There are going to be nightmares

[howabout]

DH is watching Watership Down with our 4 year old DD.

What is wrong with the TV schedulers?

My only complaint with the film is that they missed out all the tales of El-ahrairah (apart from the tiny bit of animation at the beginning). I loved the hedgehog singing to the moon...

Read the book when I was six, saw the film when it came out at 12 - as we had rabbits as pets and were well aware of the not-so-cuddly reality of them, the thing that disturbed me the most was the Auden poem quoted at the beginning of the part about the warren with the snares (where you weren't allowed to ask 'where?') - that gave me the screaming heebie jeebies and still gives me the shivers now:

When the green field comes off like a lid
Revealing what was much better hid:
Unpleasant.
And look, behind you without a sound
The woods have come up and are standing round
In deadly crescent.

And the bolt is sliding in its groove,
Outside the window is the black removers' van.
And now, with sudden swift emergence
Come the woman in dark glasses, the humpbacked surgeons
And the scissors man.

With the advent of Sky and Netflix etc there are plenty of films not suitable for children on during the day - use your common sense and knowledge of your own children rather than blaming the schedulers.

What a load of tosh. Some people protests about anything these day and want everyone to wrap their children in cotton wool. Generations of children have watched this film. If particular people don't like it all they had to do was change the channel.

Lovecat _ Yes, I was haunted by those W H Auden verses from the book too. I've never forgotten them.

Some of the responses make me wonder why we bother with quaint notions like the watershed and film certification at all?

lovecat - I'd forgotten that poem! Brrrr. Will be giving to my year 12 class for unseen analysis - thanks!

Film certification is there to help you, the parent, to decide if you want your DC to watch the film. WD is a U certificate and has been for nearly 40 years. It's content is hardly a secret.
I personally don't believe that the watershed argument applies in this case - restricting broadcast of WD until after 9pm is IMO unnecessarily reactionary.

If a film is not appropriate for your children, turn over. Don't try to stop everyone else's children from watching it at a sensible time of day.

Never seen Watership Down but I have read the book and loved it. Despite all the challenges, the main protagonists reach a safe and happy ending, so what is the problem?

I'm not convinced the film was entirely appropriate for an Easter Sunday afternoon - most people have just spent the morning searching for eggs left by the Easter Bunny, and were probably looking to sit down for a nice family friendly film. Oh this has got bunnies in, let's watch this .
I just think it was bad planning to schedule it for then - I don't think anybody would have shown Life of Brian over Easter weekend would they? It wouldn't offend me but it wouldn't be in the best taste.

I think this is a hysterical over reaction.

Love this...

Northern, yes, absolutely true that Black Beauty was written to improve the treatment of horses - and it was highly successful in doing so.

sciency I disagree. I would rather my kids understood and enjoyed this well told tale than some crap like the chipmunks movies.

Watch or not watch, your choice. And these days there is plenty of choice.

It's not especially offensive to the message of Easter.

I will be betraying my age - I was 4 years old when Watership Down came out in the cinema. It was my first cinema experience for me. It traumatised me! Even now I totally totally hate the song 'Bright Eyes'.

My parents said I cried when the rabbits fought but I refused to leave because I wanted to see what happened.

Later at age 8 or so, I read the book and enjoyed it.

Our primary school teacher read the book to us when we were 6. I remember being horrified at the myxamatosis bit, but I doubt it scarred me for life.

I wouldn't have let my 4 yr old watch it though, so maybe the fault is less with the schedulers and more with parents who let their kids watch something and then whinge.

Black Beauty for me is still the music of Sunday afternoon!

Watership Down has been shown at Easter since Ds1 (25yo) was tiny. ITS A CARTOON. ITS NOT REAL. THE SLOW PICTURES ARE THE CLUE.

If you really want trauma, watch this which was the film of choice when I was 4. I remember seeing this as a taster to the main film at the cinema.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walkabout_(film)

have a look at the you tube video of the easter story in lego

I watched Watership Down at school when I was six, and loved it. Went on to read it shortly afterwards, and it was my favourite book for years. I still have a soft spot for Bright Eyes.

Girl on a Swing though; yikes!

I'm not convinced the film was entirely appropriate for an Easter Sunday afternoon - most people have just spent the morning searching for eggs left by the Easter Bunny, and were probably looking to sit down for a nice family friendly film. Oh this has got bunnies in, let's watch this

Look, I'm sorry, but unless you've been living under a rock all your life how can you possibly not know what Watership Down is about? There's absolutely no excuse for someone saying "this has got bunnies in it, let's watch this" or blaming it on the schedulers. Take some responsibility for your viewing!

All "yous" general, not specific.

Friend were talking about this, the bit with the snare still sticks with me now!

We also watched it at school!

WE seemed to have alot of bleak stuff back then, remember reading the "when the wind blows comic" friends were talking about Thomas the Tank engine and how one of them gets buried alive being bricked up in a tunnel!