Parents' Guide to

A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Sheen's '70s-set comedy is a jumbled, sex-filled mess.

Movie R 2013 86 minutes
A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

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What's the Story?

Rich, successful graphic artist Charles Swan III (Charlie Sheen) is a known womanizer, but he's genuinely upset when his latest love interest, Ivana (Katheryn Winnick), dumps him. The reason? She finds Charles' not-so-secret stash of his exes' nudie pics. The break-up undoes Charles; as his life falls apart, viewers are treated to a high-concept, loopy look at his fantasies, memories, and fears.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Sheen playing basically a version of himself (the women, the booze, the drugs, the money) sounds good on paper, but in actuality it's predictable and boring. Roman Coppola is as well connected as a director can get: His father is Oscar winner Francis Ford Coppola, his sister is Sofia Coppola, his cousins are Nicolas Cage and Jason Schwartzman (who appears as Charles' singer-songwriter best friend), and his good friend and collaborator is director Wes Anderson. While Roman deserves credit for co-writing Moonrise Kingdom and assisting his sister on her projects, he's a self-indulgent director whose movie is little more than a stylized vanity project.

There are a few amusing visuals in the movie (like when feminist warriors aim their weapons at Charles for using one too many awful pick-up lines), but even the presence of Bill Murray, who pops up as Charles' put-upon business manager, does nothing to save this ridiculous exploration of a pathetic man's immaturity.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the way that sexual relationships are depicted in A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III. Is Charles' history with women positive? Parents, talk to your teens about your own values regarding sex and relationships.

  • Do you think the movie would have been better or worse with a different actor playing the main character? Is it funny to see Sheen play someone with personality traits that have been associated with him?

  • How does the movie portray the 1970s? How would you compare the depiction of the decade with other movies set in that time period?

  • Charles Swann is also the name of the titular character in Marcel Proust's Swann's Way. Are you familiar with the book? If you are, what are the similarities between Charles Swann III and Proust's Swann?

Movie Details

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