Weekend at Bernie's

Bernie is murdered by lethal injection, then also strangled and shot by an increasingly puzzled hit man. The assassin comically stalks his targets, and the main characters engage in reckless boating, property destruction, and punching. Two men are felled by swift smacks to the head with a large log for big laughs.

Although there's no nudity, a woman appears in a minimal swimsuit, revealing most of her breasts and behind. No on-screen sex. A clothed woman rubs herself fervently against a clothed man and, under the table at dinner, places her foot on his genitals. Offscreen allusions to sex will go over the heads of most preteens and younger kids and include the suggestion that someone has satisfying sex with Bernie's dead body. Sexually driven partying is rife. Two people who are falling in love kiss.

Language includes "damn," "goddamn," "bastard," "bitch," "ass," "s--t," "screw," "the old joystick," "Christ" (as an exclamation), "schmuck," and "horny." There may have been one "f--k," but it seems to have been intentionally muted. A young boy gives a character the finger.

Several characters smoke, many are seen drinking, and some are inebriated. The offscreen suggestion of cocaine use -- a man returns from the bathroom alert and wiping his nose -- will probably go unnoticed by kids under 14.

Parents need to know that Weekend at Bernie's is an '80s comedy that treats death with an irreverence that may disturb sensitive younger children. Two bickering, opportunistic junior executives party while a hit man stalks their dead boss.There's lots of cynicism and selfishness, but the movie stands out thanks to both clever dialogue (which underscores the self-absorption) and a main character -- a likable dead body -- that's trussed, propped up, and otherwise manipulated to seem alive, active, and having a good time. The violence is largely slapstick, bloodless, and undercut by wisecracking designed to assure viewers that no one was actually hurt in the making of the movie. Expect lots of social drinking, suggested but unseen drug use, some smoking, language (including "s--t"), sexually motivated plotting, sexual innuendo, kissing, and clothed embraces. The main characters ogle bikini-ed bodies.

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