Parents' Guide to

Screenagers

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Docu about devices is relevant, if not revolutionary.

Movie NR 2016 67 minutes
Screenagers Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 9+

Based on 30 parent reviews

age 2+

This is an awful film teaching unhealthy and unrealistic attitudes

This "documentary" teaches parents to ignore their children's views and to assume the worst of their children and technology. The scene were the parents sent their adult son to "internet rehab" really ticked me off. Technology is an essential part of our children's lives, and you cannot control every aspect of it forever. The parents in this movie are unreasonable, unrealistic and unhealthy. They teach that it is fine to create rules for your children without their opinion, and to abruptly change them without any consideration of the child's opinion. I'm not saying kids should have all of the power, I'm just saying that these children were old enough to have some control over their lives.
age 10+

Terrible!

This movie was scripted and had no positive parts of smartphones. I seem to wonder why the people in the movie were kids that were being payed or 30 and up adults. Also I saw a kid saying that she will show this movie to HER KIDS.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (30 ):
Kids say (30 ):

There's no doubt that Screenagers is relevant for parents and their tween/teenage kids. But while it provides an interesting peek into a parent's struggle to manage her child's screen time and arrive at some sort of sane approach to the digital age, it also feels somewhat dated, devoting a significant chunk of time to the well-covered topic of violent video games and the challenges of parenting in a world where they're easily accessible. Where's the necessary in-depth discussion of more current apps, especially those that have made headlines for very disturbing reasons, like Kik Messenger, Yik Yak, and Snapchat?

As for everything else, the advice is helpful, if not revolutionary (and somewhat alarmist in tone). And it's definitely validating for parent viewers to see and hear other families discussing the daily struggle that plagues so many. Perhaps we aren't so alone after all.

Movie Details

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