MovieName: Like Mike
MovieRate: G
ViewerAge: all

Adoption Content:

The key characters in the movie are orphans, who live in an abusive group
home setting. While on the positive side, the children are presented as
capable and independent, the stereotypical portrayal of these children as
unwanted orphans exploited and abused by their group home counselor is
disturbing. As all the children express their desire and long for
adoption, possible adoptive parents who visit occasionally are shown only
focusing on younger kids. The older children in the movie stare in hopeful
disappointment, and the key character is only approached for adoption
after becoming notable. One of the older children portrayed as a "bully"
even tells the others to face it: they were like dogs, and "people only wanted
the puppies."

Tone:

This movie reinforces an all too familiar negative premise about adoption and children who wait for adoption. We believe this movie presents themes, which may irritate, anger and disappoint adoptive parents and caregivers of foster and other
waiting children.

Comments:

However real, this is truly an insensitive comment, and may be especially
disturbing if an unexpecting waiting child goes to see this movie. The
most disturbing, even horrific moment in the film comes, when the abusive
group home leader begins to threaten and then burn a picture of one of the
orphans mother, in order to get some information from the orphan.

Recommendation:

In the end, Like Mike was good entertainment, and our son seemed only to
focus on the funny and entertaining scenes, but we believe our son was
made to wonder about a lot of things: unwanted orphans, neglectful unloving
caregivers, children who might never find a family -- without any balance,
until we explained it afterwards. While all of these can be part of the
whole picture of sad situations that we should not turn a blind eye to,
as adoptive parents, we urge caution and a little research for what seems to
be a never ending theme/formula for Hollywood's G or PG movies; Stuart
Little, Like Mike, Country Bears.