Bad Times at the El Royale

Bad Times at the El Royale Poster Image

Jeffrey M. Anderson

By Jeffrey M. Anderson , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Dark, violent crime movie has some inspired moments.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Bad Times at the El Royale is a Tarantino-esque crime movie with tons of stylized, over-the-top violence. You'll see lots of guns and shooting (including murders via shotgun), bloody wounds, blood spatters, death, punching and hitting, knives, and stabbing. Women are shot, punched,…

Why Age 17+?

Violence & Scariness

Extremely strong, over-the-top, bloody violence. Guns and shooting, with deaths

Very strong language includes uses of "f--k," "s--t," "Jesus f---ing Christ," "h

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Character shown passed out with a needle sticking out of his arm; he appears to

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Naked man on beach shown in silhouette. Reference to a "whore." References to pe

Products & Purchases Not present

Any Positive Content?

Positive Messages

Messages aren't the point here, but there's some attempt at teamwork later in th

Positive Role Models

All the characters are on the wrong side of the law, are victims, or have shady

Violence & Scariness

Extremely strong, over-the-top, bloody violence. Guns and shooting, with deaths via gun (very first scene is shotgun murder). Characters die; one murder revisited multiple times from different perspectives. Blood spatters. Bloody, gory wounds. Scene of Vietnam War shows hundreds of dead bodies. Woman tied to chair; hostages tied up. Knives and stabbing. Punching, hitting with blunt objects/bottles. A man hits a woman. Fighting; one fistfight involves a young girl. Flashback to a scene with abusive father, two little girls. Characters shoved up against wall. Car wreck. Reference to a man beating a "whore." References to many violent, twisted acts. A woman's career is threatened unless she does a producer a "favor."

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Language

Very strong language includes uses of "f--k," "s--t," "Jesus f---ing Christ," "hell," "a--hole," "goddamn," "negro," "whore."

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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Character shown passed out with a needle sticking out of his arm; he appears to be an addict. Fairly frequent smoking, social drinking (whiskey). A man slips a drug into a woman's drink.

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Sex, Romance & Nudity

Naked man on beach shown in silhouette. Reference to a "whore." References to people having sex/sexual acts. Shirtless man shown frequently. Brief image of a topless woman. Implied sexual relationship between a young girl and an adult man.

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Positive Messages

very little

Messages aren't the point here, but there's some attempt at teamwork later in the movie, with characters using their skills/abilities to help others. Some forgiveness/compassion.

Positive Role Models

very little

All the characters are on the wrong side of the law, are victims, or have shady pasts. Some keep trying -- and reveal goodness/humanity -- but overall these aren't characters to admire.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Bad Times at the El Royale is a Tarantino-esque crime movie with tons of stylized, over-the-top violence. You'll see lots of guns and shooting (including murders via shotgun), bloody wounds, blood spatters, death, punching and hitting, knives, and stabbing. Women are shot, punched, and tied up, and a war flashback includes hundreds of dead bodies. A man is shown naked in silhouette; nothing sensitive is visible. There are also spoken references to sex/sex acts and prostitutes. Language is very strong, with many uses of "f--k," "s--t," and more. A character is shown passed out with a needle sticking out of his arm, and there's fairly frequent smoking and drinking (whiskey). The director (Drew Goddard) and cast (Jeff Bridges, Dakota Johnson, Chris Hemsworth, Jon Hamm, and more) will no doubt appeal to many, and while it's a bit flat in places, there's enough here to make it worth a viewing for mature moviegoers. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.