Midnight Sun, Happy Death Day and More in This Week's MPAA Ratings Bulletin

By Chris Kavan - 07/26/17 at 10:58 AM CT

The dog days of summer have hit - and, I may be mixing up my idioms, but I guess that's making people dog tired. The MPAA Ratings Board didn't exactly let up this week, but there is a severe lack of wide releases to talk about. We have a movie that puts a horror twist on the classic Groundhog Day "living the same day over and over" idea and remake of Japanese film that follows a summer romance between a young couple - one of whom suffers from severe Xeroderma pigmentosum (that is, severe reaction to UV light - aka sunlight). Nothing that exactly screams "must see" but, you know, I work with what I get.

MPAA Official Logo

Horror is really a grab-bag of whatever it can find, which is why it is always a blessing when a truly original idea comes along. So what if Happy Death Day is essentially Groundhog Day with a horror/mystery twist? No one else has done it yet, so it's at least trying. In this case, college student Tree Gelbman is having a birthday - a birthday that ends in murder. But, surprisingly the young woman wakes up to the same day - and is again murdered (in a different way). But, surprisingly the young woman wakes up to the same day - and is again murdered (in a different way). But, surprisingly the young woman wakes up to the same day - and is again murdered (in a different way). But, surprisingly the young woman wakes up to the same day - and is again murdered (in a different way). Okay - that went on far too long, I'm sure you get the picture. In any case, Tree (what a name, amite?) must figure out who is ultimately responsible for her death(s) if she wants to break the cycles and probably live to tell the tale. Jessica Rothe plays the victim, and she's surrounded by other young, pretty people I have hardly heard of: Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, Rachel Matthews, Charles Aitken and Phi Vu to name a few - anyone of whom could be the murderer! And it comes out on Friday the 13th (in October no less). This is exactly the kind of film the young crowd will love for Halloween - and I will ignore until I can watch it in my home to mercilessly mock it (or maybe it will be good... but I doubt it). Rated PG-13 for violence/terror, crude sexual content, language, some drug material and partial nudity.

On the other side of things, the younger crowd (well the female half most likely) will probably also fawn over Midnight Sun. A remake of the Japanese film of the same name, the film follows Katie (Bella Thorne) a young woman who has been sheltered her entire life thanks to a disease that make even the smallest amount of sunlight a potential death sentence. Enter Charlie (Patrick Schwarzenegger), who meets her by chance and sparks a summer romance. Rob Riggle, Quinn Shephard, Ken Tremblett and Jenn Griffin round out the cast. Even since The Fault in Our Stars, filmmakers have tried to emulate the tragic teen romance angle, but have fallen short (The Space Between Us and If I Stay being two prime examples). Midnight Sun might be able to break the losing streak, but it's going to really have to appeal to fickle teenagers to do so. Rated PG-13 for some teen partying and sensuality.

Those are the big two - sorry I didn't have any more this time, but the full MPAA Ratings Bulletin can be found below:

DIRT

Rated PG-13 for some language and thematic elements.


GENERATIONAL SINS

PG-13 for mature thematic material involving violence and alcohol abuse, and for some language and suggestive content.


GOOD TIME

Rated R for language throughout, violence, drug use and sexual content.


HAPPY DEATH DAY

Rated PG-13 for violence/terror, crude sexual content, language, some drug material and partial nudity.


MIDNIGHT SUN

Rated PG-13 for some teen partying and sensuality.


THE STRAY

Rated PG for thematic elements including a perilous situation.


TRUE TO THE GAME

Rated R for violence, drug content, sexuality/nudity and pervasive language.


WE LOVE YOU, SALLY CARMICHAEL!

Rated PG for mild thematic elements and language.


WHAT HAPPENED IN VEGAS

Rated R for some language.


WHOSE STREETS?

Rated R for language throughout.

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