Two new titles in the Power Surge series (earlier titles were reviewed in our November-December 1993 issue), aimed at students in 7-12th grade, address the issues of personal integrity and pornography addiction. Letterboxing, which MTV has made "cool," is used in both programs, as well as jaunty camera angles, incessant music, and sound bites galore. In Integrity, Olympic runner Madeline Manning talks about the importance of honesty and self-respect. Her comments are bookended by kids delivering one-sentence "opinions" to the camera which don't seem to be terribly thoughtful and since they zip by at the speed of light certainly don't provoke any thinking in the viewer. Plus, the comments are regurgitated Care Bear morals, not real examinations of the issues ("If your friends are steering you the wrong way, they're not really your friends," etc.) Pornography is more of the same, only worse, on the addictive nature of pornography. Interestingly, several of the interviews come straight out of Understanding Pornography and the Tangled Web it Weaves (also reviewed in this issue) and the complaints about the faulty logic and unsupported claims used in that program also hold true here. Throwing lots of music, rapid edits, and sound bites at kids will make them feel right at home, just like they're watching TV. Problem is, most TV shows don't make kids think, and neither do these programs. Not a necessary purchase. (R. Pitman)
Power Surge: Integrity; Power Surge: Pornography
(1993) 16 min. $79.95 (discussion guide included). Media International. PPR. Color cover. Closed captioned. Vol. 9, Issue 2
Power Surge: Integrity; Power Surge: Pornography
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: