The Handmaid's Tale
Parents say
Based on 23 reviews
Kids say
Based on 19 reviews
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The Handmaid's Tale
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that The Handmaid's Tale (based on Margaret Atwood's novel) is the story of a potential future in which oppressed women are forced to be child-bearing "handmaids" for infertile high-ranking leaders and their wives. Expect many violent, sexual images that could be very disturbing: A screaming child is ripped out of her mother's arms by rifle-wielding soldiers, a rebellious woman is struck with a cattle prod and then dragged away to have one of her eyes removed (offscreen, but we see her bloody bandages later), people hanged for "misdeeds" (including being gay) are shown at length, women punch and kick a so-called criminal until he's dead, and more. Women are punished in a variety of awful ways, but perhaps most upsetting is the "ceremony," in which handmaids have sex with their "masters" while they lie on top of the wives. This institutionalized rape isn't glamorized, and it's upsetting to watch. Strong language includes "f--k," "s--t," "ass," and more. One character is briefly shown smoking a joint and offering it to another, and characters at a party drink beer out of red plastic cups. This is completely distressing material, but parents may still want to watch with mature teens to answer their questions and discuss any similarities Gilead has to our own reality.
Community Reviews
Watch this with your sons, as well as your daughters
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Civil liberties can be taken away so easily
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What's the Story?
Based on Margaret Atwood's same-named 1985 novel, THE HANDMAID'S TALE stars Elisabeth Moss as Offred, a desperate woman trapped in a transformed America. First fertility rates dropped and the environment was poisoned. Then radical conservatives were voted into office. Women's bank accounts were closed, and all political power was yanked from their hands. Finally, some women were rounded up and killed, some were deemed wives and allowed to live almost normal lives, and others were enslaved. Offred is one of those slaves, a handmaid who must have sex with her master in elaborate formal ceremonies in the hopes that she will bear children for him and his wife. If she fails, or if she's caught breaking the rules, she'll be sent to the Colonies to clean up toxic waste and die a horrible death. But Offred has a secret: She's not a believer. She's just waiting for the chance to break free, hurt those who have hurt her, and somehow find the daughter the state took from her.
Is It Any Good?
Creepy, multilayered, and expertly spun out, this spectacular drama makes its vision of a potential future seem all too possible. Offred had another name, another life, before she was captured and turned into "breeding stock." She went to college, she had a boyfriend, she took Uber rides. But when she tried to escape to Canada with her husband and her daughter, her husband was killed, her daughter taken, and Offred only spared death because she had proved herself fertile. Now her present consists of going to the market (where groceries are labeled with pictures, because women shouldn't read), cloaked in a blood-red dress and modest bonnet, always in the company of Ofglen, another handmaid on loan to another rich household.
Once a month, she has sex with the Commander (Joseph Fiennes) and hopes that it results in a child, because this is Offred's second posting. If she doesn't become pregnant soon, she'll be labeled an "unwoman" and sent to the Colonies to clean up radioactive waste until her skin peels off in sheets. Yes, as you may have gathered, this is a pitch-black tale. But Moss' deep, layered performance, the beautiful visuals, and powerful storytelling keep The Handmaid's Tale from being depressing. Instead, it's scary, discomfiting, and all too plausible.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Offred/June shows perseverance and courage in trying to find a way to rebel against her enslavement. Are these important character strengths? Are strengths such as these always praised and admired? Are they rewarded on The Handmaid's Tale?
Do you see any parallels between the American political landscape of 2017 and this drama? Do you think you're supposed to? What did you see on this show that brought you to that conclusion?
When they're doing their job, costumes underline things about a story being told or the characters in it. What do the costumes in The Handmaid's Tale tell you about who each person is? Have you read the book on which this drama is based? Are the costumes as they were described in that book?
TV Details
- Premiere date: April 26, 2017
- Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Alexis Bledel
- Network: Hulu
- Genre: Drama
- Character Strengths: Courage, Perseverance
- TV rating: TV-14
- Awards: Emmy, Golden Globe
- Last updated: October 13, 2022
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