The Diary of Preston Plummer

The film contains a graphic suicide scene wherein a man shoots himself in the head in a hotel dining room in front of a room full of people. Though the scene shows the event unfolding in a slightly off-center way, the action is clear, and blood splatters. There also is a shot of a man lying facedown in a pool of blood. There also is a brief scene of a dying man visibly coughing up blood. The discussion of a purported rape and a related civil charge is a major plot point.

The film contains a scene in which a college graduate-age man and woman have sex, with the implication that it's her first time. The pair are undressed down to underwear and fully under a blanket with no nudity shown, but the action is portrayed through breathing and conversation, such as when the woman asks after why there's blood, suggesting she has lost her virginity. Elsewhere, there is some frolicking in bathing suits on the beach, a few scenes of swimming at night in bathing suits, some kissing while characters are lying on a beach on top of each other, and a kiss in a tree.

There is some brief use of casual profanity, such as "the world is a f--king miracle."

There are a few scenes of drinking involving college graduates. In one scene, a man drinks whiskey straight just outside a graduation ceremony. In another, a man takes a shot of liquor at a party and then proceeds to drink out of a Solo cup, while other partygoers also hold or sip from Solo cups, and some stumble drunkenly. A man drives a woman home from the party soon after. Later, a man and woman share a bottle of wine.

Parents need to know that The Diary of Preston Plummer contains a graphic suicide and an explicit discussion of a purported rape. It also involves the depiction of the loss of virginity of a college-age woman, though there is no nudity. In this regard, the film perpetuates a myth about losing your virginity -- that it can be definitively determined by bloodshed after intercourse -- that parents should be prepared to dispel. There also is a discussion of an absent parent who did jail time, and there's some profanity ("f--k"). Overall, the film has a slow, thoughtful pace that explores the dynamics of a dysfunctional, estranged family's past and a budding young relationship, but these moments give the film much heavier, more mature themes that may warrant discussion.

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