Adverse

Movie review by Tara McNamara, Common Sense Media
Adverse Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 16+

Terrible, violent revenge thriller; substance use, language.

R 2021 95 minutes
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Parents say

age 17+

Based on 1 review

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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 Adverse is an unbelievable, violent crime thriller that's full of familiar faces, including Mickey Rourke, Sean Astin, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jake T. Austin, and Penelope Ann Miller. But the (barely recognizable) star/executive producer is Thomas Ian Nicholas of the American Pie franchise. Violence is graphic and gory: Shootings, stabbings, and beatings look like an M-rated video game. One character is beaten until her face caves in. The film revolves around substance abuse, especially by high schoolers. Characters smoke, drink, and do drugs, and the "consequences" are more about the money it costs them to do the drugs, rather than the effects of doing them. There's also extremely heavy profanity throughout ("c--t" and pervasive use of "f--k") and brief nudity involving exotic dancers. Underneath all of the mature content is a message about the results of making hasty, poor choices.

Community Reviews

JayTM
JayTM Adult
March 29, 2021
age 17+

Rated "R" but worth the watch if you are old enough

This is a Rated "R" film and I recommend that you follow the MPAA guidelines for the age on this one and not let anyone under 17 see this film. Lot's of drug use and violence and a moment of nudity. The f word is used almost as much as Clint Eastwood's western Unforgiven. But just like an Eastwood film, it's a mature well done film with superb acting. In fact that's why I'm here cause I don't even know why this film and other rated "R" movies are even being rated here. I thought this was a site to see what parents should or shouldn't show their kids, if it's rated R - I know not to show my kids... But since someone has decided to lambaste a movie I think it good. Here I go. You may know the main actor Thomas Nicholas but you can barely recognize him in this role as the troubled character who would do anything to protect his sister. He really goes all in on this one and holds his own up against the veteran Mickey Rourke, the crime lord that is suffering from cancer while he makes others suffer, especially if they owe him money. All is centered around the main character with some heavy hitters such as: Lou Diamond Phillips as the parole officer, Sean Astin as the rider share boss and Penelope Ann Miller as the mom in some flashbacks. While it seems like it's going to be a typical revenge film and it does have some moments, It really centers around the relationship of the main character and his sister. He has a troubled past and is trying to do his best but bad things just keeps happening to the ones he loves. Something tells me his next expenditure after the end of the film is going to be in a getting a good therapist to really figure out his metal illness due to all his experiences. The cinematography is very versatile. From Dolley shots, drone shots, car mount, static handheld and steady cam. The film has it all. And from my film school friends they would notate that each style of shooting was used to convey the emotion of the characters. Including one super cool one steady cam sequence with a tire iron that is reminiscent of the movie "Oldboy" and the sequence is very motivated by the story and journey of the character. Anyway, This film is great. My only gripe is that it's got a slow pace for a while but once you start investing in the characters it really starts pick up the story telling momentum.

This title has:

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

What's the Story?

In ADVERSE, Ethan (Thomas Ian Nicholas) is a formerly incarcerated felon who works as a ride-share driver while raising his 16-year-old sister, Mia (Kelly Arjen). Mia and her friends have been drawn into a world of hard partying -- i.e., drugs. When Mia's drug debts stack up to the tune of $20K, Ethan must protect her against the crime syndicate that's demanding payment.

Is It Any Good?

Seeing all the familiar faces in the cast is about the only entertaining part of this truly terrible, nonsensical crime drama. Ethan means well: He made some mistakes and is now trying to rebuild his life while, quite honestly, doing a terrible job taking care of Mia. Through his work, he encounters Kaden (Mickey Rourke), the same drug lord/loan shark Mia owes money to. It turns out that Kaden's minions are having some issues with collections. Could that possibly be because 1) loaning tens of thousands to 16-year-olds isn't good business sense, and 2) the collectors have a habit of killing the people who owe them money? It doesn't take much to realize that this is a terrible business model. To make matters even more laughable, the menacing men who intimidate debtors through brutal violence operate out of a ride-share driver's Hyundai. (Mystery Science Theater 3000 fans, rev your engines.)

You've gotta hand it to Rourke, though, who gets in and out of that Hyundai with the panache of Don Corleone. He's actually too believable as an ailing crime boss. He hobbles on a cane with such conviction that you believe Rourke must be in that condition. (He's not, he's just a really good actor.) The other seasoned talent, who likely did all of their work in one day, shine despite the material they're given. Often, solid actors will elevate newcomers, but that's not so with the miscast Kate Katzman as Ethan's neighbor, Chloe. From the moment we meet her, smoking like a child puffing away on a candy stick, she's never believable, not for a moment. Nor is the movie's over-the-top, video game-style violence. Even Charles Bronson would shake his head at this one.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the appeal of revenge movies. Why do you think that theme speaks to audiences? Do the ends ever justify the means?

  • Talk about the consequences of subtance abuse. Are drinking and drug use glamorized in Adverse?

  • What do you think the film is trying to say about making choices?

  • Two of the stars and the director wrote and produced this independent movie. What challenges do you imagine they faced with a limited budget, and where did you see how they worked around that?

Movie Details

Our Editors Recommend

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    Masterful but really violent Oscar winner.

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    Action/sci-fi time-loop tale is fun but excessively violent.

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