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Parents' Guide to

Ibiza

By Brian Costello, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Sex and drugs in stale, raunchy romcom.

Movie NR 2018 94 minutes
Ibiza Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

  • Ibiza Movie: Scene One
  • Ibiza Movie: Scene Two
  • Ibiza Movie: Scene Three

Community Reviews

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age 17+

Based on 1 parent review

Zoethustra
Zoethustra Parent of 2 and 12-year-old
February 17, 2019
age 17+

Raunchy Gal Pals Make Good

If you are in your 30s or 40s and remember how great clubs used to be, you may like this movie. If you are into gal pal comedies set to an awesome soundtrack, you may love this movie. It is definitely raunchy, with some drug use, and a couple implied sex scenes, and plenty of sex talk, but it is also fun, hilarious, and the main character is just down to earth and self deprecating enough to be completely endearing. Loved this movie, but as a parent, I would say 17+ (or maybe a mature 16).

This title has:

Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
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What's the Story?

Harper (Gillian Jacobs) plays a 30-something stressed-out New York low-level publicist toiling under a demanding and seemingly unstable boss (Michaela Watkins). When Harper is sent on a work trip to Spain to land a sangria account, her best friends Nikki (Vanessa Bayer) and Leah (Pheobe Robinson) convince Harper to bring them along by converting her first-class ticket into three coach tickets. Harper does this, and the women land in Barcelona, where they get drunk and high, sunbathe on a nude beach, then go to a rave. It's at the rave where Harper first meets Leo West, a world-famous DJ. While both awkward, the two hit it off, and so the ladies decide to follow Leo to his next gig -- at a rave in IBIZA. Arriving on Ibiza, Harper, Nikki, and Leah must not only find a way to get to the club where Leo is performing but also make sure that Harper makes her flight the next morning to get back to Barcelona to attend the meeting with the sangria reps. After spending an unforgettable night with Leo, Harper must decide if she wants to continue grinding out a living for her tyrannical boss or use this weekend as a way to make a new start in love and life.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (2 ):

Ibiza is proof positive that the "lost weekend" movies have become a trite formula. In these movies, amid beautiful scenery and endearing and/or violent locals, there's always the quirky off-kilter character whose eccentricity manifests itself through odd one-liners, the character whose sole motivation is the attainment of casual sex, and then the relatively normal, dry-humored cynic who has grown weary and neurotic from too many failed relationships. These characters are set loose in these unfamiliar habitats to get into weird trouble resulting in at least one gross-out scene. They ingest various intoxicants in liquid, pill, and powder form, make bad decisions, get into awkward sexcapades, then somehow by the skin of their teeth make it back to the States, where the bond of their friendship has grown even stronger.

That said, the enjoyment one derives from Ibiza is inevitably dependent on whether or not the audience has grown tired of this formula. It's a decent movie in terms of the acting; Gillian Jacobs basically brings her character Mickey from the Netflix show Love to this movie. But the romcom aspect comes off as a little too forced and a little too convenient. Overall, it's a tired premise that we've seen before; older teens and adults can find better.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about "lost weekend" comedies in which characters cut loose from the stress and tedium of their day-to-day lives and engage in hedonistic acts they normally wouldn't do. What is the appeal of comedies like these? What are some other examples of movies with similar stories?

  • How is drug and alcohol use shown in the movie? Are there consequences? Do you think the movie glamorizes drug and alcohol use? Why, or why not?

  • How is sex portrayed here? Do you think it's realistic? How are sexual situations used to heighten moments of comedy?

Movie Details

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