Bad Education | 2019 | TV-MA | – 4.3.5

Why is “Bad Education” rated TV-MA? The MPAA has not rated this film. The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes several kissing scenes between men and some cleavage revealing outfits, several arrest scenes, arguments and discussions of embezzlement, and nearly 10 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.”

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Based on a true story: The superintendent (Hugh Jackman) of a Long Island school district is beloved by all, since he works hard, many students get to go to Ivies and real-estate prices are soaring. That’s when a reporter (Geraldine Viswanathan) for the high school paper discovers that the superintendent and his assistant (Allison Janney) have been defrauding the district out of millions of dollars over many years. Also with Ray Romano, Welker White, Annaleigh Ashford, Rafael Casal and Stephen Spinella. Directed by Cory Finley. [Running Time: 1:48]

Bad Education SEX/NUDITY 4

 – Two men go to a man’s hotel room where one man caresses the other man’s hair and they kiss passionately (sex is implied). Two men kiss tenderly in their home. Two men hug in a bar. Two men dance and embrace on a dance floor in a bar, two men embrace on a sofa and two men hug.
► A woman moves toward a man as if she is going to kiss him and he steps back avoiding her.
► A man tells another man that he burned out in college and that he has been dancing in Vegas. A man remarks that it’ll be good to “get away from the wife” on a business trip.
► A woman wears a low-cut top that reveals cleavage. Two women wear clingy off-the-shoulder dresses that reveal bare shoulders and cleavage and the outline of nipples are seen through the fabric.

Bad Education VIOLENCE/GORE 3

 – A man is shown being sedated on an operating table and a surgeon uses a scalpel to cut along the side of his face (we see the incision and blood).
► A man is pulled from his car and pushed to the ground by police and they handcuff him as another man struggles to get to him and calls for him to explain what is happening. Several people are arrested and taken from their homes in handcuffs by police. A woman yells at her adult son and slaps a bag of pretzels out of his hands; a man then grabs her to calm her down. A teen boy gives a teen girl a hard time about an article she is writing for the school paper and she grabs her backpack spilling papers on the floor.
► Many people in an audience yell at a man on a stage and one man says that he and others should be in jail for their illegal activity. A man yells at a woman about being disrespectful to teachers. A woman tells a man, “You should be ashamed of yourself,” after he yells at her in front of her young son. A woman yells at a teen girl when she asks her about inconsistent budgetary items. A man threatens a woman and reassigns her to a different department. Several people seem panicked about the possibility of getting caught embezzling money from a school district. A woman talks to a school superintendent about her son and his “hyperactive bladder” and she is upset because she feels her son is being unfairly treated by his teacher. A man says, “I would kill someone for a carb.” A man jokingly tells a woman, “I will kill you” as she forces a sandwich into his mouth. A man talks about his wife having died. A man says that a woman had a lapse in judgment. A man tells a woman that she will need to make restitution for the theft of money and that she will need to resign and turn over her administration license. A man says that a woman is sick and calls her a sociopath. It is reported that a woman has resigned from her position with the school board due to a serious illness and she receives flowers and fruit baskets at her home wishing her well. A man talks about a conference room being too warm and that another man in the room smelled unpleasant.
► A man finds dog feces left on his front porch. A teen girl says, “I’m gonna get sick” (she leaves the room and we do not see her get sick). A school ceiling is shown dripping water and with a stain in a ceiling tile.

Bad Education LANGUAGE 5

 – About 9 F-words, 1 obscene hand gesture, 9 scatological terms, 7 anatomical terms, 12 mild obscenities, name-calling (puff piece, a little sad, idiot, stupid mistake, cruel, heinous, shameless self-interest, sociopath, liar, dull, nightmare, horrible, perverse, ex-cons, criminal mastermind), exclamations (wow, okay), 1 religious profanity (GD), 8 religious exclamations (e.g. Oh My God, Jesus, Oh God, God Knows What). | profanity glossary |

Bad Education SUBSTANCE USE

 – People in a Vegas casino are shown holding alcoholic drinks around a gambling table, people at a bar are shown with alcoholic drinks, a man drinks whiskey with a meal, and people drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes at a house pool party and at a bar.

Bad Education DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Public education, competitive nature of school districts, property values, aging, integrity, challenge, taking risks, trust, moral responsibility, vanity, insider trading, corruption, embezzling, heroes, community service, secrets, collusion, success, gifted students, standardized testing.

Bad Education MESSAGE

 – Appearances can be thoroughly deceiving and nobody in authority should be trusted without objective oversight.