In the 1942 animated classic, "Bambi," a hunter shot the mother deer to death. Over half a century later, alien warfare and the vaporization of defenseless towns characterize the contemporary animated film, "Chicken Little."

A series of Harvard studies indicate that the amount of violence in animated G-rated films has increased over time. One of the main themes that emerges in such films is violence being a solution for problems, according to Kim Thompson, associate professor and director of the Kids Risk Project at the Harvard School of Public Health.

"We don't know exactly what messages kids take from the films, but physicians are concerned about the potential desensitization that may occur from viewing violence, imitation of violence, etc.," said Thompson.

A mother and student at SF State quickly learned the impact of violent films on her 3-year-old son.

"We were watching an animated film on DVD in which there was a sword-fighting scene," said Emily Hillman, a 24-year-old anthropology junior. "He started screaming, and proceeded to hit and kick me. He was totally out of control."

Consequently, Hillman only allows her son to watch educational programming. He is not allowed to watch Disney's first computer-animated film, "Chicken Little."

In its opening weekend, "Chicken Little" ranked No. 1 in the box office with just over $40 million. Despite violent scenes involving a shark attack and gunshots, the film is intended for all audiences of all ages since the film is rated G.

However, some think that violence has always been a dominant force in the field of animation.

SF State cinema professor Steve Kovacs said that kids have been scared or turned on by violence (in animated films) for centuries. "The witches in fairy tales are mean and violent," he said.

According to Joseph McBride, assistant professor of cinema at SF State, Disney has always operated on the premise that showing disturbing imagery makes an animated film more powerful and meaningful to children.

"I can't watch ‘Bambi’ because of the mother deer's death, and I can't watch ‘Dumbo’ because of the mother elephant being put in a cage," said McBride. "G-rated animated films are the most harrowing films to watch."

Jeffrey M. Anderson - a freelance film critic for the San Francisco Examiner - said that cartoons have always been full of violence, and a great number of kids exposed to them have turned out fine.

But it is not just the world of animation that is marked with increasing violence, it is the film industry in general. Films, nowadays, use blood, guts and special effects to make the violence look as palpable as possible.

Movies are definitely more violent now than 30 or 40 years ago, said Kovacs.

Popular films, such as "Kill Bill," "Sin City," "Saw I" and "Saw II," "Domino," and "Jarhead" are all characterized by graphic scenes of violence.

The president of the Cinema Collective group at SF State, Sam Messe, said that the violence in "Jarhead" was true to the reality of war.

"It was a hard film to watch, but it took me on a ride through Desert Storm and the experiences of its soldiers," said Messe.

"Jarhead" raked in $27.7 million dollars and ranked No. 2 in its opening weekend at the box office, surpassing industry expectations.

Film critics and professors attribute different factors for the popularity of this particular genre of films.

The main film critic for Metro Newspapers in San Jose said poverty and violence go hand in hand. "Poor people have boring, oppressed lives, and they can get a boost from a bad, bloody film. Sometimes, it's wish-fulfillment, sometimes it's there worst fears realized and surmounted," said Richard von Busack. .

According to Messe, violent films are an "escape" from our daily lives. It's an interesting fantasy world, and it can become an extension of a person's personality and desires, he said.

McBride said it is "human nature" to watch such films. "The human animal is and always has been a distressingly violent creature."

However, McBride does not think that films alone have the power to provoke violence in real life. It is simplistic to blame violence on movies, however filmmakers can have a bad effect on sick minds by indulging in pornographic levels of violence, he said.

One SF State student disagrees with McBride and says that movie violence can potentially incite real-life violence.

"I get excited after watching violent films, and I often want to drop-kick people in the face," said Gairo Cuevas, 22, a cinema senior. "However, I don't because that just would not be right."

The jury is still out on whether animated violence provokes children's violent behavior, however, parents do have resources to determine which films are appropriate for their kids to watch.

Online organizations, such as Common Sense Media (www.commonsensemedia.org), Parent Previews (www.parentpreviews.com), and Kids-in-Mind (www.kids-in-mind.com) contain their own set of ratings and reviews to evaluate consumer media.