About My Father | 2023 | PG-13 | – 4.3.4

Why is “About My Father” rated PG-13? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “suggestive material, language and partial nudity.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a partially nude man seen from the back, a few kissing and hugging scenes, discussions of paintings looking anatomical, discussions of marriage, several scenes of accidental injuries during sporting activities, many arguments, and some strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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When a man (Sebastian Maniscalco) decides to propose to his upper-class girlfriend (Leslie Bibb), he must first convince his Italian immigrant father (Robert De Niro) that they will be a good match. A weekend of culture and class clashes follows. Also with David Rasche, Anders Holm, Kim Cattrall and Brett Dier. Directed by Laura Terruso. Several lines of dialogue are spoken in Italian without translation. [Running Time: 1:29]

About My Father SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A woman kisses a man passionately and presses him against a refrigerator; we hear his pants being unzipped and they go out on a porch, where she continues kissing him and he convinces her to go back inside after seeing something that alarmed him.
► A man uses a jet boot device that shoots him out of the water near a yacht where people stand onboard watching him; the man does tricks in the air and dives in and out of the water until one time he shoots out of the water and his swim trunks are down around his ankles (we see his buttocks, legs and a heavily shadowed area between his legs at the scrotum area); everyone yells for him to pull up his trunks, but he can’t and he slams against a large window presumably exposing his genitals to the people inside (we do not see anything).
► A man approaches a woman that he just recently met and talks about wanting to get his hands on her hair (he is a hairdresser) and she seems a little concerned. Many people hug in greeting in several scenes. A woman and a man chest bump each other a couple of times while playing tennis together.
► A man says that the noises people make while playing tennis sound sexual. A man and a woman discuss that her numerous paintings resemble a part of the female anatomy, and the woman says, “If you turn them sideways they look like sunsets.” Photos of men wearing Speedo-type swimsuits are seen (we see bare chests, abdomens and legs to the hips). Women wear low-cut tops and swimsuits that reveal cleavage in a few scenes.

About My Father VIOLENCE/GORE 3

 – A man is struck hard in the groin by a tennis ball and falls down moaning; several people run to attend to him and his mother asks if he would like her to “squeeze them,” as his father puts a cup of cold liquid on the injured area.
► A man uses a jet boot device that shoots him out of the water near a yacht where people stand onboard watching him; the man does tricks in the air and dives in and out of the water until one time he shoots out of the water and his swim trunks are down around his ankles (please see the Sex/Nudity category for more details); everyone yells for him to pull up his trunks, but he can’t and he slams against a large window presumably exposing his genitals to the people inside (we do not see anything). A man flying in a helicopter seems nervous and starts to sweat while flying; people onboard encourage him to suck on pieces of a lemon, but he tells the pilot to land and they drive to their destination and in a later flying scene, he breathes into a paper bag while another man plays a soothing tune on a flute.
► Two men argue in several scenes and sometimes bitterly. A man argues with his father after it becomes obvious that the elder man killed a family pet and used it to prepare a meal; the two men are seen burying a plastic bag containing the long plumage of the creature. A man argues with a man and a woman about paying for a meal. A woman storms out of a room accusing others of ganging up on her. A woman yells and kicks over a water barrel on a tennis court. A woman screams and yells at a man after he cuts her hair in a drastic way. A woman yells at her parents for never letting her fail and being over-protective. A woman yells at her boyfriend when he did not tell her about a situation with her parents.
► A man says that a golf club was built by slaves and that he is ashamed to be there. A voice-over describes numerous invasions and wars in Italy and his family’s immigration to the United States. A man talks about his father’s philosophy of hard work. A young boy is shown working in his father’s beauty salon and we hear a voice-over remark about child labor laws. A voice-over describes his feelings about his father when he was young and says, “This man was a god.” A man says that flying in a helicopter reminds him of “Nam.” A man says that if anything is missing over a weekend, the immigrants will be blamed. A man offers another man a job at a prestigious hotel. A man looks up and seems to be talking to his deceased wife, asking for advice. A man talks about a series of “regrettable firsts.” A man jokes about taking several wealthy men to hunt endangered species. A man tells another man not to vomit in his helicopter. A man describes his bowel movements before and after drinking Kombucha.
► A man sprays antifreeze on bologna and spreads the pieces in his garden to kill possums that he says are eating his vegetables. A woman says that she saw her mother concocting homemade poison. A man watches a man on a sidewalk walking his dog and tells him to pick up the dog’s waste (he does so; we do not see feces). A woman stops her car in the road to allow several peacocks to cross safely. A dog chews on a pile of peacock feathers and two men accuse it of murdering the animal.

About My Father LANGUAGE 4

 – 1 obscene hand gesture, 6 sexual references (in Italian without translation), 11 scatological terms, 18 anatomical terms, 11 mild obscenities, name-calling (hunchback, goomba, stuck up, loud, Sea Bass, dramatic, moron, obnoxious, stubborn, embarrassing, monster, old Italian man, doll house, manipulators, brutal, unthinkable, showoffs, fancy feathers, dump, handsy, smothering, messed up, bellboy, crazy, uptight, devil, resting [mild obscenity deleted] face, stubborn, bastard, rot), exclamations (I created a monster, busted his hump, unbelievable, frickin, not fair, what’s the matter with you, relax, come on, gee, oh my gosh, gimme a break, oh boy, come on already, speak of the devil, jeez, enough, oh babe), 2 religious profanities (GD), 13 religious exclamations (e.g. Holy Mother of God, oh my God, God, Thank God, Jesus). | profanity glossary |

About My Father SUBSTANCE USE

 – A remark is made about a “bad acid trip” but no drugs are shown. People drink glasses of whiskey, people drink champagne in a few scenes, and people drink glasses of wine with a few meals. A man and woman smoke cigars together, and a man smokes cigars in a few scenes.

About My Father DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Giving your children a better life, family, child labor laws, socio-economic classes, resourcefulness, public humiliation, wealth, striving for perfection, immigration, the Mayflower, allowing your children to fail, death of a loved one, heroes, sabotage, stereotypes, instinct, being judgmental, healers, respect.

About My Father MESSAGE

 – Family is everything.