The Last Airbender was rated PG for "fantasy action violence." This was typical for a fantasy movie: prior to Clash of the Titans (2010), the previous eight fantasy releases were all rated PG. However, it was atypical for director M. Night Shyamalan, marking his first PG-rated movie since his 1998 directorial debut Wide Awake, and it was also the latest sign that Last Airbender will likely be more accessible to broad audiences than Mr. Shyamalan's last few features. The Last Airbender opens next Thursday and faces The Twilight Saga: Eclipse over the Fourth of July weekend.
Living up to the expectation that it's a serious homage to the action movies of the 1980s, The Expendables received an R rating for "strong action and bloody violence throughout, and for some language." Written and directed by Sylvester Stallone and starring a bevy of action stars like Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren and Mr. Stallone (and featuring cameos from Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger), The Expendables go into battle Aug. 13 against Eat Pray Love and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
Horror movie The Last Exorcism earned a PG-13 for "disturbing violent content and terror, some sexual references and thematic material." This is the same rating awarded to recent similar fare like The Haunting of Molly Hartley and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, and it implies that distributor Lionsgate is targeting a younger teen audience. The Last Exorcism is set to haunt theaters Aug. 27 opposite Going the Distance and Takers.