Parents' Guide to

Beautiful Boy

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Lots of anguish in heavy, repetitive drug-addiction drama.

Movie R 2018 120 minutes
Beautiful Boy Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

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age 15+

Based on 9 parent reviews

The bestttty
The bestttty Adult
January 24, 2021
age 17+

Very good

Such a good movie with really heavy themes. It talks about this guy who’s dealing with drugs and his father trying to save him. There’s obviously drugs, lots of swearing, some sex and depression. Very good but for mature people only.

This title has:

Great messages
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
KC1212
KC1212 Adult
April 20, 2020
age 16+

Extremely heavy with good messages

Based off of a true story, Beautiful boy is a very heavy and dramatic movie with extreme drug/substance abuse, some sex, plenty language, and overall intense themes. Although the movie is heavy it teaches very impactful and valuable lessons showing truthfully how dangerous drugs can be and how much they can mess you up. The parents in the movie and great role models trying to remain strong and help their son in the best ways they can. Beautiful boy is a difficult and heavy movie to watch but a movie that should be watched so people understand the danger of drugs in our world.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 9 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In BEAUTIFUL BOY, freelance journalist David Sheff (Steve Carell) is a divorced dad with a teen son, Nic (Timothée Chalamet), from his previous marriage to Vicki (Amy Ryan). Now David is married to Karen (Maura Tierney) and has two young children with her, but of course he still loves Nic, too, so he wants to help his firstborn deal with his drug use. David goes to a doctor to find out what to do, especially regarding Nic's new and frightening addiction to crystal meth. From there it's a bumpy journey as Nic goes to rehab, tries to straighten out, and then starts using again. David makes many trips out into the night to find Nic, and they share lots of hugs and meetings in cafes, during which Nic tries to hide that he's still using. Finally David comes to the realization that, as much as he wants to help, there's only so much he can do. The rest is up to Nic.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (9):
Kids say (38):

Expertly acted to be sure, this drug-addiction drama is also grueling and repetitive; it wobbles between making drug use look sexy and being an after-school special. Director Felix Van Groeningen previously made Belgium's Best Foreign Language Film Oscar nominee The Broken Circle Breakdown, and he uses the same techniques on Beautiful Boy as he did for that film: heavy-handed soap opera and scenes assembled out of chronological order for no discernible reason. Some scenes have no particular point of view -- or many points of view. And some seem mainly designed to break up the misery with happier memories from the past, although this ploy fails, since the return to the wretched present is inevitable.

Oscar nominee Chalamet (Call Me by Your Name) brings his trademark James Dean-like rebel swagger to his role, which is a young actor's dream: He gets to scream and cry and confess things from the depths of his soul, all while being the most attractive screen drug addict in some time. Carell gives a sturdier, quieter performance, although most of what he does is stare at computer screens, talk on the phone, or drive a car. Van Groeningen includes lots and lots of alt-rock songs on the soundtrack to illustrate the beauty or anguish of any given moment, but as the movie drags on toward the two-hour mark -- and viewers realize they've seen the same kind of relapse-argument-recovery sequences over and over -- it all starts to feel achingly tiresome.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Beautiful Boy portrays drug use/addiction. Does the movie warn viewers against drug use, or is it made to look appealing in any way? What are the consequences? Are they realistic?

  • What is the father-son relationship like? How do they communicate? How would you describe David's parenting style?

  • How accurate do you think the movie is to the memoirs it's based on? Why might filmmakers change things in movies based on true stories? How could you find out more?

  • Do you agree with David's painful decision? Was there anything else he could have done?

Movie Details

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