Parents' Guide to

R.I.P.D.

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Lifeless, violent dud recycles many better sci-fi comedies.

Movie PG-13 2013 96 minutes
R.I.P.D. Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

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age 13+

Based on 6 parent reviews

tjohnson44
tjohnson44 Adult
March 23, 2020
age 11+

Best movie ever

This movie is definitely on my top ten list. They don’t swear to much there is a- - - - -e and s - - t and son of a b- - - h and slangs. In two different parts people/ monsters give people the finger. The violence isn’t that bad mostly just fantasy violence like when people and monsters get shot by the laser guns they disintegrate. There is one scene though where there is a big gun fight where lots of people get shot by actual guns but everything is bloodless. The sex isn’t that bad there are just some kissing and that’s all. But over all it’s a great movie wear you just can’t stop laughing.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much swearing
fastraxsg
fastraxsg Parent of 9 and 13-year-old
September 1, 2013
age 13+

the plot was boring and pointless

dissapointing. the plot was boring and unrealistic and the whole movie was a total letdown. the only thing i enjoyed was the love of the 2 married couples because it was very heartfelt. there was a make-out scene and some bad words. there was also some attempted humor that wasn't funny.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 6 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Boston police detective Nick Walker (Ryan Reynolds) would like to give his wife, Julia (Stephanie Szostak), a better life. A stash of gold found at a crime scene might be his ticket, but he's having second thoughts. When his crooked partner, Hayes (Kevin Bacon), hears this, he shoots and kills Nick. In the afterlife, Nick unwittingly becomes a member of the Rest in Peace Department. Now paired with a new undead partner, Roy (Jeff Bridges), Nick goes back to Earth to help send "deadoes" to the afterlife where they belong. Unfortunately, there seems to be a weird connection with Hayes, the gold, and a terrifying plot to bring the apocalypse down to earth. Can Nick and Roy solve the case and stop the evil plan in time?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (6):
Kids say (20):

This movie is a waste of time; you've already seen it done before, and much better. With lots of similarities to the Men in Black movies, Ghost, Ghostbusters, Beetlejuice, Heaven Can Wait (and its remake Down to Earth), as well as many other movies, R.I.P.D. comes across as almost totally lifeless, as if it were on autopilot or generated by a computer that had been fed certain data and asked to spit out a movie. Even a great actor like Bridges merely reprises his Oscar-nominated cowboy performance from True Grit ... without all the clever dialogue or character depth. (At least he gets a few laughs.)

Director Robert Schwentke settles for sub-par special effects -- the monsters look rubbery and fake -- and haphazard plotting: Knowing what he knows, why would Hayes shoot and kill Nick? The comedy falls flat, the action is unexciting, and, even worse, the romantic angle is hopeless given that the hero is dead and his wife is still alive; it's too heavy an idea for such a "light" movie.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about R.I.P.D.'s cartoonish violence. Was it scary or exciting? Does any of it seem real?

  • Is the movie scary? How does it see the monsters in this movie? Are they funny, or sad?

  • Did you notice any stereotypes in the movie? How do you feel about the movie's portrayal of women, Chinese men, etc.?

  • Does the idea of a dead main character make the movie seem depressing? How does such a light movie handle such a dark idea?

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.

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