Great story--I tell my 4 year old, but he'll have to wait til he's a lot older to see it because of the language, violence, and sexuality. I think common sense media must've forgotten about corey feldman's spanish interpretation to the housekeeper--bad language, drug themes, and lots of sexuality.
The Goonies
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
A classic '80s action-fantasy -- tweens will love!
Themes in this movie include: family relationships, friendship, growing up
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 10 and Up
The good stuff
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Role models:
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 The Goonies was written by Charles Cassady Jr.
Parents need to know this film is a rambunctious, noisy, pirate-themed treasure-hunt action-fantasy -- all the ingredients that kids will love. Kids are in peril, find a dead body, are being hunted by thieves who are after their treasure map, and fall into all kinds of trouble. Beyond the (now-dated) special effects, cavernous (literally) sets, stunts, hideous skeletons, and outsized props, there's a message about being yourself and bonding with your friends and siblings -- even if they're outcasts. Expect some vulgar humor and swearing (including "s--t"). The movie may be too scary for some kids, so know your kid before you watch.
Families Can Talk About
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- What kind of bond do these friends have? Are the characters relatable?
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More on The Goonies
What’s the Story?
THE GOONIES is set in a coastal town in the Pacific Northwest, where a homey, slightly ramshackle neighborhood called the Goondocks is threatened with foreclosure and redevelopment by nasty yuppies. Local kids, motley outcasts known as "goonies," are cleaning out when they find a treasure map and clues to the legendary loot of a 17th-century pirate chieftain, `One-Eyed Willie.' With that kind of windfall the goonies could save their homes. Clues lead the kids beneath a closed-down restaurant, lair of a crime family of counterfeiters, who keep a super-strong, monstrously-deformed son, known as Sloth (the late football star John Matuszak), chained in the basement. The bad guys chase after the children, who must negotiate a number of deadly Rube Goldberg booby-traps set centuries ago by One-Eyed Willie, as they explore through a maze of underground caverns and skeleton-strewn chambers (always nicely lit, somehow). Fortunately, a captured goonie, the fat, clumsy Chunk (Jeff Cohen) befriends Sloth, who lumbers to the whole gang's rescue.
Is It Any Good?
Imagine the Bad News Bears in the Temple of Doom of the Caribbean. That sums up this rambunctious, 1980s adventure romp from Steven Spielberg's production company and screenwriter Chris Columbus (himself later to direct the Harry Potter features). Director Richard Donner (whose Superman: The Movie is made the subject of one gag reference) got solid performances out of an ensemble of young talent -- Mikey (Sean Astin), Brand (Josh Brolin), Mouth (Corey Feldman), Chunk, Data (Jonathan Ke Quan). While Mikey's older sibling Brand tries to disassociate himself from the misfit goonies and hang out with the cooler guys at high school, by the end of the movie he's bonded with his kid brother. Of course, little emotional details like that are sometimes lost with the theme-park-scale waterfalls, waterslides, drawbridges, and a full-sized treasure ship around which the plot is erected.
Jonathan Ke Quan had just starred as the engaging little-boy sidekick opposite Harrison Ford in the blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and it's easy to pigeonhole The Goonies as much the same material, with less onscreen gore and pitched more obviously at the elementary-school and junior-high audience. And while there's nothing too wrong with that, The Goonies does feel every bit as long as its 114 minutes and contains some pretty obnoxious commercial-product placements and "cute" swearing. And no Johnny Depp or Harrison Ford in the cast to outdo the special effects, though the makeup people did a pretty good job on the grotesque Sloth.
Movie Details
Studio: Warner Bros., Director: Richard Donner
Run time: 114 minutes
Theatrical release: 4/6/1985, DVD release: 9/14/2000
MPAA Rating: PG
Run time: 114 minutes
Theatrical release: 4/6/1985, DVD release: 9/14/2000
MPAA Rating: PG
Our Members Say
See all 27 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title iffy for age 10 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
Great movie--just not for kids!
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I rate this title iffy for age 9 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- My highlights are:
- Good role models
Even kids in Middle school need to be checked in maturity rate bedfore atching this
Thsi PG movie is a bit to much for kids.You should let your kids watch if their MATURE.Great movie though
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I rate this title off for age 6 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
GREAT for big kids, but keep out of reach for small children. ;)
I decided to finally let my almost 8yr old watch it with me, but we talked about everything the whole way through. I definitely won't let my 2, 4, & 6yr olds watch it until they're older, but I love this movie and think it's a great and fun movie for 7 or 8 and up. It can get a bit scary, though.
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I rate this title on for age 8 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- My highlights are:
Very Cute!
i have seen the movie at least 10 times! It is soooo cute!
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I rate this title off for age 6 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
This is rated PG, my 4 and 6 year old have watched Harry Potter with us, also PG, which they loved (just closed their eyes for the scary parts) but we weren't prepared for the language, dead body and kissing scenes in this movie. The kids hated it, it was too scary and inappropriate for their age! I will check this site before letting them watch another PG flick!!!
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- My highlights are:
Not a problem for kids in Middle School
By the time kids hit Middle School, they've heard far worse language from their peers, in music, etc., than they'll hear in this movie, and they're mature enough to know what is and is not appropriate for them to use in school or at home. They certainly enjoy the movie, but I do think that a good deal of the "sh**" stuff was not necessary. I do agree that, if this movie were released today, it would probably be PG-13.
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I rate this title iffy for age 6 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- My highlights are:
- Good role models
We loved this movie! It made us laugh for days. We definitely agree that it is not for younger viewers, though.
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I rate this title on for age 4 and give it
the movie that will never die!
love this movie, such a great family fun movie!!!!!
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I rate this title iffy for age 6 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
- Negative role models
Good for tweens
Movie was great for my 8 1/2 year old, but my 6 year old son was scared of the gun fire and the "monster" downstairs.
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I rate this title iffy for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
Would Probably Be Rated PG-13 Today
The action and adventure of this movie is entertaining (kids on a hunt for lost treasure -- shades of Indiana Jones for the younger set) but I was a little dismayed by the persistent use of foul language and some of the sexual undertones of the older characters. A young boy (mistakenly) kisses his older brothers girlfriend and there is a scene where the band of boys try frantically to reglue a broken phallus onto a statue. The older female character wears a short tennis skirt throughout the movie and there are climbing scenes where you can see her underwear. There were a few moments where I felt a little uncomfortable with my 9-year-old son watching but we discussed the movie afterward and acknowledged that the language was not appropriate for him to use. I found the movie more appropriate for my 12-year-old son although I still found the language unneccesary and over-the-top for a childrens movie.
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I rate this title on for age 8 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
Tweens and up.
I LOVE THIS MOVIE!!! Its just a bit too overboard with kissing and cussing.
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I rate this title on for age 14 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
very bad language
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I rate this title off for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate language
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
I rented this movie based on my own memory from when it came out so many years ago. I took it out for my son's 11th birthday sleepover. The beginning of the movie starts with references to marijuana and uses of the "S" word. Not what I expected and I was surprised. We stopped the movie and put in another movie that we already had at home.
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
An absloute classic!
Salty language and sexual content surround the film, but it is always going to be on of my favorites!
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Kids were glued to the TV
Was a great movie for my eight year olds. Loved it as a kid and now as an adult.
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Wow!!!Was I surprised!!!
Even though the Goonies has been out for a long time, I just saw it a year ago!!!It was very good!!!It was interesting!!!I thought that it would be a boring movie!!!I suggest that you watch it!!!
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
A great movie
This is great for older kids. The only promlem is its overuse of the S word.
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
great
this is a great movie and i recommend it to anyone over the age of 10
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
One of my favorites
Loved this movie at a kid (10 or 11? I think). Watching it now w/ my 9 year old, I seriously wish I would have watched it again before allowing him to view it. Should be rated PG-13. Several references to sex, drugs, and crude language. Not so bad that it should be rated R, but be cautioned about younger kids.
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Great Movie
This movie is one of the best.
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Ratings at a Glance
| 80% | of parents say it has language their kids can't use |
| 30% | of parents say the sexual behavior isn't age appropriate |
| 30% | of parents say it's too violent |
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