Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Sex work, drinking, cursing in terrific UK-set family drama.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Rain Dogs
What's the Story?
Set in a down-and-out corner of London that tourists don't see, RAIN DOGS centers on desperate single mom Costello (Daisy May Cooper), who we meet being evicted from her shabby apartment with her young daughter Iris (Fleur Tashjian). Out of money and out of options, save for the sporadic help from her best friends Gloria (Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo) and Selby (Jack Farthing), Costello struggles to find safety for her small family in a world that seems to have no place for her.
Is It Any Good?
By turns hilarious and heartbreaking, this UK-set drama about a dysfunctional family unit is a sympathetic portrait of what poverty can do to perfectly nice people. We first encounter Costello throwing her belongings into trash bags, exiting her apartment with her daughter just ahead of the police. The two run out on a taxi fare, then somehow make it to Iris' school. Selby, on the other hand, makes his first appearance on Costello's phone screen, which lights up with his call: "Selby DO NOT ANSWER." Costello's college friend is privileged, gay, thoroughly self-destructive, and though he's the closest thing Iris has to a patriarchal figure, Costello's relationship with Selby is deeply complicated and toxic. Yet down and out as she is, she has little choice than to rely on his help.
From a distance, it might be easy to judge Costello and decide that her current circumstances follow a long run of questionable life choices. But Rain Dogs illuminates the way that poverty and desperation narrow Costello's choices, which are seldom between good and bad options, but instead terrible and worse. She has no family to fall back on, just a few friends who are themselves limited by their circumstances. It sounds like a huge bummer, and Rain Dogs can be. But it also finds humor and joy in small moments, and Iris and Costello are characters viewers will root for as they keep trying to find a safe place for themselves in a cruel world.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about alcoholism and the real-life consequences of substance abuse. How does this affect families, particularly those with children? Does the show handle the topic responsibly and/or realistically?
Does living in poverty justify acting outside the law and doing anything possible to survive? Are the characters in this show presented sympathetically or does the show invite us to judge characters?
Families can also talk about the challenges that come with importing a show from another country to the United States (and vice versa). How is Rain Dogs different from American shows about dysfunctional families? How is it similar?
TV Details
- Premiere date : March 6, 2023
- Cast : Daisy May Cooper , Fleur Tashjian , Jack Farthing
- Network : HBO
- Genre : Drama
- TV rating :
- Last updated : March 7, 2023
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
Suggest an Update
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