Parents' Guide to

Erased

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Copycat thriller mixes violence, father/daughter bonding.

Movie R 2013 100 minutes
Erased Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

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age 14+

Based on 1 parent review

KBFernando
KBFernando Adult
September 1, 2018
age 14+

Much better than reviews would have you believe

I am astounded by the low rating of quality, and the 17+ recommendation for this movie. I'm definitely more conservative with the movies I watch and this one was an extremely soft R. Very minimal swearing, no sex/nudity/innuendo. (just a hinted at romance that unfortunately...well anyways) Character development was good. Yes, the violence is hard hitting but it's never bloody and it comes in very short episodes. Overall an exciting, suspenseful movie and very entertaining movie. The relationship between the father and his daughter as well was believable and eventually, very sweet.

This title has:

Great role models
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What's the Story?

Ben Logan (Aaron Eckhart) lives in Brussels with his estranged teen daughter, Amy (Liana Liberato), and works as a security expert. After making a curious discovery at work, he wakes up to find that his entire identity has been erased. His office is gone, his bank account is gone, his BlackBerry has been deleted, etc. He deduces that he and Amy were supposed to have been killed but survived due to an accident. Now, as he races around the city to find out what happened, Amy starts to notice that there's more to her father than meets the eye; he seems to have been trained for this kind of thing. Events come to a head when the bad guys kidnap Amy, forcing Ben into a final, explosive showdown.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1):
Kids say: Not yet rated

German-born director Philipp Stolzl makes his English-language debut with this utterly routine thriller. ERASED (formerly known as The Expatriate) lazily borrows plot twists and ideas from many other recent thrillers, especially those starring Liam Neeson. Though Stolzl's work may be competent, his fight and chase sequences are numbingly familiar and barely even quicken the pulse.

The characters are perhaps even worse. Eckhart's Ben becomes a horribly unsympathetic dad, completely lacking in parenting instincts. He has somehow forgotten his daughter's deadly peanut allergy, and even when wounded in a fight, he dresses his own wounds before tending to hers. The movie attempts to make Liberato into a tough teen, but the attempt feels tired. And poor Olga Kurylenko has nothing to do but speak tensely into telephones and stalk around in various hallways. Blessed with a perfect title, Erased will quickly disappear from the memory.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Erased's violence. Does it seem too over the top? Is there too much violence for the teen character to be exposed to? How does her involvement affect the impact of the violence on viewers?

  • What's the relationship between the father and daughter like? How does it improve? Does it feel like they'll continue to grow closer?

  • Does it seem possible, or likely, that a person's entire identity could be erased? What kinds of questions does that raise about your digital footprint?

  • What would you do if you discovered your father was an ex-CIA man with deadly training? Is he a good role model?

Movie Details

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