TV Review: The Initiation of Sarah
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this revamped remake of a 1978 TV
horror flick comes with a "viewer discretion" warning for good
reason. The plot's eerie focus on witchcraft and human
sacrifice (for the continued existence of evil witches) mixed
with disturbing scenes of victims begging for their lives as
they're chained to a sacrificial table is too much for kids --
even some younger teens. Violence is prevalent and includes two
stabbings, some attempted strangulations (from afar, by magic),
a fire started in a dorm room, and a few spell-casting
exchanges. And if that's not enough, most of the characters are
superficial, conniving coeds who see being in a "good" sorority
as the ticket to their eternal popularity -- which seems to be
the main purpose of their college life.
Families can talk about the pressure for social acceptance. Who determines what's popular and what isn't? How does it feel to be on the outside looking in at the "cool kids"? How does the media affect our perception of ourselves? Parents of teens can also discuss Greek life on college campuses. Are kids interested in rushing a sorority or fraternity? What do you think the benefits would be? The drawbacks? What do you think of the rush process? Is real-life rush the same as what you see on TV and in movies?
Common Sense Media Review
When twins Lindsey (
Summer
Glau) and Sarah (Mika Boorem) arrive at Temple Hill
University, they hope that college will be their chance to
reinvent themselves in a place where no one knows their past.
What they don't know is that some of their fellow students
already know more about them than they do, and that they'll
soon be dragged into a battle for their lives.
As double legacies to the school's most prestigious sorority, Alpha Nu Gamma, the girls enter the rush process with varying degrees of excitement. Lindsey pins her hopes of popularity on pledging, but no-nonsense Sarah is skeptical of Greek life. Only at the request of her sister and the insistence of her Alpha Nu-alum mother ( Morgan Fairchild, who starred in the 1978 version of the movie) does Sarah agree to give it a chance.
But almost immediately, strange things start to happen when Sarah is near Alpha Nu's cunning president, Chorine (JoAnna Garcia). Confused by her inexplicable actions and haunted by her troubled past, Sarah turns to her professor, Dr. Hunter ( Jennifer Tilly), who's also the advisor to Alpha Nu's rival sorority, Pi Epsilon Delta. While Dr. Hunter's tales of eons-old witchcraft and ongoing battles between good and evil seem far-fetched, Sarah's own mysterious powers begin to make sense in light of new revelations about herself and her family.
As reality sinks in for Sarah, Lindsey settles into life at Alpha Nu and joins their desperate efforts to recruit her sister. Sarah must garner strength from the Pi Epsilon Delta sisters to save her own life -- and Lindsey's soul.
THE INITIATION OF SARAH is a well-cast thriller that keeps you guessing, if not exactly on the edge of your seat. But parents beware: This is definitely not a cutesy tween flick about the ups and downs of sorority life. The movie is riddled with violence -- including murder and the implication of human sacrifice -- and mature topics like attempted suicide, using sex for manipulation, and manufacturing sexual attraction through liquid concoctions. On top of that, most of the female characters are popularity-crazed, snobbish socialites who spend more time studying the boys than anything else in college.
Parents would do better to steer teens with a taste for the supernatural toward Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Charmed instead. Tweens will enjoy Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and its sequels.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
