Parents give Hulk PG rating

Dubai: Good or bad? Superhero or anti-hero? That is what people wonder about when it comes to The Incredible Hulk'.

As fans swarm cinemas across the UAE to get a glimpse of the green giant, Gulf News attempts to understand the impact such a comic book hero has on young minds.

Is he the raging, evil monster that destroys everything in his path? Or is he a sensitive, misunderstood man?

Dr Sathesh Vadasseril, a psychiatrist based in Sharjah, said that any movie, whether it is a romance, action, comedy or horror has an effect on children.

"Children belong to a special group - this group is usually vulnerable and influenced by the things they see." Vadasseril said that children below the age of 14 are easily convinced because their minds are extremely active. "Their brain will take in anything around them and sometimes ... will repeat what they see."

Professor Tim Walters, of the American University of Sharjah who teaches media studies, agreed. "Young children can't [usually] separate truth from false. I think they need real heroes, not super heroes and those sorts of things, they need to see the good, so they can imitate that."

Since children have a lot of physical and mental energy, they need to find ways of releasing it - sometimes they use the violence, they see, to do so. Vadasseril said that in the case of the Hulk, he is hurting or sometimes killing people because of uncontrollable rage. "Children might not kill anyone but they will still pick up destructive tendencies."

According to Walters, real people make mistakes, while superheroes usually don't and so superhero movies could create unreal expectations. The experts, however, point out that blame for all evil does not rest with cinema. Family environment is the key.

Vadasseril said: "If a child is raised in a ... stable environment, he or she can overcome the negative message being sent out by such movies - that fighting or violence is acceptable."

Lana Helmy, a mother going with her son and his friends to watch the movie, agreed. "I think it depends on how parents teach their children - to know what's right or wrong, and what's real and what's not." Walters said that this is vital and hence "in movies such as the 'Hulk', children have to be accompanied by a parent or an adult, to help them separate fact from fiction".

Lily Abbasi, an Iranian who let her son watch The Incredible Hulk, said she doesn't mind him going for such movies because she has taught him the fundamental difference between evil and good. However, she said: "If it was a horror movie with blood and gore then that, I would think, is pushing it a little." Her 12-year-old son Farham Khademi said: "I love superheroes but I know that they're fake. I wouldn't want to have their power, because I want to be myself and not copy others."

Hamza Mamser, a 10-year-old going to watch the movie, said that he loves the Hulk because of his strength and the inner fight to stay good. "I love the fighting and when he gets angry, but I would never do such a thing if I had the power ... unless people made me angry." Mahdi Kamal, 10, said that he would use his power to save the world until he "gets bored and starts destroying places"

How do you think superhero movies affect children? Should superheroes be more realistic? Or does that defeat the purpose?