Beginning Responsibility: Taking Care Of Things (1951)

★★★★ · Taking Care of Things · Christine Hennig · 2003-01-11

Again, we're in the let's-shame-the-slob category. This starts out like Habit Patterns for 6-year-olds, as sloppy 1st-grader Andy is told, It's bad when your teacher is disappointed in you and you have no friends." All this over a broken pencil point. About halfway through it gets more reasonable, though, as Andy is told why it might be a good idea to pick up after himself. Andy eventually reforms and gets everything he was denied in the first part of the film, which may be a tad unrealistic, but a lot cheerier than Habit Patterns. Like most films of this type, this is great fun and easy…

★★★★ · DEAD TADPOLE ALERT! · Spuzz · 2003-01-10

This film, since it's made by Coronet, means that simple things are solved by doing stupid things. In this case Andy, who has the shoddiest looking 'bedroom' ever seen in a guidance film, just can't stop being a slob. Toys are left lying around, stuff is broken, and what's more, his tadpoles.. well, let the female narrator say it.. "Aw, they're dead!" She says it in a way like 'Who gives a darn" when dying pets are actually quite traumatizing to kids. (The site of dead tadpoles are sure to traumatize kids WATCHING this film too). Anyways Andy realizes the secret of CLEANING UP after himself…

★★★★ · And workin' overtime -- work out! · dynayellow · 2003-09-06

Refreshing look at a time when parents talked to their troubled children instead of pumping them full of behavor-modifying drugs. Also subliminaly endorses the notion that it's okay to hang around with people because of their material goods. Also, maybe you shouldn't give a camera to a five year old. Bonus points for senseless narration: reintroducing characters we've already met.