The Bachelors

Movie review by Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media
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Common Sense says

age 13+

Touching father-son story of grief and love.

NR 2017 108 minutes
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Parents say

age 15+

Based on 1 review

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that The Bachelors is a dramedy about a father and his teen son recovering from the death of their wife/mother. It's quite touching, with themes of empathy, and it should be fine for high-schoolers and up. A teen girl cuts herself; some slicing/blood is shown. There's a brief cafeteria fight between two teen boys; one gets hit with a lunch tray. Teens briefly kiss, and there's some sex talk. Teen girls are objectified in one scene, emerging in slow motion from a bus (the term "muff truck" is used). Language includes a few uses of "s--t" and variations on "ass," plus several other words and insults. An adult takes mood-enhancing medication and drinks socially. Teens hold red cups at a party, though the contents aren't revealed.

Community Reviews

Carlos E.
Carlos E. Adult
February 10, 2019
age 15+

A failed attempt

This could have been a terrific film. The actors are good and the grief story, although not original, offered many angles to build an engaging drama. A poor script did not allow for anything else than shallow characters and a mediocre drama with some good moments in the relationship of father and son. In a film that seems to try to convey solid values in human relationships, it seems inappropriate that the lovely and lonely French teacher (Julie Delpy) would strip and force herself in her first date with a grieving colleague with whom she's wishing to establish a meaningful romantic bond. Although no sex scene is shown it is a shame that instead of heart-to-heart conversations the director decides to shortcut things moving the protagonists straight to bed as if this would be a rather banal event. Josh Wiggins as the son steals the show. Be warned that there are some scenes of self-harm with a razor blade. I watched the film with my 12-year old son and he had to cover his face. The film appears on CS website rated as 13+, but it's 15 in the UK, which appears to be more appropriate. Not a film for tweens!

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
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What's the Story?

In THE BACHELORS, Bill Palet (J.K. Simmons) suddenly decides, following the death of his beloved wife, to move from San Francisco to Los Angeles with his teenage son, Wes (Josh Wiggins). There, Bill hopes for a fresh start at a prep school where an old college buddy is headmaster: Bill can be a teacher and Wes, a student. Sports are mandatory, so Wes goes out for cross-country, while Bill starts seeing a therapist (Harold Perrineau). Wes also has a French class in which his teacher, Carine (Julie Delpy), assigns him to tutor the troubled Lacey (Odeya Rush). Wes and Lacey begin a tentative, uneasy friendship, while Carine starts getting to know the lonesome, grieving Bill. Can these two bachelors learn to love again?

Is It Any Good?

While this tale could easily have tumbled over the edge in any direction, writer/director Kurt Voelker presents it as a balanced, nuanced, and gentle family story that becomes genuinely touching. The Bachelors could have been overly goopy or maudlin, dealing as it does with the death of a loved one, but it's brave enough to face grief in a real way. And the characters might have been one-dimensional, defined by their loss and presented as helpless, but they're not. They have realistic strengths and weaknesses.

The movie could also have been cutesy, with little musical montages and attempts at quirkiness, but even its motif of the car with the reverse-facing passenger seat seems to flow right along with the story. Credit must be given to the excellent cast, especially Simmons and Delpy, who soften the edges they've shown in other movies and play up appealing vulnerabilities. Wiggins and Rush are likewise very good, playing something close to human beings, rather than a movie's idea of "teenagers."

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how female characters are treated in The Bachelors. Are women objectified? Is that behavior condoned?

  • How does the movie deal with death and grief? What does it say about the grieving process? Can other people help?

  • How does the movie show the importance of empathy? Why is that a key character strength?

  • When violence is shown in the movie, is it gratuitous, or does it make sense with the story and characters? What's the difference?

  • How well do the father and son characters communicate with one another? Do they argue?

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