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Spider | 2003 | R | - 6.5.5

Psychological thriller with Ralph Fiennes as a man who's trying to put his life back together after his premature release from a mental institution. While he struggles with his own sanity, he tries to uncover his shrouded past and investigate the death of his mother (Miranda Richardson). Also with Gabriel Byrne, Lynn Redgrave and Philip Craig. Directed by David Cronenberg. [1:38]

SEX/NUDITY 6 - A couple nuzzles under a bridge and she opens her blouse (no nudity is evident) and then manually stimulates the man -- sounds are heard but nothing is seen: we hear unbuttoning and know what they are doing, but there's no nudity; he moans and has an orgasm and then she flings his semen into the water. A woman sits on a man's lap and there is thrusting and moaning (no nudity). A woman flashes a boy one breast, a photograph shows two nude women and we can see both breasts of one, the side of the other's bare breasts and the side of her buttocks. A couple kisses and a man nuzzles a woman's neck. A man lies in his bath nude on his side and we see his hip, shoulder and the side of his torso. A woman wears a full slip, a man is in his boxers in one scene, a woman wears a transparent blouse in a few scenes and we can see her black bustier underneath, and a woman wears a black bustier under an open robe and we can see her cleavage. A man puts his hands down his pants to make fun of a man who keeps his belongings down his pants. Sexual innuendo includes comments like "do your pipes" and "I have something to show you."

VIOLENCE/GORE 5 - A man hits a woman on the head with a shovel, she staggers outside with lots of blood on her forehead and face, she falls and we see the blood on her face and a gash. A father slaps his son, and a father slaps his belt against a table and chases his son in an attempt to catch him and hit him with the belt. A boy turns on the gas in his house in an attempt to kill his parents -- and one does die. A man and a woman kick a shrouded corpse into a grave. A man holds a shard of glass in his hand, the glass and his hand are bloody, and he uses the glass to keep people away from him -- he threatens to cut out their hearts and two men put a mattress against him to subdue him. A man is over a woman with a hammer and a screwdriver, and we think he's about to hurt her but he doesn't. A man draws a shard of glass across his wrist but does not draw blood. A man throws a woman off his lap and her back hits a wall but she's not injured. A verbal argument between a couple is overheard by their son. A man tears up a jigsaw puzzle in frustration. We see a smear of blood on a piece of glass.

LANGUAGE 5 - 4 F-words, 2 anatomical terms, some mild obscenities, 2 scatological references, a few religious exclamations.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Mental illness, infidelity, childhood trauma, corporal punishment and child abuse.

MESSAGE - You never really outgrow a childhood trauma.

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


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