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Like Mike | 2002 | PG | - 2.2.3
A young orphan (Lil' Bow Wow) dreams of playing basketball like Michael Jordan, but most of all being adopted by a family like those he has seen on TV. When he comes upon a pair of sneakers that he is convinced used to belong to Jordan, he can miraculously slam dunk and more. When he beats a professional player at a half-time promotional stunt, his basketball career begins, and he also finds out a thing or two about families. Also with Morris Chestnut, Jonathan Lipnicki, Sandra Prosper and Brenda Song. [1:41]
SEX/NUDITY 2 - We see cheerleaders in a few scenes wearing short skirts and tight tops that reveal cleavage, bare abdomens and thighs. A woman wears a short dress that reveals her cleavage, and thighs. A woman hugs a boy to her chest. Cheerleaders dance and shimmy. A man brings a woman to his hotel room, but nothing happens because a boy is in the room.
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VIOLENCE/GORE 2 - During a thunderstorm a boy climbs onto the limb of a tree and tries to retrieve a pair of sneakers hanging from an electrical wire; the limb is struck by lightning and the boy falls to the ground (he's unharmed). Two boys hold another boy while a man burns a picture of his mother. A group of children on motorized scooters race through streets and are chased by cars (one scooter is cut off by a car, one is knocked down, and one jumps over a car but there are no injuries). A man is run down by a souvenir cart, and another man is knocked down by a speeding scooter. Two boys fight over a pair of sneakers; they shove each other and yell. A group of children tape a man to a chair. A boy is threatened repeatedly by a group of boys; they shove him, call him names and wrestle. A man threatens a boy, and a coach yells at his team. A boy dangles from a basketball rim several times. A man is startled and dumps a chessboard and its pieces. A boy eats a lot of food, we see him lying on the floor moaning, and then he burps several times. A boy drives a car recklessly and ends up going through a construction site and dragging markers behind the car. A car is driven into a lake. An unattended garbage cart rolls down a hill (we hear it crash off screen). There are a few scuffles on the basketball court, one ends in a pile up on the floor and the rest are with strong words exchanged. A man and two boys have a paint fight (they all end up covered in paint).
LANGUAGE 3 - 2 scatological terms, 1 anatomical term, 8 mild obscenities, 3 religious exclamations, 4 "dangs."
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Orphans, adoption, jealousy, dreams, ambition, greed, family, scams, confronting our fears, curfew, professional sports.
MESSAGE - We are all special in our own way.
(Note: Residents of an orphanage are forced -- by being threatened with losing their TV privileges -- to sell candy in a parking lot in order to raise money.)
CAVEATS
Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.
We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.
Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.
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We are a totally independent website with no connections to political, religious or other groups & we neither solicit nor choose advertisers. You can help us keep our independence with a donation.
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Become a member of our premium site for just $2/month & access advance reviews, without any ads, not a single one, ever. And you will be helping support our website & our efforts.
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