Parents' Guide to

Juliet, Naked

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Strong language in slight but effective tale of music, love.

Movie R 2018 105 minutes
Juliet, Naked Poster Image

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

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What's the Story?

In JULIET, NAKED, cultural arts professor Duncan (Chris O'Dowd) runs a web forum dedicated to an obscure American alternative musician named Tucker Crowe, whose 1993 album Juliet Duncan considers a masterpiece. Meanwhile, Duncan's longtime girlfriend, Annie (Rose Byrne), is stuck running a museum that was left to her by her father -- and putting up with her boyfriend's obsession. When a package containing a mysterious early version of the album called Juliet, Naked arrives, Annie listens to it before Duncan. Duncan is furious, and he gets even angrier when Annie posts a negative review of the album on the forum. Weirdly, she receives a message from none other than Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke) himself, telling her he agrees with her. They start corresponding regularly, unloading their troubles on each other. When Duncan announces that he's having an affair, Annie leaves him and becomes even closer to Tucker. But what will happen when Duncan finds out about her new friend?

Is It Any Good?

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

Based on a novel by Nick Hornby, this romantic drama is slight and narrow in scope, but its performers are dedicated, and its passions run deep. Older viewers who remember falling in love with an album well before the days of MP3s and streaming music services will identify with these lovable misfits, who approach High Fidelity-level music-nerd territory. Juliet, Naked isn't a story of dreams coming true but of learning to let go of the past -- or perhaps learning which parts of the past to let go of. The movie gets points for humanizing its rock 'n' roll star and for Hawke's all-too-human portrayal of him. Tucker is a mess, and the links between his music and his mistakes are easy to see.

Juliet, Naked also creates, in its margins, a roster of younger characters who are coming of age in this weird, complicated world. This movie doesn't simply take place in a vacuum, focused on its three main characters. It exists in a world in which consequences ring far and wide. The music is, of course, important for holding everything together, and a sequence in which Tucker performs The Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset" is a true beauty. Jesse Peretz directs with a surprising non-slapsticky softness of touch, similar to his work in the wonderful Our Idiot Brother, and the screenplay is co-written by such humanists as filmmaker Tamara Jenkins (The Savages) and Oscar-winner Jim Taylor (Sideways).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Juliet, Naked depicts sexual relationships. How does Tucker come across? How did you feel about Duncan cheating on Annie? Annie confiding intimately in another man?

  • Have you ever loved an album as much as Duncan loves Juliet? If so, what does that album mean to you? How has it changed the more you listen to it?

  • How does Tucker relate to his children? Is he a good father figure? What could he do differently?

  • Have you ever had a hard time letting go of the past, or something that represents the past? How?

  • How are Duncan and Annie's experiences in the online forum similar, or different, from yours?

Movie Details

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