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"THE LAST SONG" (2010) (Miley Cyrus, Greg Kinnear) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Mild Minor Extreme Moderate None Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Heavy None Minor None Minor Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Moderate None Extreme Extreme Mild QUICK TAKE: Drama: Upset over being forced to spend the summer with her estranged dad at his beach home, a surly teen gets a new outlook on life when she meets and eventually falls for a local boy and must then contend with an unexpected crisis. PLOT: Ronnie Miller (MILEY CYRUS) is a surly teenage girl from New York who isn't happy that her mom, Kim (KELLY PRESTON), has arranged for her and her younger brother, Jonah (BOBBY COLEMAN), to spend the summer with their father, Steve (GREG KINNEAR), at his Georgia beachfront home where he's crafting a new stained glass window for the local church that recently burned down. Ronnie's attitude stems from blaming her parents' past divorce on him, and thus hasn't touched a piano since then, despite and because of being a gifted pianist just like her dad. In fact, despite being accepted to attend Julliard, she'd rather live an aimless life and sulk, exacerbated by the fact that she'll likely be friendless for the entire summer. A local teen, Blaze (CARLY CHAIKIN), does partially befriend Ronnie, but her boyfriend Marcus (NICK LASHAWAY) is a jerk. Then there's Will Blakelee (LIAM HEMSWORTH), another local teen who's something of a jack of all trades. When not working in an auto shop with his friend Scott (HALLOCK BEALS), he's playing volleyball or serving as a volunteer at the nearby aquarium. Ronnie initially wants nothing to do with him, but the fact that he's taken an interest in protecting a nest of sea turtle eggs -- just like her -- eventually wears down her defenses. The two quickly become friends and then more. Yet, Ronnie must then contend not only with facts and rumors about him, but also an unexpected family crisis that forces her to grow up. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? If they're fans of Miley Cyrus it's a good likelihood that they will be interested in it. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For thematic material, some violence, sensuality and mild language. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: MILEY CYRUS plays a surly teen from New York who's decidedly less than happy to be dropped off with her younger brother to spend the summer with their father who she blames for their parents' divorce several years ago. A talented pianist, she gave that up after the family split and seems determined to throw away her gift just out of spite (and was caught shoplifting in the past). She eventually changes her ways, however, when she meets and then finally falls head over heels in love with Will, although she has various issues with him at times that threaten to undermine their relationship. Faced with a troubling revelation, she's eventually forced to grow up and see herself and her life in a new light. GREG KINNEAR plays her even-keeled dad, a composer who doesn't try to impose his will on her, but wants the best for her. He also feels guilty about supposedly being the cause of his favorite church burning down (he was dragged out unconscious and doesn't remember anything) and thus is crafting its new stained glass window, and is harboring a secret that will shake everyone to their core. BOBBY COLEMAN plays Ronnie's younger son, a somewhat precocious kid who enjoys spending the summer with his dad but isn't happy that his older sister seems determined to ruin the season for all of them. LIAM HEMSWORTH plays a local rich kid, auto mechanic, aquarium volunteer and volleyball player who immediately sets his sights on winning Ronnie's heart and eventually does, although he must contend with the ups and downs of that new relationship and romance. He ends up fighting Marcus when the latter crashes a wedding and acts like a jerk toward various people. HALLOCK BEALS plays his friend who's been hiding a hurtful secret regarding someone else in town. KELLY PRESTON plays the kids' mom and Steve's ex-wife who drops Ronnie and Jonah off at their dad's for the summer. She tries to be supportive of both of them, but especially Ronnie. NICK LASHAWAY plays a local jerk who treats his girlfriend Blaze badly and isn't nice to Ronnie or Will either, eventually picking an ill-chosen fight with the latter. CARLY CHAIKIN plays a young woman who initially befriends Ronnie, but then tries to sabotage her (making it appear she's shoplifting) when she incorrectly believes Ronnie is after her boyfriend (whose abuse she must put up with). CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this PG-rated drama. Profanity consists of a handful of minor expletives, while some colorful phrases are also uttered. A teenage couple does some kissing in various scenes (but nothing too steamy), while bikini clad young women and shirtless guys are seen in several beach-related scenes. There's a brief fight (ending with a bloody nose) and brief shoving. Alcohol is present in several scenes, while several characters sport varying degrees of bad attitudes. All sorts of potentially imitative behavior is present, with even greater amounts of tense family material (including illness, death, divorce and such). Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's some of that from a point of view shot through binoculars, and then a little bit later in a regular camera shot (nothing too bad). When Will and Ronnie first kiss, the camera spins around them. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Marcus wants Ronnie to get him and Blaze more beer, but Ronnie says she doesn't drink, prompting Blaze to say she'll get it. Steve has wine with a meal. Will's parents have wine with a meal. People have champagne at a wedding reception where Marcus throws a glass of that or wine on Ronnie and Blaze. Scott admits to having been drinking behind a church in the past. BLOOD/GORE Marcus has a bloody nose after Will beats him up (following Marcus crashing a wedding reception and offending others). DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE We hear that Ronnie was arrested for shoplifting in New York. Ronnie isn't happy to see her dad and doesn't hug him upon arriving at his house. Will accidentally bumps into Ronnie, knocking her down on the beach and spilling her milkshake, prompting some nearby girls to laugh. Jonah playfully extorts money from his sister in exchange for not telling their dad where she is. Marcus acts like a jerk toward both Will and Scott. Marcus invades Ronnie's personal space and even puts his arm around her (much to her dismay) when Blaze (his girlfriend) walks off for a moment. Ronnie tells her dad point blank that she doesn't want to be there at his house for the summer with him. Thinking Ronnie is interested in Marcus, Blaze covertly puts a store item into her purse, thus making it look like she's shoplifting when she leaves the store. Will's ex-girlfriend purposefully tries to undermine Ronnie's new relationship with Will, saying he follows the same game plan with all of them. Ronnie believes that and is then mad at Will. Will's snooty mother looks down on and doesn't think highly of Ronnie upon first meeting her, or later when they have her over for dinner. Seeing Steve join Ronnie to watch a volleyball game, Will's ex-girlfriend sarcastically comments about the shoplifter and arsonist being there. SPOILER ALERT: We hear that Scott was really responsible for the church fire (by accident), but has let Steve take the blame (and Will doesn't come clean either with knowledge of that, although he wasn't there). Ronnie comes across Blaze and Marcus arguing, with him telling her that he's not running "a damn homeless shelter" while breaking up with her (and thus kicking her out of his place). Marcus arrives at a wedding reception to tell Blaze (who's working there) that they're done only when he says they're done (despite him being the one who seemed to have dumped her earlier). When Ronnie tries to intervene, Marcus throws wine or something similar on both young women. Will then intervenes, Marcus grabs a tire iron and comes at him, and Will then beats him up, first punching him and then pummeling him on the ground, bloodying his nose. FRIGHTENING SCENES We see a brief flashback (no tense music) of a fire in a church, with firefighters dragging an unconscious person (who turns out to be Steve) out. There's a tiny bit of playfully done suspenseful music when a raccoon rears up and frightens Ronnie (played for light humor). Marcus arrives at a wedding reception to tell Blaze (who's working there) that they're done only when he says they're done (despite him being the one who seemed to have dumped her earlier). When Ronnie tries to intervene, Marcus throws wine or something similar on both young women. Will then intervenes, Marcus grabs a tire iron and comes at him, and Will then beats him up, first punching him and then pummeling him on the ground, bloodying his nose. Ronnie sees her father collapse out on the beach and rushes to him. We next see him in the hospital and the news isn't good, while Jonah is upset that he doesn't know what's going on. GUNS/WEAPONS None. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "That was awesome," "Suck," "Brat," "Shut up," "Pissed at men syndrome" (what Jonah thinks PMS stands for), "You're so butch" (said to a guy), "Pissed," "Are we done?" "She's losing it, big time," "Seriously, it's creepy," "Oh crap," "Mom's gonna flip out," "Dude," "Bitch," "You're freaking out my little brother," "This is lame," "Get the hell out of here," "I'm not running a damn homeless shelter," "Crappy," "Totally a jerk," "Jeez" and "Bro." We see chunks and other such impact damage in Steve's piano (from Ronnie bashing it with a baseball bat sometime in the past - not seen). Jonah playfully extorts money from his sister in exchange for not telling their dad where she is. Ronnie wears a midriff-revealing top. Marcus and another guy juggle flaming balls (wearing gloves). Marcus and another guy have tattoos, and we later see that Blaze has one as well. Ronnie has a small stud in one nostril. Thinking Ronnie is interested in Marcus, Blaze covertly puts a store item into her purse, thus making it look like she's shoplifting when she leaves the store. Jonah crawls through the sand while pretending to be a soldier bringing rations to Will and Ronnie out on the beach. Will playfully pulls Ronnie down into a large aquarium tank. Ronnie wears a midriff-revealing top. Will carves Ronnie's name in a tree. Will and Ronnie get into a playful mud-flinging battle. We see miscellaneous people with tattoos. During a montage of trying on dresses, Ronnie stuffs something down the front of one to fill out the bust in that. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) There's a tiny bit of playfully done suspenseful music when a raccoon rears up and frightens Ronnie (played for light humor). MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 2 craps, 2 damns, 1 hell, 2 uses of "Oh my God" and 1 use of "For God's sakes." SEX/NUDITY We see young women in bikinis and various shirtless guys, including Will, at the beach. We see young women in bikinis at a carnival. We see young women in bikinis and shirtless guys at the beach. Will plants a kiss on Ronnie and they then make out (clothed and standing). We then see a montage of them playing, including in the water where they do some more kissing. Ronnie shows some cleavage. A classic style statue shows a bare breast. After getting into a playful, mud-flinging battle, Will and Ronnie hose each other off with a garden hose (he's shirtless, she's in a tight tank-top that partially shows her bra beneath that). Will and Ronnie do some brief kissing. Ronnie shows some cleavage while leaning over. Will's ex-girlfriend shows cleavage. We see Will, Scott and other shirtless volleyball players, while some bikini-clad young women are spectators. During a montage of trying on dresses, Ronnie stuffs something down the front of one to fill out the bust in that. Ronnie and Will passionately kiss while dancing at a wedding reception. Ronnie shows some cleavage while leaning over. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Ronnie isn't happy to see her dad and doesn't hug him upon arriving at his house. Steve and Kim talk about Ronnie not being the same since they divorced a number of years ago. We hear that Ronnie was 11-years-old when her parents divorced and her dad left. Jonah asks his sister if she can be nicer to their dad as they don't want to lose him again. Ronnie tells her dad point blank that she doesn't want to be there at his house for the summer with him. With evidence making it seem true, Steve isn't happy to hear that Ronnie apparently shoplifted (she didn't), and she isn't happy that he doesn't believe her. Jonah isn't happy either, saying to let her go (as she starts to pack). We hear that Will's brother died last year in a car accident where he was killed instantly when his mom (the driver) turned around to reprimand him and Will for goofing off in the backseat. Ronnie sees her father collapse out on the beach and rushes to him. We next see him in the hospital and the news isn't good, while Jonah is upset that he doesn't know what's going on. SPOILER ALERT: We learn that Steve has terminal cancer, and that puts a great deal of stress on his kids for the rest of the film (Ronnie is upset he didn't tell them but becomes his caregiver, while Jonah feels pressured to finish the stained glass window before his father dies). Jonah says a tearful good-bye to his dad when he leaves with him mom. Ronnie reads letters from her dad that she had originally returned to him unopened. SPOILER ALERT: From a distance, Ronnie sees a beverage spilled by her father's now limp hand, meaning he's died. We then see part of the funeral, as well as her later packing up his house. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Divorce and its effect on all family members, particularly kids. Cancer. Dealing with family tragedy. Teens with surly and other bad attitudes. We hear that Ronnie was arrested for shoplifting in New York. Ronnie being a vegetarian. The comment that love is not always enough to keep a marriage intact. Ronnie's comment that pushing people away is what she does. Being in abusive relationships (like Blaze is with Marcus). VIOLENCE We see chunks and other such impact damage in Steve's piano (from Ronnie bashing it with a baseball bat sometime in the past - not seen). Marcus arrives at a wedding reception to tell Blaze (who's working there) that they're done only when he says they're done (despite him being the one who seemed to have dumped her earlier). When Ronnie tries to intervene, Marcus throws wine or something similar on both young women. Will then intervenes, Marcus grabs a tire iron and comes at him, and Will then beats him up, first punching him and then pummeling him on the ground, bloodying his nose. We hear what sounds like Jonah breaking things (we think on purpose, out of frustration), but then learn it's just by accident as he's trying to reach things. Ronnie repeatedly shoves Will backwards while upset and breaking up with him. Reviewed March 25, 2010 / Posted March 31, 2010

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