Parents' Guide to

Nocturnal Animals

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Stylish, stylized, remote drama is violent, intense.

Movie R 2016 116 minutes
Nocturnal Animals Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

age 17+

Based on 8 parent reviews

age 16+

much more sexual violence than indicated by the reviewer

unfortunately common sense media drops the ball on this one. Along with the violence described above, there's the simulated gang rape of an underage girl, you see her and her mother together, naked, dead and posed by the rapists, and a policeman graphically describes how they were murdered. much more disturbing than the review makes it sound and, at least we thought, not with any redeeming virtues.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
2 people found this helpful.
age 17+

There is a r*pe seen

There’s a r*pe seen, do not watch if that triggers you.
1 person found this helpful.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (8):
Kids say (6):

Though it's visually stunning, there's something clinical about the way this drama dissects the relationships it depicts, no matter the heat, anxiety, fear, and passion at their heart. Even its gut-wrenching performances, specifically Gyllenhaal's, can't wrench Nocturnal Animals back to its beating-heart center, rendering it more aloof than it needs to be -- or should be.

That's a pity, because the film is revelatory in some ways, a study in how heartbreak can be as savage as physical assault. The story-within-a-story structure works, for the most part, though it also halts the momentum at times. Still, Nocturnal Animals -- which was inspired by Austin Wright's book Tony and Susan -- is worth watching. And not just for Adams, who's impressive here (as is Laura Linney in a small-but-pivotal role as Susan's mother), but also to witness writer-director Tom Ford's confidence. If only the film more closely embraced the emotions at its core.

Movie Details

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