Story
A small town appears to be suffering from an unexplained cancer epidemic. As a result its citizens are dying and shops are shutting. After two years, the government finally sends Dr Tansy (David Roberts) to investigate the cause of the epidemic. Meanwhile, as more and more unusual things begin to happen, military leader Colonel Roderick (Rowland Holmes) and his men step up their efforts to conceal whatever is happening from the town’s residents and from the world.
Some local children discover an unusual slimy substance while investigating what they believe is a UFO sighting in the woods. Back at his house, Jake Emory (Jordan Dulieu) and his neighbour Abbey Tansy (Annabel Wolfe) try to discover what the substance is. When Jake’s older brother Mike (Harrison Saunders) comes into the room, they argue and spill a protein shake in the scuffle. This seemingly insignificant event seems to activate the substance. A little while later Magnus, a dinosaur-like creature, arrives. Jake, who lost his dad to the disease ravaging the town, vows to keep Magnus safe and to never leave him. This proves impossible with Magnus’s growing at an incredible rate, the villainous military personnel searching for him, and Dr Tansy trying to solve the mystery.
Themes
Death; serious illness; separation from a parent; animal distress and cruelty to animals
Violence
My Pet Dinosaur has some violence. For example:
Sexual references
My Pet Dinosaur has some sexual references. For example:
- Mike tells his mother that the police officer ‘was just trying to get into her …’. He’s told not to finish that sentence, but he gestures at her pants.
- One of Jake’s friends says that he doesn’t want to be ‘seducted by aliens’.
- Mike says to his mother, ‘You are not my mother! You are just some douche bag’s girlfriend!’.
Alcohol, drugs and other substances
There’s no use of substances in My Pet Dinosaur.
Nudity and sexual activity
None of concern
Product placement
None of concern
Coarse language
My Pet Dinosaur has some coarse language.
Ideas to discuss with your children
My Pet Dinosaur is a family drama that’s a little bit like ET. It’s about friendship and loyalty, and also about how change can be difficult but not always bad.
These are the main messages from this movie:
- Loss is not the end of life but just a part of it.
- Although friendships are challenging they can change you in ways that you could never imagine.
Values in this movie that you could reinforce with your children include loyalty, friendship, honesty, compassion and responsibility.
This movie could also give you the chance to talk with your children about:
- taking responsibility for your actions
- looking after the natural environment and the catastrophic and far-reaching consequences of not doing so.