Parents' Guide to

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Crass comedy has lots of sex, nudity, language.

Movie R 2008 111 minutes
Forgetting Sarah Marshall Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 16+

Based on 10 parent reviews

age 16+

Quite Funny, For Older Teens

Now, I’m not a particularly strict parent at all. I met my kids watch way more than most parents. But even I think that this is best suited for the grown ups. I’m normally fine with nudity, but this movie has at least three scenes of male nudity and I believe one with female breasts(I haven’t watched in a while). Despite this, the movie is quite funny. Lots of crude humour and drinking

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
1 person found this helpful.
age 18+

Disgusting

In the first ten minutes there was extensive male full frontal nudity. I was so put off by the director’s clear lack of discretion I turned it off. I don’t want to see that, and no kid should be subjected to that.

This title has:

Too much sex
1 person found this helpful.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (10):
Kids say (35):

From the movie's skin-baring setup to its end credits, you can't help but root for musician Peter. He's wasted his talents scoring Sarah's stereotypical crime show, instead of working on the vampire puppet opera that showcases his quirky sense of humor. Segel, who wrote the script, is as appealing here as he is on his own TV show, How I Met Your Mother. He has an ear for dialogue and manages to convey the complexity of relationships. And he's supported by a winning cast (his chemistry with Kunis is particularly fantastic) -- the most memorable are Brand, who's simply perfect as Snow, and Paul Rudd, who plays a surfing guru who's taken one toke too many.

But no matter how much you root for Peter, something's missing from this Judd Apatow-produced film when it comes to genuine laugh-out-loud moments. Chuckles, yes, but belly laughs? Not so much. That's because the scenes feel curiously un-punchy; it's as if we've heard these jokes before. Even the much-talked-about naked scene is a letdown (no lewd pun intended). It's just not as funny as it could be. That may be because director Nicholas Stoller allows the movie to meander from one mishap to the next without differentiating peaks from valleys.

Movie Details

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