"Bully" has been getting a lot of attention over the past several weeks, because of the "R" rating given the documentary by the MPAA. The Weinstein Company and others tried to get the rating changed. A 17-year-old girl from Michigan has gathered nearly 500,000 signatures on a petition, hoping to convince the MPAA to make "Bully" PG-13. As you probably know by now their efforts failed, but the studio decided to ignore the MPAA and is releasing the film "unrated". I wholeheartedly this decision and I'll get into that a little more later. But controversy aside, this movie is fascinating, heartbreaking and very important.

Bullying has become a major problem in American schools. "Bully" follows the stories of five students who have been directly affected by bullying. We get to know kids who have been victimized because others think they're "different", whether it's how they look, how they act, or their sexuality. We meet a girl who was a victim and chose to fight back, but in the wrong way. And we see two families who are dealing with the ultimate tragedy: having a son/brother commit suicide because they simply couldn't take the bullying anymore.

The parents want to use their terrible situations to help get bullying stopped, but find it difficult to get the administration in the schools to deal with the problem seriously. It's clear, thanks to some dramatic hidden-camera video and interviews with teachers and staff, that the schools are not doing enough (some not doing anything at all) to stop bullying from taking place and punishing the kids who are involved. The parents are forced to fight this battle outside of school, starting-up anti-bullying organizations which they hope will make a difference.

At times "Bully" is hard to watch because of the stories that the parents and kids share, some of which are shocking. There are also several scenes of actual bullying taking place, including footage captured on school buses, that just makes you angry. And listening to one Vice Principal's opinions on the bullying situation will make you want to shout at the screen. This is one time when it might be o.k. to talk during a film, because it's tough to stay silent when you're hearing some of these comments.

This documentary does not include a narration. Some text appears every once in awhile to identify people and locations but mostly you hear from victims and their friends and family members, those involved in the school systems and, of course, the bullies themselves. This was a good decision by director Lee Hirsch to go without narration and allow everything to play out naturally so we get the complete picture of this issue from the words of those directly involved on all sides.

"Bully" cuts back and forth between the five stories over the length of a school year, giving enough time for each one to unfold and have a dramatic impact. You feel terrible about what these kids and families have gone through, and feel even worse that nothing effective is being done to solve this problem.

There is some hope and a positive message at the end of "Bully". The film certainly made a lasting impression on me, and hopefully those who watch it will be not only moved by it, but encouraged to take action. This is an important documentary that everyone - parents, teachers, school officials and first and foremost, students, should see.

As for the MPAA controversy, "Bully" had been given an 'R' rating because of six swear words - that's it. And these words are actually necessary because they help to show the verbal abuse that bullies use along with the physical abuse. And, trust me, kids everywhere have heard these words and won't be harmed by them. I applaude Hirsch for not giving in to the MPAA and re-editing the film, taking-out the 6 words in order to get a PG-13 rating. And I support the studio's decision to ignore the MPAA and release the film without a rating. Hopefully theater groups around the country will understand this unique situation and decide to show the film AND allow kids to see it. The movie's website states that 13-million children will be victims of bullying in schools throughout the U.S. this year alone. The MPAA was not protecting those kids by trying to keep them from hearing a few bad words. Instead it tried to prevent them from possibly getting the help they need to end the torture and maybe save their lives. Let's hope it didn't succeed.

So forget the NR. See "Bully" - and take your kids with you.

Along with the brief language, there is some mature subject matter in the film, mainly involving the suicides. It a tough call on an appropriate age group for "Bully" because I truly believe all students, from 3rd-4th grade on up, should see it. Exposing young kids to this issue may be one of the best ways to try to combat the problem. Certainly it should be required viewing for every middle school student in the country.

But know going in that even though the movie does end on a promising note, this is a very serious film that's quite emotional to watch.

On The Official LCJ Report Card, "Bully" gets a B+. This is solid documentary filmmaking. Some of the images and interviews will stay with you forever. I would have liked to have seen an interview or two with some of the actual bullies, but Hirsch says he left those out intentionally because this film is about hearing from those in most need to be heard - the victims.

The timing of the release of "Bully" is excellent, as students are still in school, and the DVD release can take place at the beginning of the next school year in the fall. And there's a good chance the buzz about the film will return at the end of the year when the Oscar nominations are discussed.

This is the third year that I be able to see the "Oscar Nominated Animated Short Films". While there are several good shorts (including a few that aren't even in the running for the Oscar), there isn't one this year that's outstanding.

OSCAR NOMINEES:

"Dimanche/Sunday" - A hand-drawn short from Canada about a boy's average Sunday. It has good animation and a humorous story but just kind of sits there with no payoff or resolution. B

"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" - The longest title and longest short (15 min.) William Joyce ("Robots" and "Meet the Robinsons") co-directs this CGI short about a young man who is brought to a library where books literally fly off the shelves. Similar story and look as Pixar's "Up", with emotion and good messages. The animation style is a little soft and the movie wanders a little bit. B

"La Luna" - Pixar's nominated short is one of the best of the bunch. It's about a little boy who goes to work with his father and grandfather. They have an interesting job: cleaning the moon. This is a sweet and funny short with great animation. It's far better than Pixar's entry last year, the wildly disappointing "Day & Night". B+

"A Morning Stroll" - Unusual, but yet it makes perfect sense. This short combines hand-drawn and CGI animation in three very different and very vibrant styles. The story is about...well...a chicken! (and that's all I want to say). Well thought and entertaining. B

"Wild Life" - Canada's second nominated short is about a young man, in the early 1900s, who leaves England to live the "wild life" as a cowboy in Canada. The animation is all done with oil painting cels and it's great looking, but the story is a mess. There's a constant reference to comets that I just didn't get and the twist at the end doesn't really work. C

HIGHLY CONDEMMED

"Skylight" - The first half of this five-minute short is a funny rip-off of "March of the Penguins" and other nature documentaries and a social commentary on Global Warming. Then it becomes predictable and pretty ridiculous. A great start, but a disappointing finish. C+

"Hybrid Union" - A bland story about machines trying to race each other to get away from a storm. The animation is O.K., but the story and message are too obvious. I don't want to think this much while trying to enjoy a quick short. C

"Nullarbor" - A funny and more adult short from Austraila about two men who come-upon each other while driving their vehicles across a long stretch of land on the continent. The animation is good and at times, this short is laugh-out-loud funny. Predictable but enjoyable throughout. B+

"Amazonia" - Bright animation and a pretty clever story about a young frog and an older frog trying to catch food in the "Amazon". Nice, surprise ending that works. It's simple and could've had a little more bite too it, but a nice way to end the collection. B

Favorite (out of all nine): "Nullarbor"

Prediction for the Oscar Winner: "La Luna"

"Michael Jackson's This Is It" was one of my favorite films of 2009. "Celine: Through the Eyes of the World" follows another pop icon, Celine Dion, from start to finish of her 2008 World Tour. If you didn;t see this in the theater it's definitely worth catching on DVD.

We get to see all of Dion's experiences, good and bad, during a tour that takes her to 25 countries, 93 cities and 131 shows. Along the way she meets with some extraordinary people, including Nelson Mandela and Muhammad Ali, visits historic sites, including a Nazi concentration camp and spends a lot of time with her family and fans.

And, of course, she sings. The movie includes performances of most of her popular songs, but only a few of them from start to finish. Maybe that's because this is not just a "concert film" but a "tour film". The movie spends much more time showing us Dion off stage than on. And we get to know her husband and son as well. You really get to understand what life is like on the road of a concert tour. And you appreciate the struggles Dion goes through with a few illnesses during the tour that caused her to lose her voice, and cancel shows.  

The directing and editing are excellent. The film crew shot over 800 hours of footage. Getting that down to a 2-hour film could not have been easy. There are some nice moments with Dion and her dancers and back-up singers, and we see her trying to be a normal mom, with young son, Rene.

I wasn't a Celine Dion fan heading into the movie. I don't think I could have named one of her songs. But I still enjoyed this movie a lot. And if you are a fan - this is a must-see.

"Celine" is not rated. It's appropriate for everyone. The close-up's of her vocal chords during a visit to her doctor are a little gross, but other than that there's nothing to worry about. Two things to know if you're planning on seeing the film: Ticket prices are a little steep ($15) and it's only showing for a limited time in select theaters around the country. But it's worth the $$$ and it's worth finding.

On The Official Kid Critic Report Card, "Celine: Through the Eyes of the World" gets a B+. These concert documentaries are starting to become a new, favorite genre for me.

According to Dion, all the footage was originally intended to become a home movie for her family, but soon they realized that it could be much more than that. A very good decision. A DVD of one, entire concert from the tour is set to relesed soon. That will be a must-buy for fans.