SCREEN IT! PARENTAL REVIEW: GLITTER

"GLITTER"
(2001) (Mariah Carey, Max Beesley) (PG-13)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Moderate	None	Extreme	Mild	Heavy

Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Mild	None	Mild	Mild	*Moderate

Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Heavy	Mild	Moderate	Moderate	Heavy

QUICK TAKE:: Drama: A young woman and those in her life must deal with the consequences of her becoming a successful singer in the early 1980s.

PLOT:

It's the early '80s in New York City and Billie Frank (MARIAH CAREY) is a young woman trying to break onto the music scene. Having survived a rough childhood where her alcoholic, blues singing mother, Lillian (VALARIE PETTIFORD), finally had to put her in an orphanage, Billie now sings backup, along with her two best friends, Louise (DA BRAT) and Roxanne (TIA TEXADA), for an untalented singer managed by Timothy Walker (TERRENCE HOWARD).

When they arrive in a club where local deejay Julian "Dice" Black (MAX BEESLEY) spins the tunes, he immediately notes Billie's vocal talent and agrees to purchase her contract from Timothy. Soon, Dice and Billie not only have a contract with a major recording label, but also a number one song and a budding romantic relationship between them.

Yet, as Billie progressively becomes a bigger star, Dice finds himself being pushed into the background. From that point on, the two lovers try to cope with that, her growing fame, and the results that it has on her and those in her life.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: If they're fans of Carey, they probably will, but it's questionable how many other kids will want to see this film.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For some sensuality, language and brief violence.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: MARIAH CAREY plays a young woman who overcomes maternal abandonment as a child to become a singing sensation. She eventually moves in with Dice after sleeping with him on their first date and uses some profanity.
MAX BEESLEY plays a deejay who produces Billie's music and becomes her lover (sleeping with her on their first date), but becomes jealous of her fame and his fading into the background. He also drinks, smokes and uses some profanity.
DA BRAT and TIA TEXADA play Billie's best friends since childhood and use some profanity.
TERRENCE HOWARD plays another producer who becomes troublesome and then dangerous when Dice doesn't pay his debt to him.; MAX BEESLEY plays a deejay who produces Billie's music and becomes her lover (sleeping with her on their first date), but becomes jealous of her fame and his fading into the background. He also drinks, smokes and uses some profanity.
DA BRAT and TIA TEXADA play Billie's best friends since childhood and use some profanity.
TERRENCE HOWARD plays another producer who becomes troublesome and then dangerous when Dice doesn't pay his debt to him.; DA BRAT and TIA TEXADA play Billie's best friends since childhood and use some profanity.
TERRENCE HOWARD plays another producer who becomes troublesome and then dangerous when Dice doesn't pay his debt to him.; TERRENCE HOWARD plays another producer who becomes troublesome and then dangerous when Dice doesn't pay his debt to him.

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:

Here's a quick look at the content found in this drama that's been rated PG-13. Near the end of the film, a person is shot and killed (with no blood - we only hear the shot), while one person briefly attacks another who earlier acted menacingly toward his girlfriend. Those scenes could be unsettling or suspenseful to some viewers, and the participants and others have varying degrees of bad attitudes.

A couple has sex on their first date (some undressing and a man lying atop a woman is partially seen through some panes of glass that distort their images and we see them afterwards in bed under the sheets), while various female characters are seen in various revealing attire (with a great deal of cleavage at times). Some non-explicit, sexually related comments are also present (including in some songs).

Profanity consists of an incomplete "f" word, along with at least 5 "s" words and a handful of other expletives and colorful phrases. Meanwhile, various characters drink and/or smoke, and some tense family moments include a mother sending (or being forced to send) her young daughter off to an orphanage.

If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may want to see it, we suggest that you more closely examine our detailed content listings for more specific examples of what's present and/or occurs in it.

For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, some of that occurs in strobe-like fashion in an early scene set in a club, while those wishing to avoid the recent World Trade Center tragedy should note that several images of the WTC Twin Towers are readily visible during the film.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: Billie's mom (in the past) drinks and is noted as being drunk while performing in a club (where others also drink).
After Timothy tells Dice that he wants $100,000 for Billie's contract, Dice tells Timothy that he must be "smoking dust," causing Timothy to reply "yeah" and that it's expensive.
Dice has a drink.
Dice and Billie have drinks.
Various people celebrate Billie signing to a label by having some champagne.
Some people have wine in a restaurant, where Billie and Dice have champagne.
Some people have drinks after a show, including Dice and Roxanne, and we then see Dice drinking some more (with Billie commenting he's drunk after he insults others).
A few people drink backstage at a concert.

BLOOD/GORE: None.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: An untalented lead singer states that her backup singers don't matter (when posing for a photo).
A music video director wants to see more skin on Billie's part while making a video of her latest song.
Timothy becomes more troublesome and dangerous when Dice is delinquent in paying off a verbal agreement they had.
Dice develops a bad attitude when Billie progressively eclipses his success. In one scene, he becomes jealous of another singer's attraction to Billie and then makes her leave a party and insults her, Roxanne and Louise.
A person shoots and kills another person.

FRIGHTENING SCENES: Billie's mom rushes her out of the house (in the past) when it's on fire.
Billie discovers Timothy in her place and he acts menacingly toward her (briefly grabbing her by the face), saying he doesn't want to hurt her, but will.
A man shoots another man in the chest, killing him (we only see the gun placement and hear the sound of the shot, but don't see it).

GUNS/WEAPONS: Handgun: Used by one person to shoot and kill another.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: Phrases: An incomplete "What the f*ck," "Bullsh*t," "Bitch," "Hell, yeah," "Jerk," "Don't give me your crap," "Slutty," "T*tsy the porn star," "Don't get your panties in a bunch" (said by a woman to Dice), "Broads" (women), "What the hell is that?" "Fat ass," "Hose bag," "Shut up" and "Freak out."
Roxanne and Louise practice shaking their clothed rear ends for a bit in a music video.
Carey's young fans could want to impersonate the way she acts and dresses.

JUMP SCENES: None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): A mild amount of such music plays in several scenes.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): A woman sings a song about "The freaky things you do," while another does an impromptu song telling a man not to get too close to her from behind unless he's her man.
Billie sings a song (heard many times) with the line, "I didn't mean to turn you on."

PROFANITY: At least 1 incomplete "f" word, 5 "s" words, 3 slang terms for breasts ("chi-chis" - or something like that and "t*tsy"), 4 hells, 1 crap and 4 uses of "Oh my God" as exclamations.

SEX/NUDITY: Various women - most notably Billie - show varying amounts of cleavage - occasionally quite a bit - in various outfits. At times, we also see Billie (and other women and a few men) in various revealing outfits, including her in a string bikini, and a miscellaneous man in some skimpy shorts.
Billie, Roxanne and Louise do some suggestive dancing (moving about and suggestively running their hands along their own clothed bodies).
Dice tells Sylk, a singer, that he didn't know she could "blow like that" (meaning singing). She then suggestively responds that she didn't know he was so interested "in how I could blow."
As Dice encourages people to sing or state whatever they want into a microphone to accompany some music, it sounds like he jokingly states that they can "make love" to the deejay (him) if they want.
As we see Billie with just a towel around her (as Roxanne helps her with her makeup), Roxanne tells her she doesn't want her "getting off on your first date" with Dice.
Dice and Billie passionately kiss on their first date and we then see a shot of them through some panes of glass that distort the view of their bodies, although we can partially see him removing the lower part of her clothing (and her in her underwear) and him then lying down on top of her. We then see them in bed under the sheets after having sex (not seen). She then somewhat sheepishly says that she doesn't "do this," with him jokingly responding, "Yeah, I can tell." After he states that she's different (in a good way), she replies that he doesn't have to state that "just because we slept together."
A music video director wants to see more skin on Billie's part while making a video of her latest song and states he wants to see breasts, while Roxanne and Louise practice shaking their clothed rear ends for a bit in the video. The director then says that sex sells, that she's hot, and that's how one sells records. Later, Dice refers to this as "T*tsy the porn star."

SMOKING: Dice smokes a few times, as does Billie's mother and a few miscellaneous people.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: Billie and her mom go to see her father (in the past), but he tells Lillian that he doesn't want to see them (but does give them money to make them leave).
Billie (as a child) cries when she's sent off to an orphanage when her mother can no longer care for her (or is ordered not to). This still haunts her later in life, and she then tries to track down her long estranged mom.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Pursuing one's dreams and the effects - both good and bad - of achieving them and/or becoming famous.
We see Lillian sleeping with a lit cigarette in her hand and then see the following scene where their house is on fire.
Interracial relationships (Billie's father is white and she dates a white man).
Billie (as a child) cries when she's sent off to an orphanage when her mother can no longer care for her (or is ordered not to).
Dice has Billie move in with him.

VIOLENCE: We see Lillian sleeping with a lit cigarette in her hand and then see the following scene where their house is on fire.
Billie discovers Timothy in her place and he acts menacingly toward her (briefly grabbing her by the face).
Dice briefly punches Timothy several times for the above scene.
Billie slaps Dice for something he says to her, causing him to come at her, but nothing else happens.
A man shoots another man in the chest, killing him (we only see the gun placement and hear the sound of the shot, but don't see it).

Reviewed September 20, 2001 / Posted September 21, 2001

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