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That's not the case today, where few kids know more than the sanitized stories from the Old Testament and the usual New Testament verses on salvation and God's love. When impressionable kids watch a movie like Yu-Gi-Oh! they may find it more compelling than most Sunday school lessons.

Lintz and Donnerstein, psychologists at the University of Wisconsin, conducted studies of the ways movies influence our attitudes and beliefs, and how those attitudes and beliefs spill over into actions. They found that repeated exposure to a film would eventually habituate the viewer to what was being shown. After a while, it became part of that person's worldview. Their focus was on sexually violent films, but the principle applies to other genres as well.

It's fair to say that most kids—especially boys—will want to see Yu-Gi-Oh! Many will have a great time and jabber on and on about it with their friends. After the advance screening, my wife and I interviewed kids and found that most of them were wildly enthusiastic; some even brought their playing cards to the movie. Like Harry Potter, Shrek and Spider-Man, it will become part of the currency of grade and middle school conversation. And once it's out on video (possibly in time for Christmas), kids will end up watching it over and over again.

When a movie like Yu-Gi-Oh! becomes, like Harry Potter, a key cultural reference point, it's a good idea to see it with your kids and talk about it—if you choose to see it at all. If you do choose to see it, do a lot of listening, and ask your children focused questions.

Talk About It

1. Why do Yugi's cards have such power? Do you believe that power is real, or just pretend?
   
   
2. Does Yugi believe in the Christian God, or does he believe in many gods? Are any of those gods good? Which one(s)? How do they show their goodness? Which one(s) are bad? How do they show their badness?
   
   
3. What if Yugi's world was real? What would it be like to live in a world ruled by gods and magic? How does that compare to our real world—and the supernatural forces that are real? (See Ephesians 6:10-18)
   
   
4. How could a small, not-too-popular kid get respect without having Yugi's powers?

The Family Corner

Yu-Gi-Oh! is rated PG for cartoon violence and scary monsters, and its occult themes may be of concern to some parents. (See more details in the review above.)

Photos © Copyright Warner Bros

In what some critics are describing as a "feature-length marketing ploy," the popular Japanese comic book, cartoon, and playing card game Yi-Gi-Oh! hit screens last week. Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie is about a magical card game that transforms the players into supernatural heroes in a clash of good versus evil.

Stefan Ulstein (Christianity Today Movies) says, "When a movie like Yu-Gi-Oh! becomes, like Harry Potter, a key cultural reference point, it's a good idea to see it with your kids and talk about it—if you choose to see it at all. If you do choose to see it, do a lot of listening, and ask your children focused questions. Most kids will see Yu-Gi-Oh! as fantasy and have no trouble separating it from reality, but some may get lost in a world that, frankly, is more than a mere nod to the occult."

David DiCerto (Catholic News Service) translates the title as "Waste of Time." "Yu-Gi-Oh! is a dizzying, disjointed mess. The story is nonexistent and the Japanese animation is sketchy at best. Yu-Gi-Oh! makes those annoying Pokémon films seem almost Oscar-worthy."

"Clearly, the point here is to sell product," says Rhonda Handlon (Plugged In). "And the makers of Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie seem to have only one goal: to serve the greater good of the Yu-Gi-Oh! empire. As for its dark spiritual side, TV series writer/producer Mike Pecoriello claims that 'despite all the magic and supernatural forces involved in the movie, the power of friendship proves to be stronger than anything else, and in the end, that bond will always prevail.' In reality, friendship takes a thematic back seat to big bangs and unctuous spells."

"My recommendation," writes Douglas Downs (Christian Spotlight), "is to skip this one, and soon Yu-Gi-Oh! fever will pass."

A whopping 98 percent of the mainstream critics reviewing the film went to work trying to steer the masses away from it. Nevertheless, the film scored fourth place at the box office this week.

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