Walk down the street and you're likely to see more people interacting with a piece of technology than looking at each other. Walk into a house and you're more likely to see families interacting with various screens (videogames, TVs, computers) than each other. Add to that our society's obsessions with beauty and its reliance on plastic surgery and SURROGATES prediction of our future is all too realistic.

SURROGATES takes us where these "addictions" are going: real-life avatar robots represent us in the world with the actual humans operating them from the safety of a chair in their home. At first, this seems like a great idea because murder becomes obsolete and wars can be fought with robots instead of people. However, SURROGATES shows us just what can happen when you don't exactly know just who you're really dealing with.

I was so drawn into the entralling story of SURROGATES, I have to admit, I didn't even notice bad language in the film the MPAA says is there. In fact, of the many reasons why SURROGATES is rated PG-13, all are "not that bad."

There is a scene where a couple at a club are "hooking up" but it doesn't get past the frenetic kissing stage...and there are DEFINITE consequences to their behavior.

The "drug use" scene shows robots getting "high" by receiving an electrical shock.

The on-screen violence is mainly done to the surrogates, robots who look like people, and we're always reminded they're not real by the green goo that oozes out of them. Real people are also hurt but we only see it after the fact. The disturbing images are again, of robots, for the most part.

In the end, to really understand and appreciate the story as well as not be spooked by the imagery, I don't recommend for most of the elementary school set. However, SURROGATES is a fresh story that hasn't been told before (okay, my husband points out STRANGE DAYS was kind of similar -- so let's say hasn't been told in a while) that is ripe for discussion afterward that I highly recommend you see with your tween or teen. For kids 11 and up.