A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this movie.
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Positive Messages
very little
Extensive discussion (and depiction) of the pursuit of vengeance and of the role that rumor and fear play in psychological warfare. The film's discussion of the Nazis' extermination of Jews is glossed over in the context of a rock-'em, sock-'em action film.
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Positive Role Models
very little
The movie's characters are either coldly efficient killing machines or hot-headed murderers ... with a few decent people along the way to suffer at the hands of said killers and murderers.
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Violence & Scariness
a lot
Strong, brutal, bloody violence throughought, including both war violence (gunfights, shootings, and more) and brutal close-quarters encounters (deliberate mutilation with knives, throat-slashings, scalping). A man is beaten to death with a baseball bat on camera. A woman is shot at point-blank range. A German officer is shown being obliterated by machine-gun fire, bullets pulverizing his body and face into a bloody mass. A man drives his finger into a woman's bullet wound to elicit cooperation and information. Soldiers and civilians are machine-gunned; others die in a house-fire.
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Sex, Romance & Nudity
a little
A few seconds of clothed sexual activity are shown for comedic effect, with no nakedness; some suggestive dialogue.
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Language
a lot
Constant swearing and strong language, including "f--k," "motherf--ker," "s--t," "goddammit," "bastards," "ass," "damn," "hell," and more. "Jew," Nazi," "Apachem," and "Negro" are all used, both as descriptive phrases and as insults.
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Products & Purchases
very little
Some mentions of brands like Coca-Cola.
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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
a lot
Characters drink beer, wine, champagne, and hard liquor, sometimes to excess. Characters also smoke cigarettes extensively (accurate for the era), use snuff, and smoke pipes. The medical use of morphine is discussed.
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Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that, like all of director Quentin Tarantino's work, while this World War II adventure starring Brad Pitt is full of food for thought, it's also brutally violent, bloody, and full of harsh language. Expect cringe-inducing beatings, shootings, and more, plus a non-stop barrage of words like "f--k" and "s--t," constant smoking, and plenty of drinking. The film also takes lots of liberties with history and is very talky -- meaning that teens who watch might alternate between being bored to death and shocked by the gory parts. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
What's the Story?
Set in 1944, INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS follows two parallel stories that quickly converge. In the first, an American group of Jewish soldiers called "The Basterds," led by hard-bitten Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt), carries out terror attacks against German troops in occupied France. Meanwhile, in Paris, a theater owner (Melanie Laurent) is approached by a heroic soldier (Daniel Bruhl) to host the French premiere of his propaganda film; what he doesn't know is that she, hiding her Jewish roots to keep safe, is also part of the resistance. As the American Basterds, the French resistance, and the German high command converge on the theater, it's going to be a premiere everyone will remember ... if they survive.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the movie's violence. What's the impact of the brutal scenes? Does it make the violence feel surreal or more honest and authentic?
Are there limits on what soliders will and won't (or can and can't) do in the heat of the moment during wartime? Do soliders who participate in a genocide like that of the Nazis against the Jews deserve any mercy?
What does the movie say about the role of filmmaking, press/public relations, and storytelling as part of war? What role does film have in wartime? How can it be manipulated to meet those ends?
Movie Details
- In theaters: August 21, 2009
- On DVD or streaming: December 15, 2009
- Cast: Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Melanie Laurent
- Director: Quentin Tarantino
- Inclusion Information: Female actors
- Studio: Weinstein Co.
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- Run time: 152 minutes
- MPAA rating: R
- MPAA explanation: strong graphic violence, language and brief sexuality
- Last updated: March 21, 2024
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