supernatural powers. A character intent on getting gold swallows jewelry and rips teeth out of a living person (shown in silhouette). Bullying and teasing are depicted and discussed: incidents include knocking out a tooth, threatening to snap a wrist, head butting that results in unconsciousness, and using cell phones to share inappropriate pictures. A character under house arrest breaks the conditions of his parole and tampers with his electronic ankle bracelet. Parents argue with each other and their teenaged children. After trespassing, a character sets off an explosive that causes a landslide. A teen is worries that a friend is trying to commit suicide, and another is concerned about his ailing mother. A character says she loves killing and utters multiple death threats, hits and scratches another character and drops a bound teen off of a boat dock.

Sexual Content: A teen girl undresses (she is seen in her bra) and dives into a lake. Rude comments are made about milking a cow that turns out to be a bull. Some mild sexual innuendo is heard. Characters embracing. A teen mentions having complicated relationships that her parents can’t understand, and her friends ask if she is having “girlfriend” issues. A character vomits off-screen. A villainess is seen in scanty costumes. A urine sample is mentioned.

Profanity: Infrequent use of mild and moderate profanities, scatological slang, crude language and terms of deity.

Alcohol / Drug Use: A teenaged character drinks beer. Prescription medication is given to an ailing woman.

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Power Rangers (2017) Parents' Guide

While this movie proudly displays an ethnically divergent cast, what stereotypes are still maintained? Who is the leader? Who is the weakest? Are these portrayals similar to those in other films?

Zordon acts as a mentor to the new Power Rangers. Why does he fear they are not worthy of their mission? What rules does he give them about using their new abilities? What history does he have with the villainess Rita? What ulterior motives might he be carrying from the past? What things do these characters have to learn in order to defeat evil? Which of these lessons might have application in real life?

News About "Power Rangers (2017)"

This movie is based on characters from the Power Rangers franchise.

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Power Rangers (2017) movie is June 27, 2017. Here are some details…

Home Video Notes: Power Rangers
Release Date: 27 June 2017
Power Rangers releases to home video (Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD) with the following extras:
- Audio Commentary with Director Dean Israelite and Writer John Gatins
- Deleted/Alternate/Extended Scenes
- Outtakes
- “The Power of the Present” Documentary
- Theatrical Trailer with Audio Commentary by Director Dean Israelite

Related home video titles:

This movie borrows much from other films. For instance: An unlikely friendship develops between students in another detention class in the R-rated classic The Breakfast Club. Aliens build another place of power out of crystals in Superman. The Transformers features similar visual effects. And rock monsters play a role in Galaxy Quest.

Past attempts to bring these characters to the big screen can be seen in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.