film

Hollywood serves up a heaping of hope in the days before Thanksgiving, although one comes in a palatable PG-13 package and the other with a provocative, harrowing R.

"The Blind Side" and "Precious" focus on young people who, without the kindness of strangers and their own determination, would be doomed to horrid existences.

A look at how the movies stack up:

A guide to movies from a family perspective:

"The Twilight Saga: New Moon"

-- Rated: PG-13.

-- Suitable for: Mature tweens and up.

-- What you should know: This is the second movie based on Stephenie Meyer's best seller about a human girl, her vampire boyfriend and, now, a werewolf rival.

-- Language: About nine stronger versions of "heck" or "darn."

The most popular movie of all time -- winner of eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture -- was first released 70 years ago.

All those years of playing a stoner in director Kevin Smith's movies have left actor Jason Mewes in a bit of a haze.

"If someone says, 'Hey, let's get Jason Mewes to play a cop in this movie,' somebody else will say, 'But, hey, isn't he that stoner dude from the Kevin Smith films?' So, yeah, it definitely makes (casting agents) second guess me," says the actor.

"2012" is based loosely on the belief that the world as we know it will end on Dec. 21 of that year. The date corresponds loosely to information gleaned from the writings of ancient Mayan culture, when the "Long-Count Calendar" of 5,126 days turns over and the result is -- what, exactly?

A guide to movies from a family perspective:

"2012"

-- Rated: PG-13.

-- Suitable for: Middle-schoolers and up.

-- What you should know: The world is in peril and then destroyed, by earthquakes, floods, fires, volcanic eruptions, toppling buildings, ash clouds and other disasters, in this movie that runs 2-1/2 hours.

It's almost axiomatic to say that Pixar movies are just as enjoyable for adults as they are for kids.

Robert Zemeckis may just be the father of the performance-capture, 3-D mania sweeping through Hollywood.

His "Polar Express" inspired DreamWorks animation chief Jeffrey Katzenberg to declare, "It was the most exciting experience I'd had in a movie theater."

A guide to movies from a family perspective:

"A Christmas Carol"

-- Rated: PG.

-- Suitable for: Children 6 or 7 and up, keeping younger in mind. It will help if they're familiar with the story and know it will end happily.

"That's funny." (Man at prairie crossing)

"What?" (Roger Thornhill, played by Cary Grant)

"That plane's dustin' crops where there ain't no crops." (Man)