Bubble Boy

MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA)

for language and crude sexual humor.

Reviewed by: Douglas Downs
STAFF WRITER

Moral Rating:	Extremely Offensive
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience:	Teen to Adult
Genre:	Comedy, Romance
Length:	1 hr. 24 min.
Year of Release:	2001
USA Release:	August 24, 2001 (wide)

Relevant Issues

Featuring	Jake Gyllenhaal Marley Shelton Swoosie Kurtz Geoffrey Arend John Carroll Lynch
Director	Blair Hayes
Producer	Beau Flynn
Distributor	Touchstone Pictures, a division of Walt Disney Studios

Here’s what the distributor says about their film: “This is the story of a boy named Jimmy Livingston who was born without an immune system. Because of this, he is forced to live in a bubble dome in his bedroom, which has led students at a local high school to nickname him Bubble Boy. But when Jimmy discovers that a new girl, Chloe, has moved in next door, he is immediately taken with her beauty. They immediately become fast friends, much to Mrs. Livingston's jealousy. One day, Chloe announces that she is leaving for Niagara Falls to marry Mark, a man who always ridiculed Jimmy. And so Jimmy builds a mobile bubble suit and sneaks off into the night, determined to stop the wedding before it is too late.”

This movie was horribubble (sorry for the play on words). Did anyone catch the symbolism of the bubble the boy has created? It symbolized the world he was trapped in and could never escape from. This film made fun of Christians and Jews. The christians were portrayed as a Brady Bunch-like cult. They sang songs and danced and talked about their false gods. When the “bubble boy” finds out that they are a cult, he gets rejected by the seemingly godly folk. They put him down. The Bubble boy’s life is pure and utter misery. Obviously Satan was all over this movie. The bubble boy’s mother made cookies in the shape of crosses and had her own twisted religion. This movie makes Christians look dumb. I was sorry that I saw this offensive filth. I’d rather eat soap bubbles than sit through this one again. don’t see this one. It just might burst your happy bubbles. It sure did depress me. It put me in a sad bubble.
My Ratings: [Extremely Offensive / 1]

Corky, age 13

This was an awful movie. It had a plot that seemed to be aimed at Pre-K level and jokes that weren’t appropriate for adults. The Christian woman in this film is mean and phony, hypocritical. Christianity is made out to be stupid and dumb. When a boy gets an erection from a very sexy girl he telephones his mom asking what he should do and she tells him that her father always says the pledge of allegiance over and over till it goes away. A married woman has a sexual past with a motorcycle man and she calls her neighbor a whore quite often. Lots of sexual jokes pop up and a midget man puts his hand on a woman’s breast. There is also gambling and drinking. Around a dozen cuss words. Do you really want your kids to watch this?
My Ratings: [Extremely Offensive / 1]

KE, age 14

Movie Critics

…anti-Christian, politically-correct, hedonistic satire about a sick boy trapped in a plastic bubble who escapes his Christian fundamentalist, patriotic, Republican mother to hook up with his true love. Filled with obscene behavior and blatant sexual suggestiveness, BUBBLE BOY laughs at all things righteous and extols all things perverse…

Dr. Ted Baehr, Movieguide

…There are themes and subplots here that can be considered insulting and offensive by many ethnic and religious groups…

Kids-in-Mind

…Various instances of sexual material, humor and related dialogue are present, including verbal and visual references to a young man’s erections…

ScreenIt!

…Bubble Boy has nothing but mean things to say about everyone. And I mean, everyone…

Cynthia Fuchs, PopMatters