This is an outstanding look at the life of Ray Charles. Jamie Foxx gave a strong performance and deserved his Oscar. Young kids will be perplexed by the movie, and displays drug addiction in descriptive ways.
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Ray
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Not age appropriate for kids under 14, age appropriate for kids over 15; suggested age 14. -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Excellent portrayal of extraordinary musician.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 14–15
What to watch out for
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
About Ray
Parents need to know that this movie has very strong material for a PG-13; it's more like a PG-16. There are frequent sexual references and situations (non-explicit), as Charles has relationships with many, many women, even after he's married. One of the women becomes pregnant. Characters drink, smoke (constantly) and take drugs, including marijuana and heroin. A character OD's (off-camera), and there is a harrowing scene of detoxing after Charles decides to end his 20-year heroin habit. Characters use very strong language. A child is killed and another loses his sight. A strength of the movie is its frank coverage of the pre-Civil Rights era, where the "Chitlin' Circuit" was the (almost) all-black venues where black performers were booked. In one understated scene, it makes clear that no restaurants would allow black customers, so they had to make arrangements at the homes of black people along the way. In another scene, Charles refuses to perform in a facility that does not allow black customers and is sued by the promoter and banned from the state of Georgia as a result.
Read our full review by Nell Minow
Families Can Talk About
- Families can talk about what made Ray Charles strong and what made him weak. Should he have left Atlantic? How should he have treated Jeff after Joe told him what he did? Which of Aretha Robinson's advice to her son was the most important to him?
Our Members Say
Most Recent Reviews
- I rate this title iffy for age 2 and give it
The Best (And Only) Biopic I've Seen
- I rate this title iffy for age 2 and give it
good movie
If you are under 9 years, this is something that you are gonna want to watch as a family. this can teach you things about Ray.
- I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it
Good but know yur kid really well
Loved it but I would mke it R For Pervasive strong drug use,sexuality, and some emotinal upsetting thematic elements and breif violent content. The Drugs and Sexuality i this were a bit strong mostly the drug use though.
- I rate this title on for age 2 and give it
Sad yet inspiring, I remember seeing this one in theaters...
All I can say is that was my favorite movie when I wtched it on the opening weekend (until I started watching more movies). When a 15 (now) year old can tell that an actor is doing an amzaing job, you know that it has to be one hell of a performance-- which is what Jamie Fox gave. I didn't like how Ray kept cheating on his wife, and the movie did carry a sad tone most of the way through, until the end when he was welcomed back into his home state. There was a fari amount of iffy content, which included the sexuality, some language, and of course, Ray's addiction to heroine (when he first tried it, one of his friends said: "It's better than sex." to which Ray responds, "Nothing is better than sex.")-- so you can get an idea of what's in there. Also, some younger viewers might be sad during Ray's flachbacks to his childhood, especially given the way they were presented.
- I rate this title iffy for age 11 and give it
debating this for my 11 yr old
Such a wonderful movie -- and while there is drug use portrayed, it's such a powerful anti-drug message that I think it might be worth an 11-year-old seeing it, particularly one very into music. The sex isn't explicit, and much of it might even be over an 11-yr-old's head. Some scary scenes, I averted my eyes whenever the sibling-death images came up. But ultimately there are great values portrayed, and I think that balances out the bad stuff.
- I rate this title on for age 17 and give it
Wow! A must-see for all -- not just music lovers.
Definitely not for children, but definitely for mature teenagers. So much more to this movie than the normal PG-13 movie. Overcoming adversity, perserverence, the evils of drug use, the history of segregation in this country, the history of the soul music, etc.
The acting and the story are excellent. An superb group of African American actors tells a moving story about a great African American figure. Jamie Foxx is getting a lot of Oscar buzz and it is justified. Learned tons about Ray Charles that I didn't know and while he had severe personal weaknesses (drugs and sex) his ability to overcome his blindness, the racial prejudices of the 40's-60's AND even his drug addiction is truly inspirational. Some of the women portrayed are truly role models -- Ray's mother and his wife.
Proves that an R-rated life does not have to be portrayed in an R-rated manner.
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