Nebraska Movie Poster Image

Nebraska

age 16+
(i)

 

Wonderful father-son bonding story with language, drinking.
Watch
Write a review
See all 7 user reviews
  • Review Date: November 13, 2013
  • Rated: R
  • Genre: Drama
  • Release Year: 2013
  • Running Time: 115 minutes

Nebraska gallery

What parents need to know

Positive messages
A father and son become much closer to one another during a road trip, talking about their feelings for the first time and opening up more easily. This also leads to some occasional violent and/or illegal behavior, but nothing serious or unforgivable.
Positive role models
These characters are about as ordinary as you can get. Their problems and hang-ups are nothing unusual, and their achievements come to nothing more than finding a better connection between a father and son. They're not exactly bad people, but neither are they particularly heroic or inspiring. (The father may be an alcoholic; his family claims that he is, but he claims he's not.)
Violence
David gets into a bar fight, punching an older man. The father and son are jumped by two hooded, masked characters in an alley. Woody cuts his head open and some blood is shown. (He goes to the hospital for stitches.) There's also some arguing and threats.
Sex
Characters talk about sex, sometimes in fairly open, graphic ways (intended as humor). For example, the elderly mother character talks casually about her former lovers and -- in one scene -- lifts up her dress (her back to the camera) to show the grave of a dead boyfriend "what he missed out on." She uses phrases like "he wanted in my pants." No nudity is shown, and no sexual situations occur.
Language

"S--t" is used fairly frequently, and "f--k" is used at least once. "Bitch," "c--ksucker," "t-ts," "damn," "whore," "slut," "moron," "sumbitch," "screwing," "Goddamn" and "Jesus Christ" are also used.

 
Consumerism

Various signs and billboards are often seen while the characters are on the road, and various brands are shown in bars and in kitchens. They include Pepsi, Goodyear, Land-o-Lakes, and Craftsman. In a bar characters order Coors, Mountain Dew and Bud. A character works in an audio shop, and signs for Bose and Sony are visible. Onkyo is mentioned.

Drinking, drugs, & smoking
The father may be an alcoholic. Others claim that he is, but he denies it. (He says that beer doesn't count.) He drinks a great deal of beer over the course of the movie, and is drunk a few times. The son does not drink but changes his mind and drinks beer with his dad in a bar.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Nebraska is a bittersweet character-based drama telling the story of a grown son and his father reconnecting while on a road trip. Language includes several uses of "s--t, "at least one "f--k," plus lots of other strong or coarse language. Alcoholism is a potential concern: the father is said to be an alcoholic, but he denies it, claiming that he only drinks beer. (He consumes a great deal of beer during the movie, and is drunk once or twice.) The main character sustains a head injury and goes to the hospital for stitches (some blood is shown). There's a quick bar fight and a quick mugging in a dark alley, with no real consequences. Older characters sometimes discuss sex, somewhat graphically, but with humorous intent. Though viewers younger than 15 may not be interested in this downbeat film, older teens and their parents should enjoy this.

Parents say

Not yet rated
Review this title!

What's the story?

Aged Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) has been suddenly disappearing from his Montana home and starting to walk along the freeways. His wife Kate (June Squibb) is worried and angry, but Woody insists that he's only on his way to Nebraska to claim a sweepstakes ticket he received in the mail. His son, stereo salesman David (Will Forte), tires of picking him up during his wanderings, and despite the fact that he knows the ticket isn't real, agrees to drive his father to the sweepstakes office. While on the road, they visit family, have various misadventures, get into a little trouble, and grow a lot closer as father and son.

Is it any good?

QUALITY
With NEBRASKA, director Alexander Payne has taken a combination father-son bonding story-road movie and made it feel entirely fresh. This is partly because of his choice to shoot in moody black-and-white, and partly because of his unusual and spot-on casting choices of veteran character actor Bruce Dern and Saturday Night Live alum Will Forte. But mostly it's because of the delicate, lovely, bittersweet tone he conjures up and sustains throughout the entire movie. This movie is patient but not slow, sad but funny, and downbeat but hopeful.
 
Some of the movie's small towners may come across as caricatures, though the movie shows no sign of ridicule or malice. Like Fargo, whatever cartoonish tendencies the characters show, they're always rooted in real, recognizable behavior. But since these characters are not exactly verbose or eloquent, the miracle is how much actually comes across in these minimalist performances. It's a wonderfully moving and satisfying experience.

Families can talk about...

  • Families can talk about the issue of alcoholism. Why doesn't the main character admit to being an alcoholic? Is it true that "beer doesn't count"? How is the viewer supposed to feel about the characters' alcohol use?

  • Does the movie make fun of small town characters? Are they caricatures or stereotypes? Do they remind you of your own family members, or are they pure fictional creations?

  • What makes a character like Woody -- non-verbal, grumpy, stubborn -- so interesting?

  • How does black-and-white cinematography change the way the movie looks and feels? Would you have preferred it to be in color?

Movie details

Theatrical release date:November 15, 2013
DVD release date:February 25, 2014
Cast:Bruce Dern, June Squibb, Will Forte
Director:Alexander Payne
Studio:Paramount Vantage
Genre:Drama
Run time:115 minutes
MPAA rating:R
MPAA explanation:some language

This review of Nebraska was written by

Jeffrey M. Anderson
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are conducted by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

Quality

Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

Find out more

Learning ratings

  • Best: Really engaging; great learning approach.
  • Very Good: Engaging; good learning approach.
  • Good: Pretty engaging; good learning approach.
  • Fair: Somewhat engaging; OK learning approach.
  • Not for Learning: Not recommended for learning.
  • Not for Kids: Not age-appropriate for kids; not recommended for learning.

Find out more

About these links

Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization, earns a small affiliate fee from Amazon or iTunes when you use our links to make a purchase. Thank you for your support.

Read more

About Our Rating System

The age displayed for each title is the minimum one for which it's developmentally appropriate. We recently updated all of our reviews to show only this age, rather than the multi-color "slider." Get more information about our ratings.

Great handpicked alternatives

  • The Straight Story
    Great, but young kids may be bored and restless.
    age 13+
  • The Savages
    Affecting adult drama has mature themes, content.
    age 17+
  • About Schmidt
    Heartfelt Nicholson, not for kids at all.
    age 17+

For kids who love drama

Drama Movies That Tug at the Heartstrings
Coming-of-Age Movies
See all recommended movie lists

Browse more movies

Top advice and articles

What parents and kids say

See all user reviews

Share your thoughts with other parents and kids Write a user review

A safe community is important to us. Please observe our guidelines

Teen, 13 years old Written byThomasLovesCinema November 30, 2013
age 14+

Really Good Mature Movie

The movie it's a great piece of art. An awesome story in a incredible perspective of one specific part of society. It's great how you get deep into the situation. The acting was pretty good, the script was awesome, and this a movie that doesnt need lots of bottles of tomatoe juice and meat or other things for being just for mature audience, such an awesome artistic experiencie!.
What other families should know
Too much swearing
Was this review useful?
Flag as inappropriate 
Kid, 10 years old December 24, 2013
age 10+

SECOND BEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR

Absolutely brilliant. Bruce Dern is incredible as the lead role. Funny, moving and brilliant. Second best movie of the year after The Conjuring
Was this review useful?
Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 17 years old Written byB-KMastah December 1, 2013
age 13+

Why, oh why, did it try to be funny? It ruined it.

This movie is jarringly at odds with itself, almost shockingly so. The concept, beginning, and end work very very well, but the rest thoroughly tries to be funny, but it just never is. It's like the whole second act is relentlessly going against its own plot and filmmaking. The stereotypes aren't funny; actually, they're surprisingly uncomfortable, and I didn't like anyone other than Bruce Dern and Will Forte because they were annoying and mined for cheap giggles. Its pleasant to look at with its nice black and white cinematography and the acting is good, but the casting is a bit odd. (Bruce Dern should be Will Forte's grandfather, not father.) If only it was a drama, it would feel far more cohesive and far less self-polarizing. From a technical aspect, it's very good, but that aspect is casting a downcast tone, not a funny "look at my silly stereotyped family's shenanigans that are milked and mined for laughs." 6.6/10, okay, one thumb in the middle, average, etc.
What other families should know
Great messages
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
Was this review useful?
Flag as inappropriate 

See all user reviews

Poll

Did our review help you make an informed decision about this product?

Family Media Agreement