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Code Name: The Cleaner

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 13, age appropriate for kids over 15; suggested age 13.
  • Is it any good?

    1.0
  • Common Sense says

    Amnesia action-comedy might hurt your brain, too.

Why We Rated This iffy for Ages 13–15

What to watch out for

  • Messages:

    Terrible behavior all around: lying, cheating, killing, and lots of lust. Women are largely objectified, and stereotypes are constantly played for humor.
  • Violence:

    Jake first appears in a bed with a corpse (blood on pillow and body, blood on Jake's head); repeated "flashbacks" to action scenes show Jake in special forces unit (they carry and shoot guns, break windows, explode grenades, and engage in martial arts combat); Jake falls out a window onto a car; Gina frenzy-slaps Jake several times (treated as comedy); men shoot through the roof of Gina's car and she shoots back (both men presumably left dead); martial arts fights (kicks, hits, loud sound effects).
  • Sex:

    Sexual/comedy situations push edge of the PG-13 rating: Jake fondles the body in bed with him as he wakes, not seeing at first that it's a dead man; Jake's action-scene fantasy includes him slapping an old woman's butt by accident (she smiles and adjusts her skirt afterward); sexual dance by Diane in skimpy pink underwear (Jake refers to "little Jake" and calls Diane a "freak"); Jake is mistaken for online sexual partner by creepy guy (who notes the online user names "hotbuns69" and "sweaty and ready"); hiding in the car, Jake puts his face in Gina's lap and suggests he feels "someplace familiar" janitor raps about using a "plunger" creepy joke about Jake being "good at" sex; outtakes accompanying closing credits include more sex jokes, both verbal ("How long I been hittin' it?", "You making willy chilly") and visual (an especially egregious gag involves a man bending over and asking that a man with a gun "Put in my ass!").
  • Language:

    Frequent uses (over 10 each) of "damn," "s--t" (some accompanied by "bull"), and "hell,"(repeatedly, "Hell, no!"); also "dumbass," "bitch," "shut up, you idiot," and references to "Dutch chocolate" and "Mandingo" (referring to Jake).
  • Consumerism:

    Repeated images of Lacoste shirt, Jaguar and Saab cars, Skittles, Jet magazine, Sweet 'n' Low, Best Buy; verbal references to Tater Tots, Spider-man, Lionel Richie, Ricola, Papa John's, Quiznos, Crazy Chicken.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Use of "truth-telling" injection makes Jake look drunk and prompts a joke about the drug causing cardiac arrest ("his heart will explode"); hateful joke about an Asian hotel attendant's pronunciation ("refill the minibar" becomes "reefer in the minibar"); reference to mai tais.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About Code Name: The Cleaner

Parents need to know that this dreadful spy comedy pushes the PG-13 edge with regard to sexual imagery and humor. Main character Jake makes lots of crude jokes about his "prowess," and women constantly appear in various states of undress and/or otherwise show off their assets (Nicollette Sheridan essentially reprises her vavoomy Desperate Housewives role, but it's not funny here). The movie's action-comedy-style violence is broad and brutal (though mostly bloodless), including shooting, car crashes, grenades exploding, and martial arts fighting. Language is obnoxious, with slang and obscenities used to mark Jake's "blackness" (that is, his difference from wealthy white folks), including repeated uses of "s--t," "damn," and "hell."

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Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about the movie's use of class and race stereotypes -- particularly the way it contrasts Jake's working-class "blackness" with the rich white characters' stuffiness. Does embracing stereotypes for comic effect make them easier to swallow? Why are jokes based on stereotypes more or less funny depending on who delivers them? Families can also discuss the film's treatment of its female characters. How do the two main women embody the opposite versions of Jake's fantasy self?

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Most Recent Reviews

  1. Teen Reviewer Age 15
    Lives in Massachusetts
    I rate this title iffy for age 2 and give it 3.0

    Way funnyer than it looks!

    When I got this movie it looked TERRIBLE! But I am really glad I watched it! There is quite a lot adult material tord the start of the movie but after that its ok. This movie will be fine for 12+

  2. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    Lives in Georgia
    I rate this title on for age 2 and give it 5.0

    this is a good moive

    that movie was the best movie out of all the movie i seen but there was toooooooooo much sex!!! kides whach that movie too

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