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Parents' Guide to

Mob Land

By Jeffrey M. Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Surprisingly thoughtful crime drama has bloody violence.

Movie R 2023 112 minutes
Mob Land Movie Poster: Sheriff Bodie Davis (John Travolta) holds his gun

A Lot or a Little?

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

  • Mob Land Movie: Shelby Conners (Shiloh Fernandez, left) stands on his front porch at night, talking with brother-in-law Trey (Kevin Dillon, right)
  • Mob Land Movie: Looking sinister, Clayton Minor (Stephen Dorff) has his back to us, face turned slightly to the right and partly illuminated by a table lamp
  • Mob Land Movie: Sheriff Bodie Davis (John Travolta) sits on a front porch at night, his hands folded and held up to his face, looking concerned

Community Reviews

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age 12+

Based on 32 parent reviews

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age 2+

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See all 32 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In MOB LAND, Shelby Conners (Shiloh Fernandez) struggles to make ends meet for his wife (Ashley Benson) and young daughter, Mila (Tia DiMartino), in their Southern small town. His brother-in-law, Trey (Kevin Dillon), comes to him with a proposition. There's a "pill mill" doling out prescription pain medicines to locals, which makes tons of money and is apparently not well-guarded. Trey proposes a robbery. Shelby refuses at first, but after losing his job as a truck driver, he sees no other choice. It turns out that the operation is actually run by a powerful mob boss, and the robbery goes badly. Soon Clayton Minor (Stephen Dorff), a mob enforcer, turns up and kills Trey. Shelby learns that Clayton is holding his family hostage and is now required to help Clayton erase every trace of the crime. Meanwhile, Shelby's uncle, Sheriff Bodie Davis (John Travolta), is on the robbers' trail.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (32 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

After a too-familiar start, this crime drama slowly, surprisingly reveals itself as a potent exercise in existentialism, a thoughtful rumination on guilt and the dying of the American Dream. Let's face it, the "botched robbery" description and the B-level cast doesn't initially inspire confidence. But Mob Land takes off when Dorff's Clayton Minor arrives on the scene. He's a nihilist from New Orleans but also a student of human nature, seemingly curious about the inner lives of all the locals. His gravel-hard surface and the nature of his questions and ideas are a fascinating juxtaposition. Indeed, the very reason he doesn't kill Shelby is that he's curious about Shelby's reasons for the robbery and his guilt. To top it off, Travolta gives one of his most lovable performances as the avuncular sheriff, whose slow, polite drawl belies a smart twinkle in his eyes. Mob Land is the writing and directing debut of Nicholas Maggio, and if he can learn to keep from shaking the camera during action scenes -- as he unfortunately does here -- it will be interesting to see what he does next.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Mob Land's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?

  • How are drinking, smoking, and drugs portrayed? Are they glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?

  • Clayton Minor argues that everything is meaningless. Do you agree with him? Why, or why not? Does the movie itself share that attitude?

  • What does the movie have to say about the idea of the American Dream -- and the role of drugs in its perceived downfall?

  • Why doesn't Shelby tell the sheriff the truth about what's happened? Have you ever kept a secret that you maybe shouldn't have?

Movie Details

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