Looking for a movie to watch with your kids? Skip Snow White or Finding Nemo — watch a nice, R-rated horror movie or thriller instead.
It might sound ridiculous, but a new study by the British Medical Journal reveals that on average, children's animated movies actually contain more murders of "important characters" than in movies intended for their parents.
By analyzing 45 high-grossing children's movies and 90 movies for adults, the study concluded that "risk of on-screen murder of important characters was higher in children's animated films," from the death of Nemo's mother at the beginning of Finding Nemo to the grisly end of Snow White's evil stepmother, who was "struck by lightning, forced off a cliff, and crushed by a boulder."
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"We conclude that children's animated films, rather than being innocuous alternatives to the gore and carnage typical of American films, are in fact hotbeds of murder and mayhem," says the study. "Parents might consider watching such movies alongside their children, in the event that the children need emotional support after witnessing the inevitable horrors that will unfold."
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