The Italian Job (PG-13, 2003)

common sense media says

Exciting heist film for teens and their families.


parents & educators say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this movie has a lot of tense scenes. Characters are shot and killed, and there are implications of other painful murders. Characters punch someone as a way to satisfy feelings of betrayal and revenge. The main characters are all thieves, charming or not, and while they show loyalty and are committed to crime without violence, they are hardly role models. There is some strong language and characters drink alcohol.

Violence: Characters killed, main characters are crooks but non-violent. Some tense scenes.
Sex: Sexual references.
Language: Some strong language.
Consumerism: Basically an ad for mini-Coopers.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Drinking and smoking.

More on The Italian Job

What to talk about

Talk to your kids

Families can talk about why we are able to identify with characters in a movie that in real life we probably would not want to cheer for. Why are these people theives? Will they stop?

What's the story?

What's the story?

THE ITALIAN JOB begins with the theft of $35 million in gold bars. Then, a second theft occurs as one of the team double-crosses the others and, thinking he has killed them all, takes the gold for himself. Now, the rest of the team tries to get the gold back. The team is led by Charlie (Mark Wahlberg), and includes genius tech whiz Lyle (Seth Green), genius demolition whiz Left Ear (Mos Def), genius getaway driver Handsome Rob (Jason Statham), genius safecracker Stella (Charlize Theron), the daughter of Charlie's great mentor -- and genius safecracker John (Donald Sutherland). They want to get the gold back from colleague-turned-enemy Steve (Edward Norton), who killed John. Stella just wants revenge. And if a little romance enters into the picture, no one should be too surprised.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

Charlie keeps telling Steve that he has no imagination, an unfortunate reminder that the movie, a remake of a Michael Caine caper film doesn't have much, either. But it has enough panache and charm to make it an enjoyable genre film. Def, Green, Statham, and Sutherland deliver their usual top-notch performances, even when the script gets formulaic. Norton, who reportedly was not happy about being contractually obligated to do the film, at least acts as if he was not happy about being contractually obligated to do the film.

The film's biggest waste of time is a running Napster joke that is two years out of date and tired the first time it is used, excruciating by the 10th. Apparently, they were stuck with it because of the appearance in the film of real-life Napster creator Shawn Fanning in the film, a joke maybe one percent of the audience will get and one tenth of one percent will care about.

Movie themes & details

Movie Details
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Director: F. Gary Gray
Cast: Charlize Theron, Edward Norton, Mark Wahlberg
Genre: Action/Adventure
Run time: 104 minutes
Theatrical release: May 30, 2003
DVD release: October 7, 2003
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: violence and some language

This review was written by Nell Minow
 
 

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What parents & educators say

11

Most useful reviews by all members

edk012
parent
 
Great movie, but there's one big problem.
This was a really fun movie and I've enjoyed watching it several times now. The thing I think parents need to be careful about is the way the movie portrays crime. In the beginning you've got thieves stealing most of whom all of the sudden become the victims of the "bad" thief. As the saying goes...there is no honor amoung thieves. On top of that the casting is very good, so it's easy to love the good "bad guys" in this movie. There are a lot of movies that do this, just make sure you have a conversation with your children about what really happens to criminals the majority of the time. Oh, one other thing is that there is a part toward the end where one of the characters makes a reference to being filled with the Holy Spirit. Funny part, but makes light of sacred things.

 
Good Action
This is probably one of the best not R-rated action movies you will find. I've seen it several times, and it's very cool.

4Spice
adult
 
very good 11 and up
very good its almost like oceans eleven lots of action and the movie is funny too 11 and up some people consider this movie a classic

Irateyourmovies
teen, 15 years old
 
Stealing and Revenge- is pretty much what this is about
Ok, this movie is not the best example for kids. Seeings how it is all about stealing money and revenge. But along the way there is some really good parts. Besides the car chases are amazing seeings how they used austin minies!(Best car in the world) Anywho, wouldn't miss out. But I would say don't let kids under the age of twelve, watch it unless they are mature.

Jostriker
teen, 15 years old
 
iffy for 12 and under
amazing move one of my favs the lingo is not to bad there is 1 fu#@ it is implied that a man will get crushed by machines that tear down buildings but you dont actually see it.

 
Exciting, Full-Throttle Heist Flick is Very Fun!
This is a very fun and entertaining film. The acting is superb and the writing is top-notch. The action sequences are also exceptional and fun to watch. There are clever one-liners and heist plans. PARENTS: Not too much to watch out for, there are only a few shootings and punches; there are multiple intense car chases and heists, but that's it. There is also strong language and some sexuality. I highly recommend this film. Thanks for reading - Movie Man

 
Very engaging
Engages the audience to the characters as well as the plot. Very fun, exciting, enjoyable 2 hours. Seen it 5+ times and loved it the same each time

mattthemovieman
teen, 17 years old
 
one of the best
really good. contentsome mild violence and a man wakes up with a girl in her panties and some brief strong language

Eragonfan
teen, 17 years old
 
Great Teen movie
A man and his group of robbers steals gold from Italy, but one of the members goes bad and kills the leader. He then takes all of the gold away from them, years later the members of the group seek revenge. Strong Language and some strong Violence. rate: 4 stars not for 12 and under

zorba1994
teen, 16 years old
 
A solid heist pic
Good film. Here's the lowdown Sex: A seemingly post sex (morning after) seen, no nudity, guy walks off before girl wakes up. A character replaces a conversation he can't hear with possible words to himself, involving taking virginity. Violence: One gruesome seen with a body floating in water. Guns, a character is sent to his fate, which probably involves being crushed by a garbage compounder Social Behavior: The characters or robbers, but it's implied that they only steal from crooks. Language: 1 f-k some less severe words, 3 flip offs. Drugs/alchochol: Cigarrettes and beer, but no one gets drunk. Seriously, what kid hasn't seen that. All in All 11+

 
Edge-of-your-seat action!
This is an exciting movie clean enough for anyone 12+. There's some iffy content for anyone younger. The main characters steal for a living, so the good guys are bad guys, and the bad guys are REALLY bad guys. The movie never slows down, I enjoyed it alot. But it may be akward telling your kids that the good guys are the ones they see stealing.

brownie
adult
 
Questionable Message
This was a very exciting movie no doubt... packed with action, cool cars, and great computers. However, it contained plenty of questionable elements. It placed a very high vaulue on money, money, money. It excused stealing and lying. Also language and violence marred the film. Would not reccomend it to an adult or child.

Cinnamoe
teen, 15 years old
 
Entertaining!
A very entertaining film with many twists! Some language and sexual comments. There aren't really any positive messages or role models, I have to say, but it is fast-paced and exciting. Solid entertainment!

adrian
adult
 
Finally an action movie without the sex and non-stop swearing
We enjoyed this movie. As Christians, we have a hard time finding movies that we approve of for ourselves let alone would let our kids watch. Other than a bit of swearing, which could have been left out, the movie focused on just being a fun, action-packed, intelligent film. It was full of cool chase scenes and was a lot of fun. It was fast-paced and never boring. The story line was original and well-written. We let our 9 year old watch this movie and there were no spots where we didn't think he should cover his eyes or ears. A bit of swearing like I said but it was still a refreshing experience to go to a movie and not have a list of offences afterwards.

mferguson03
teen, 18 years old
 
Fun to Watch
I loved the main characters and the way they interacted with each other. The action scenes were pretty cool, and overall, it was great. The only downside was the language.

ed1993
adult
 
Terrible "remake" of a classic
Yeah, it's suitable for the over 9's, but the plot is thin, the humour thinner. Buy the original!

 
not complete torture
A great movie to see with young teenagers or fairly together 9-10 year olds. Lots of chase scenes, vaguely ironic humor that kids love to pretend they understand and good bloodless explosions if you like that sort of thing which I do. One 9 year old wanted to know why everyone was "feeling on" Charlize Theron to which the other 9 year old answered with feigned sophistication that it's because "everyone thinks she's cute". So the sexual content is benign at worst, puzzling at best; there is one scene in which Edward Norton shoots repeatedly into the water hoping to kill his former cohorts and another in which he shoots the gold dealer at close range. Gross and disturbing but no worse than most tv shows. The consensus was "awesome" mostly because of the chase scenes and cool ingenious ways they managed to steal the loot. Harmless.

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ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age