Unlike the MPAA we do not assign
one
inscrutable rating based on age, but 3 objective ratings for SEX/NUDITY, VIOLENCE/GORE
and PROFANITY on a scale of 0 to 10, from lowest to highest,
depending on quantity and context.
Sort of an unofficial sequel to director Steven Soderbergh's "sex, lies and videotape," it concerns a group of L.A. residents who are linked together through
the making of a movie, and by the shared desire of being loved, as well as successful. With Julia Roberts, Blair Underwood, Nicky Katt, Catherine Keener and David Duchovny. [1:46]
SEX/NUDITY 7 - We see a fully nude (including genitalia) dead man lying on a bed -- a woman explains that he died because of, "a weird sex thing" -- since his face is covered
with a plastic bag, it may be inferred that it involved self-asphyxiation. A man goes into a woman's hotel room and we see them having sex, but the images are distorted: we hear them
moaning and see blurred body parts and movement, and then the image clears and we see them lying in bed together -- his chest is bare. While getting a massage, a man becomes visibly
aroused (we see the sheet that covers him rise), and he convinces his masseuse to stimulate him (we see her after the fact, as she goes to wash her hands in the bathroom). A woman wears a
halter-top and low slung hip-huggers that reveal the side of one of her breasts and her bare back down to the hips. A woman (a VP of Human Resources) appears to be making a pass at a
younger man who happens to be an employee and a subordinate. A woman asks another woman if she finds her attractive. A man kisses a woman, and a man and woman kiss. We see a woman sleeping
in bed in a couple of scenes; she appears to be nude, but covered by a sheet (we see her bare back and shoulders) and a man kisses and caresses her back. There are several discussions
about pornography and how "porn names" are created. There are several frank discussions about sex -- one man in particular discusses his inability to have sex with his wife because of the
size of her self-stimulation device. A man and woman are shown in bed together. A man and woman look at each other longingly, come close together and touch their cheeks. A man wears a robe
and when it falls open we see his bare chest and bare thighs. A man reaches into his pants (apparently applying cologne to his genitals). A woman wears a tight-fitting, figure-revealing
dress. We see men getting massages in a couple of scenes: a woman rubs their arms, legs, feet and bare backs.
VIOLENCE/GORE 4 - A man is found dead with a plastic bag over his head and face. A man talks about drinking blood. A woman talks about how she and her sister found their
father dead from an apparent suicide when they were young. A woman talks about her father "killing" people's spirits. We see a man using a urinal (we hear nothing and he is blocked by a
tiled wall). A dog is very ill (he lies limp in a man's arms) after eating a pan of brownies laced with hashish. A man passes out and lands on the floor. A man yells at and insults another
man a few times.
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 9 - 47 F-words, 1 obscene hand gesture, 1 sexual reference, 10 scatological terms, 8 anatomical terms, 1 mild anatomical term, 3 mild obscenities, 1 religious
profanity, 27 religious exclamations. [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Sexual mores and practices, separation, paranoia, the Internet, relationships, road rage, suicide, anxiety, hair replacement, turning 40, personality
quirks.
MESSAGE - We all need love and respect.
(Note: There are a couple of discussions about African-American roles in movies and the fact that African-Americans are not cast as romantic leads. People are shown drinking alcohol
and smoking cigarettes. A man and woman apparently eat some hashish-laced brownies. One of the storylines in the movie revolves around a play called "The Sound and the Fuhrer," about
Hitler's personal life -- we see swastikas and Nazi banners.
A CAVEAT: We've gone through several editorial changes since we
started covering films in 1992 and some of our early standards were
not as stringent as they are now. We therefore need to revisit many
older reviews, especially those written prior to 1998 or so; please
keep this in mind if you're consulting a review from that period.
While we plan to revisit and correct older reviews our resources are
limited and it is a slow, time-consuming process.
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