Parents' Guide to

Okja

By Renee Longstreet, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Extreme peril, swearing in violent eco-fable.

Movie NR 2017 118 minutes
Okja Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

age 14+

Based on 19 parent reviews

age 15+

It's very good but the animal cruelty parts feel too real and are quite upsetting

Oh geez...what a film...the young star fits all of the requirements of a young and petite and Korean young peasant girl that lives in the mountains. Everyone plays their parts well. Swinton is of course commanding and Gyllenhaal appears to do what he is supposed to do and I am not sure that is enough. But that feels like it is more an issue of the writing than the performance although everyone goes ALL IN. As for Okja, I found that I was convinced he was real and the animal cruelty sounds are pretty horrific. This film reminded me of Snowpiercer and its moments of let down were similar. That is still an endorsement, I'm just saying it's not like Parasite.
age 15+

What the heck was that??

My 15-year-old son watched this movie for a school assignment. Since he's doing school at home, I watched with him. What the heck? This is a very violent movie, from the beatings during the parade to the previously mentioned pig rape scene, to the meat production line. Lots and lots of f-bombs. We both asked, who is the intended audience for this film? I'm into unusual movies, but this was not something I would recommend to anyone.

This title has:

Too much violence

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (19):
Kids say (32):

Alongside some outrageous comic performances and a lovely connection between a young girl and her giant pet pig lives a big, violent, imaginative ecological fable guaranteed to touch hearts. South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho has created a timely movie with larger-than-life villains; a calamitous, one-sided depiction of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) as an optional food supply; and a traditional "prince fights a dragon to save the princess" story at its heart. In this story, the "prince" is a little girl; the "dragon" is Tilda Swinton in a dual role, and the "princess" is an adorably lovable enormous pig. The director and his team have mastered the art of combining satire with farce and then hitting hard with solid notions about man's greed and his ability to destroy everything beautiful in his path. For families hoping to enjoy the fable and its messages with their younger kids, Okja is far too intense, violent, and fraught with animals under siege to make that work. The film is for mature teens only.

Movie Details

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