Carrey's commentary on religion is funny, but more thought-provoking than "oh man, that had me crying" scenarios. I think we all have wanted to play God at some point in our lives.
Bruce Almighty
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Happily deranged comedy has normal Carrey humor.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 14–15
What to watch out for
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
This review of Bruce Almighty was written by Nell Minow
Parents need to know that this movie has very mature material for a PG-13, including very strong language and crude humor after a thug makes a rhetorical reference to a monkey coming out of his butt. Bruce gives "pleasure" to Grace as they prepare for a sexual encounter. There is an extended joke about a dog who is not house-trained. Characters drink alcohol.
Families Can Talk About
Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
- Families can talk about what they would do if they had God's powers. How would they decide the best way to respond to prayers? Most of the prayers in this movie are "petitionary," meaning that they are asking for something, usually love, money, or status-related. What other kinds of prayers are there? Some families will want to discuss their own ideas about God and prayer.
Have you seen it? Review It!
More on Bruce Almighty
What’s the Story?
Jim Carrey is Bruce Nolan, a television news reporter who wants to do serious stories and he thinks he should be the anchor. When he loses the anchor job to a rival (Comedy Central "Daily Report's" Steve Carell), he furiously explodes on the air and is fired. He thinks that life is very unfair, and so he complains to God. God challenges him to try out His powers, as long as he does not tell anyone or interfere with free will. Bruce spends the first week using the powers for cheap thrills (he parts the red soup instead of the Red Sea and makes the cars blocking him in a traffic jam move out of the way) and petty payback. But then Bruce has to realize that power and responsibility go together and that he cannot be happy until he understands that other people's happiness has to come first.
Is It Any Good?
Who wouldn't like to be able to do anything without any guilt or accountability? That part of BRUCE ALMIGHTY is fun and very funny, especially when Bruce makes his rival mess up on camera. But the part about Bruce's redemption is not successful, because viewers are never really persuaded that Bruce cares about anyone but himself. There is a hollow and even faintly creepy sense that the people behind the movie don't really believe the message themselves.
Bruce's carelessness in lassooing the moon (a reference to It's a Wonderful Life that is underscored later on when we get a glimpse of that scene on television), unleashing an asteroid, and making hundreds of lottery winners, is portrayed as humorous. Even though we get glimpses of the disasters he causes, Bruce never has to clean up the mess. And when Bruce tells God that he wants to solve the problems of world hunger and peace, God tells him that is a "Miss America answer" and His goal seems to be to get Bruce to think about what would make him happy with no regard for anyone but himself and the woman he loves. The result is a movie that, despite some very funny moments, makes the same mistake as its main character without learning any lessons about maturity or responsibility. It teeters between happily deranged comedy and sentimental fable, but is unsatisfying in both categories.
Movie Details
Studio: Universal Pictures, Director: Tom Shadyac
Run time: 101 minutes
Theatrical release: 05/23/2003, DVD release: 11/25/2003
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, sexual content and some crude humor.
Run time: 101 minutes
Theatrical release: 05/23/2003, DVD release: 11/25/2003
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, sexual content and some crude humor.
Our Members Say
See all 42 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
Humorous rather than laugh-out-loud hilarious
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
So funny! Age 11+
I laughed again and again the first time I saw this movie. It has some fairly strong language for a PG-13, but it's not frequent. There is some sexual behaivor, but it's mostly just kissing and sexual humor. I watched it with my friend and his brother and we all loved it. I have now seen it a number of times and each time it gets funnier! This movie is wayy better than Evan Almighty, but it has a different story. Go see Bruce Almighty and love it like I did!
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I rate this title on for age 4 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
Silly!
VERRY SILLY!
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Negative role models
very good 11 and over
good movie very funny has a good point 11 and over
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I rate this title on for age 2 and give it
- My highlights are:
this is awesome
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I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
Very Funny
Hahahaha I loved this movie. This movie is for anyone who loves Jim Carey and is looking for a laugh
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I rate this title iffy for age 8 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
LOL
this was soo funny especially since jim carrey was in it
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I rate this title on for age 5 and give it
Funny movie
hahaha i am still laughing this movie is hillarious
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I rate this title on for age 9 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
- Negative role models
- My highlights are:
- Good role models
teens are fine,but tweens need their parents.
i love the jokes in this show. the worst thing is one f**k and a few fingers by the main character.also s**t and a** also used with hole.also mild sex stuff so it is not that bad tweens.although there is a few violent parts,one with blood. the movie is about a man who insults god because of his very bad luck but soon get's god's magical powers.okay for tweens with adult supervision.
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I rate this title on for age 8 and give it
Funny moments. Hilarious jokes.
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I rate this title on for age 9 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
AWESOME
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I rate this title off for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
SO BAD!!!
I HATED this movie!!! I will never watch it again!
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
This movie is funny. It does have language and very mild sexual material but thats it. If you want a funny comedy then rent Bruce Almighty.
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I rate this title iffy for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
iffy movie
funny but says f-word a lot
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Love It
This is funny, I loved it. So many people hate it because of the "god" stuff. I don't care, I say OH MY GOD! all the time, so I don't care. It's funny, and there is only 1 sex scene, which doesn't matter. It's very funny. This is kind of thing you should buy. The sequal isn't near as good. I ssuggest this to kids 5+ as long as they don't repeat everything they say.
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I rate this title pause for age 17 and give it
Not for kids
There were some funny moments, and seeing Morgan Freeman's role is nice, but ultimately this movie was just...meh.
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
I loved this movie I wanted to buy it
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
A great movie.
Imagine being God.... That's the point of the movie. Nothing really made me think this movie was inappropriate, except Jim Carrey used the finger twice (that's all). It is a harsh thing to think you have to be 14 to see the movie (I am older, but still). I would say ages 7+ would like it (if your kids would get the movie, that is).
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I rate this title off for age 0 and give it
This garbage is just a waste of people's time and money!
This movie is trash. No good morals, nothing. I suggest never seeing this movie unless you want to see a stupid movie with ugly jokes and too much sexuality...
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