Father and child sit together smiling while looking at a smart phone.

Want more recommendations for your family?

Sign up for our weekly newsletter for entertainment inspiration

Parents' Guide to

Reclaim

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Thriller about child trafficking has violence, language.

Movie R 2014 96 minutes
Reclaim Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

See all
age 18+

Based on 1 parent review

LOLO13
LOLO13 Adult
April 10, 2020
age 18+

So Bad You'll Root For The Bad Guys

Some movies get made solely based upon the cast the producers are able to attach. I guess that's the case here. There are tons of good or even great screenplays that will never see the light of day. That this pile of crap got made is a tragic waste of resources. One of the worst written movies I've ever seen. Nonsensical plot twists. Characters making choices no human would ever make. Philppe and LeFevre proclaim themselves as "not stupid" early on, and then proceed to disprove this to the point that, by the end, you're hoping Cusak just shoots them and puts them out of their misery. Idiotic film. An absolute disgrace. Davies and Gaeta should lose their WGA cards. Alan White must be a moron too. Was any logic ever considered regarding the choices this couple makes?
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

Unable to have a child after a traffic accident, nice couple Shannon (Rachelle Lefevre) and Steven (Ryan Phillippe) have come to Puerto Rico to adopt a little Haitian girl, Nina (Briana Roy), who was orphaned by the 2010 earthquake there. Things go beautifully, except for the fact that creepy Benjamin (John Cusack) and his two suspicious cohorts are hanging around. After Steven has a strange, violent encounter in a bar, the couple wakes the next morning to find Nina gone. They've been scammed, taken for around $100,000. Benjamin has also discovered that they have much more in the bank, so he kidnaps them to get it. But Steven and Shannon aren't done fighting for their new daughter.

Is It Any Good?

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

RECLAIM is a totally routine movie that tries to combine a message about trafficked children with a lowbrow thriller about loved ones going missing in a foreign country. This fear has been better handled in better movies; meanwhile, Reclaim requires all of its characters to be completely dumb -- or at least very slow on the draw (even though the main characters reassure themselves that they're smart). For example, a trip to the bank to pick up the ransom money goes laughably wrong as both the good guys and bad guys try to outwit each other, with increasingly idiotic moves.

And then there's the fact that it takes Shannon more than a day to figure out how to escape the kitchen in which she's held hostage. The endless chase scenes are equally uninspired and illogical, but at least Nina is kept mostly safe. Cusack sometimes seems to be having fun playing the bad guy, but other times he just appears to be collecting a paycheck. Supporting cast members Jacki Weaver and Luis Guzman are fun, but they only appear in a couple of scenes each.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how child trafficking is presented in Reclaim. What kind of information does the movie want to impart? How could you find more information? What can be done?

  • How did the violence in the movie affect you? Was it thrilling, or did it have a more serious tone? How did the filmmakers achieve this?

  • What does the movie have to say about drinking and alcohol? Are the consequences realistic? How was Steven's drinking to blame for this predicament?

Movie Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

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

See how we rate