Note: This post was originally published July 2, 2001.
From Jim Metrock – Channel One can’t have it both ways. They run some anti-drug public service announcements and urge schools not to end their contract because these PSAs are so important to children, yet Channel One continues to advertise and promote movies that send the worse value messages to students, especially about drugs and alcohol.
The latest punch in the stomach to kids is the promotion of the PG13 movie “crazy/beautiful.” In May, Channel One allowed the main star of this trashy movie to be a guest host on their in-school show. Once again violating their “news standards”, the regular Channel One anchor gives Kirsten Durst an opportunity to plug her movie to the captive audience of school kids.
Guess what the top story on Channelone.com during the weekend of the premiere of “crazy/beautiful” was? Did you think it would be a news story? Dick Cheney getting a pacemaker? No, Channel One isn’t about the news so it wasn’t shocking when their top story was an interview with Kirsten Durst pushing her first “sexual movie”.
“crazy/beautiful” was intended to be a “R” rated film. The studio was able to cut just enough of the sexual content and vulgar language to land a PG13 rating. According to an article in Time magazine, the studio made the changes because of public comments by Sen. Joe Lieberman and others about the movie industry.
Screenit.com rates the “drug and alcohol” content of the movie as “Heavy.” The amount of sex and nudity was also rated “Heavy.”
Channel One executives routinely dump these pro-drug movies on our kids. What Channel One is doing to our nation’s schoolchildren is sheer madness. Somebody ought to do something about it. No school that is serious about fighting drug abuse among students, should have Channel One in their classrooms. The officials at ONDCP and the staff at MADD ought to be held accountable for their decisions to partner with Channel One. These organizations can no longer claim they were unaware of what Channel One was doing to its youthful audience.
Message from this movie: All cool teens do drugs, have sex, and drink alcohol all the time. This pathetic movie met Channel One standards, but not parents. Read the Channel One interview with the star of this sleazy movie at www.channelone.com. It’s there top story for the last three days.
Here is the interview. Notice that the Channel One writer calls the movie a “new HIT movie” even though the interview article was posted before the movie premiere. The Channel One anchor who was on with Kirsten Dunst when she was a guest host encouraged the audience of children to see the movie.
Kirsten Dunst, teen star of the new hit movie “Crazy/Beautiful,” took time out of her busy schedule to give ChannelOne.com this exclusive interview. Here’s what this young star had to say:
Channel One News: How do you feel about being perceived as a “teen actor?”
Kirsten Dunst: Well I am a teen, so it doesn’t upset me that I’m seen as a teen actor. I’m 19 and I have more adult roles coming up pretty soon, but I am a teen so I would call myself a teen actor.
C1N: To what would you credit the success of this current boom of teen movies?
KD: Teens are the people who go see movies so that’s why I think most of the films are geared toward teens. I know my friends and I always go to the movies. When you don’t have a lot to do, what do you do? You go to the movies. That’s the market, that’s where studios make most of their money. That’s why there’s such a teen explosion.
C1N: How have you been able to keep up your success going from being a child actor to more adult roles?
KD: You just have to stay consistent in your work and always do the best job you can. People see that and even if your movie doesn’t do as well or even if it does great, people always know that you’ll deliver. It doesn’t matter what age you are or what part you play. I always want to stay diversified and for people to respect me for my work.
C1N; What are the unique challenges presented by playing more ditzy characters like in “Dick” or “Bring It On”?
KD: I wasn’t a ditz in “Bring It On,” I didn’t think she was a ditz! She was a driven woman, she wasn’t stupid. She pulled that squad together. But “Dick,” that was so much fun to play a ditz. I had been wanting to do that for a while, ever since I saw “Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion.” I loved those roles. “Clueless,” when I was younger, was one of my favorite films. It’s a challenge just because you have to have so much energy all the time. You’re talking your head off. And comedy is hard to do, comedic timing is not an easy thing and you always have to be on your toes. You have to be ready to improvise which is so much fun for me.
C1N: Since your acting career started so early, how would you say your career has made your life different from the life of the average teenager?
KD: My life is different because I’ve had to struggle with school and working at the same time, so I’ve had to keep that in balance. I did go to a high school, so sometimes I’d be there, sometimes I’d be on set but I’d have a tutor. That was the most difficult thing. But I have really good friends who are in this industry who are just my good girlfriends who support me all the way. I think that’s the most important thing, if you’re balancing school and work, to just have a great support team behind you. You get carried away in all this otherwise. You’re away at a film set and those people really won’t be there for you in the next month or the next two months and so it’s important to have good girls around you, or good guys.
C1N: If you had the chance to do it again, would you do the same thing?
KD: Oh yes, I would. There’s no doubt in my mind. I wouldn’t change a thing about my life. I have no regrets. Anything that I haven’t liked, it’s just been a lesson.
From news reports about Channel One-promoted Crazy/Beautiful:
Director Calls His Movie “crazy/beautiful” a “Sexual Movie” Why Did Channel One Plug This Movie to Kids As Young As 11?
“Dunst Kills Nude Scene – Hollywood star Kirsten Dunst has banned a two minute nude scene from her new movie. The 19-year-old demanded changes from the film Crazy/Beautiful after seeing it with her mother. Director John Stockwell said, “I think her mom was a bit taken aback. Kirsten felt a little uncomfortable about too much attention on the nudity in her first sexual movie.” He cut the scene in half, erasing all traces of nudity, and finally got Dunst’s approval. The actress, who at 13 had to kiss Brad Pitt in Interview With A Vampire, is currently filming Spider-Man opposite Tobey Maguire.”
