Uglies | 2024 | PG-13 | – 4.5.3

Why is “Uglies” rated PG-13? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “some violence and action, and brief strong language.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a few kissing and caressing scenes and an implied sex scene, some non-sexual partial nudity, a man falling to his death, a man’s neck being snapped, several scenes of people fighting resulting in some bloody wounds, explosions and environmental devastation, people undergoing body modification procedures, several arguments and some strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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A young woman (Joey King) lives in a world which values physical beauty above everything else. When given the chance to become beautiful herself, and reunite with her best friend (Chase Stokes) she must confront her own values and decide if she wants to side with the beauty-obsessed society, or join a rebellion that appreciates inner beauty. Also with Keith Powers, Laverne Cox, Brianne Tju, Jan Luis Castellanos and Charmin Lee. Directed by McG. [Running Time: 1:40].

Uglies SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A man caresses a woman’s face before kissing her; they later exit a tent together (sex is implied).
► A man and a woman hold hands and embrace, touching one another’s legs; they flirt, complimenting each other’s features and looking at one another intimately. A man and a woman touch each other’s fingers and kiss in the shadows. A man and a woman hug tightly and say goodbye before separating. A man holds a woman’s back and hand while teaching her how to fire a crossbow.
► A woman looks into the mirror and compares her face and body to a “perfect” version of herself.
► The image of a nude woman is shown from the side (the form of a bare breast and buttock are seen). A woman wears a form-fitting dress, revealing the side of her breasts. A woman is scanned by a large machine while wearing only underwear and the camera moves up and down her body with the scanner’s laser as we see her cleavage, bare abdomen, legs to the hips and back. A shirtless man enters a machine (his bare chest, abdomen and back are seen). Several people wearing bathing suits, multiple men and one woman, walk toward a body of water (bare chests, abdomens, cleavage, backs and legs are visible). A woman walks around her dorm room wearing a mini-skirt. A woman wears a form-fitting dress that exposes cleavage. Two women wear form-fitting dresses exposing their bare legs and cleavage. A man bathes in a lake with only his upper body above the water (it is implied that he is fully nude below the water) and he later puts on a fishnet shirt which exposes his nipples. Several men walk around at a party wearing gladiator costumes (bare chests, abdomens and legs are shown). A shirtless man walks into a machine (we see his bare chest, abdomen and back), and is restrained from his arms and neck before being engulfed in smoke.

Uglies VIOLENCE/GORE 5

 – A man is threatened with violence and when he refuses to cooperate his neck is snapped; a group of people begin screaming and crying, and a woman runs away, blowing up one person and shooting another in the shoulder with a crossbow before escaping, and when she reunites with a man, she is threatened at knife point.
► A helicopter shoots into the side of a building breaking the windows and causing a man to have his hand cut by a glass shard, which he later pulls out; he is then thrown off the side of a building, catches the ledge, but then falls to his presumed death (off-screen). Two groups of people begin fighting, punching each other in the face and stomach, kicking each other, striking each other with large logs, and being suspended in mesh traps; one group prevails and handcuffs the other group, pushing them all to the ground. A man jabs another man in the throat and they trade punches before one of them is knocked unconscious.
► A shirtless man walks into a machine (we see his bare chest, abdomen and back), and he is restrained from his arms and neck before being engulfed in smoke. A woman’s eyes are zapped by a laser and she recoils in pain. Three people are forced into machines, which restrain their hands and necks; whirring medical tools approach them including a needle, which almost penetrates their eyes before being stopped. A woman is shown with half her face badly burned.
► A woman is pursued by armed guards and pushes through a crowd of other people to escape; she jumps off the roof of a building, but lands unharmed (she wears a force field vest). A woman falls off the side of a tall cliff and almost hits the ground, but is saved by a force field. A woman is thrown off a hoverboard, landing on a concrete floor and groaning in pain. A woman climbs out of her dormitory and jumps to the ground before climbing a bridge with a steep drop below. A woman scales the side of a building. A woman wakes up surrounded by fire and coughs uncontrollably before being saved by a masked man; she is covered in ash and has a bloody head wound. A man breaks a glass in his hand causing a shard to cut his palm, creating a bloody wound. The man recoils in pain, and a woman cuts her palm with the same glass as they touch their wounds together. A man and a woman compare hands showing they have an identical scar on their palms.
► A pile of dead fish is shown on a TV screen alongside a barren wasteland and polluted air, all resulting from human negligence. A riot breaks out and one rioter lights a Molotov cocktail. A building is blown apart by a bomb blast. Bombs explode around the world.
► A woman discusses discrimination against people who are not conventionally attractive. A woman tells another woman that four kids have died from falling off hoverboards.

Uglies LANGUAGE 3

 – 1 anatomical term, 1 mild obscenity, name-calling (stupid, ugly), exclamations (shut-up), 1 religious exclamation (e.g. oh my God). | profanity glossary |

Uglies SUBSTANCE USE

 – A woman takes a pill that is referred to as a “toothbrush pill.” A group of people is seen partying and it is implied they have been drinking alcohol, and several women dance at a party and it is implied they have been drinking alcohol.

Uglies DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Beauty, character, being judgmental, discrimination based on appearance, rebellion.

Uglies MESSAGE

 – In an age obsessed with outer beauty, it is important to use your inner character to define you.