Walk of Shame

Movie review by S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media
Walk of Shame Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Raunchy one-night-stand comedy relies on stereotypes.

R 2014 94 minutes
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Parents say

age 16+

Based on 1 review

Kids say

age 12+

Based on 3 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Walk of Shame is a raunchy, hard-R comedy about a woman (Elizabeth Banks) who has a very, very bad day after a drunken one-night stand. Stranded in central Los Angeles with no money, no phone, and no car, she endures a variety of misadventures as people mistake her for both a prostitute and drug dealer and refuse to offer help. Expect quite a lot of swearing ("f--k," "s--t," and more, plus plenty of sexual references), a night of very heavy drinking, some revealing outfits, a glimpse of a woman in her underwear, a few sequences with guns, drug references, and -- despite the fact that the movie is about the dangers of making assumptions about others -- some unfortunate stereotyping.

Community Reviews

johnswanson
johnswanson Adult
October 22, 2014
age 16+

Mildly entertaining, but definitely not appropriate for young teens.

This movie was a definite hard 'R'. There was one sort of sex scene in which nothing is really shown, but that's not the problem. There is so much explicit talk about sex, most of it due to the fact that the main character is constantly being mistaken for a prostitute, that unless you have mature older teens, you should not let them watch this. The main character also spends an evening with the sole purpose of getting drunk. The language is bad throughout, and there are much better movies out there to watch with your kids.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

Meghan (Elizabeth Banks) thought yesterday was terrible, what with getting dumped by her fiance and seemingly losing out on a huge job opportunity as a network news anchor. But after drowning her sorrows with countless tequila shots (and more) and going home with Gordon (James Marsden), the hunky bartender who comes to her aid, Meghan discovers that her troubles have only just started. It turns out she may just have a shot at that anchor gig after all, but when she leaves Gordon's apartment, she discovers that her car has been towed and she's lost in the middle of Los Angeles, without a cent to her name and no phone. Meghan has to get to the newsroom to meet the network execs, but how? Getting there means running into all sorts of situations, one worse than the next.

Is It Any Good?

While almost everything in Walk of Shame is tiresome, Banks is its one bright spot. Meghan also has a decent rapport with her friends and Gordon, who's as sweet and kind as can be. (He escapes the film's rampant stereotyping.) And at the very least, she isn't left to be a damsel in distress. But while she ultimately finds joy in being herself, the journey to that point is a big shame.

Meghan's misadventures follow a classic film formula, throwing her into situations that keep getting worse, upping the ante and daring her to react in ever more desperate (and, theoretically, funny) ways. But many of Meghan's escapades trade on overused, objectionable stereotypes, including black and Hispanic drug dealers, Asian women who work at a Korean massage parlor, cops who are just calling their jobs in, and orthodox Jews who view Meghan as a temptress.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why everyone makes assumptions about Meghan based on what she's wearing. What makes them think they know who/what she is? Has anything like that ever happened to you? What happened?

  • What message is the movie sending about sex and relationships? How about drinking? Do the consequences for Meghan's choices seem realistic?

  • The film stereotypes all sorts of people -- why do you think this brand of intented humor is still prevalent in Hollywood movies and TV shows? Does Meghan herself reveal any prejudices?

Movie Details

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