Downhill | 2020 | R | – 5.4.5

Why is “Downhill” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “language and some sexual material.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes an implied sex scene, a kissing scene, a scene of implied masturbation and discussions of sexuality and promiscuity, and several cleavage revealing outfits; an avalanche that threatens people in a restaurant without injury, many scenes of arguments mostly between a husband and his wife, and explosions in mountains are heard throughout the movie; and nearly 10 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.”

---

A husband and his wife (Will Ferrell & Julia Louis-Dreyfus) on a family ski vacation survive an avalanche, but it soon becomes apparent that their reactions to the event might destroy the family cohesiveness. Also with Miranda Otto, Zoe Chao, Zach Woods, Julian Grey and Ammon Jacob Ford. Directed by Nat Faxon & Jim Rash. [Running Time: 1:26]

Downhill SEX/NUDITY 5

 – A woman locks herself into a bathroom stall and opens many layers of ski clothing, reaches into her pants and props her foot on the paper dispenser to presumably masturbate; when she leans back against the door it breaks open and she falls on the floor hitting her head and startling another woman in the restroom (she is not injured). A wife goes into a bathroom to have a shower and her husband follows her and says, “I’m taking my clothes off” (we hear him from behind a closed door and sex is implied). A man rubs a woman’s sore calf and up to her upper clothed thigh; he moves closer to her as he speaks to her seductively and they kiss, and she gets up and walks toward the door saying that she could have sex with him if she wanted to but she doesn’t want to.
► A woman kisses another woman on the cheeks in greeting and when she moves toward a man, he kisses her on the lips and then the cheeks. A man and a woman kiss while describing their relationship. A woman flirts with a man and makes remarks about having sex with him at a table in a restaurant with another couple that seem uncomfortable with the conversation. A woman approaches a man in a bar and tells him that her friend likes him; he becomes giddy and asks his friend if they should invite them over or buy them drinks (he’s married and his friend says he’s not interested), and the woman returns saying that her friend was interested in a different man.
► A woman asks another woman if she has had varied sexual experiences and they discuss the fact that the first woman is married but when she is at a ski resort, she has sex with many other people. A woman makes a sexual gesture with her hand and mouth. A woman talks about being able to have sex whenever she wants at a ski resort. A woman talks about the absurdity of prudishness and asks why “the special parts” rubbing together is different from a handshake. A woman at a ski resort tells a man and a woman that everyone takes a sauna in the nude and that they should celebrate their bodies. A woman says, “I’m a little sore,” and describes a sexual encounter she had saying, “He’s an animal.”
► A woman wears a low-cut top that reveals cleavage in several scenes. A woman wears a robe that reveals cleavage. A man’s shirt lifts up to reveal his bare abdomen and a woman watches him.

Downhill VIOLENCE/GORE 4

 – We hear an explosion and see snow begin to rumble down the side of a mountain toward an outside restaurant where many people are gathered and photograph and film the commotion; when the snow barrels down on top of the restaurant we see people running in panic as they scream, some people are knocked down and when everything clears we see that tables are overturned but no one appears to be injured.
► A man and his two sons ride in open cars along a track through snowy mountains, the man bumps his car into his son’s car and the boy yells and is afraid to go too fast. A man skis off a prescribed path and onto rough snow where he crashes into another skier and falls into snow hitting his head on a marker (he worries later that he has a concussion). A woman skis part way down a mountain and we hear her calling for help as her husband and sons wait for her at the bottom; we see her sitting in the snow and her husband climbs up the hill and carries her the rest of the way down (she is not injured). An inebriated man moves toward another man in a crowded club and falls onto him; he ends up on his knees on the floor and the other man helps him back up (the first man seems to have wanted to fight the other man).
► A man helps another man walk after they leave a dance club and he is very drunk. A pile of snow slides off a roof and toward four people standing below it and they jump out of the way, startled. Two boys flinch when a loud explosion occurs in a mountain and their mother grabs and holds them. We hear explosions in mountains covered with snow throughout the movie.
► A woman argues bitterly with her husband about getting on a helicopter to fly to a high point on a mountain to ski down (she throws ski poles on the ground and stomps her feet, yelling over the whirring blades of the helicopter) and the helicopter leaves without them. A woman argues with a safety official about the severity and the handling of a “controlled” avalanche that occurred and threatened her family. A woman tearfully tells another woman and a man that her husband left her and their two sons during an avalanche; this leads to an intense argument between the married couple. A husband, a wife and two sons argue while having their photos taken at a ski resort. A woman reprimands her husband a few times when she sees him texting someone while they are on vacation. A woman shakes from fear after an avalanche. A man yells at another man when he moves a storage shelf and nearly crushes the first man’s son. A man talks about his father having died recently. A pre-teen boy calls his younger brother a name and their mother reprimands him and makes him apologize. After a bitter argument, a husband and his wife sleep in separate beds. Two boys question their father about whether or not he really wants to be on their family vacation. A boy tells his family that he hates skiing and that he is always afraid that he is going to die.
► A snow safety official snowboards to a building and throws snow against a window when he skids to a stop; people inside the building are startled. A woman yells at a man after he and his two sons have been on a ride and the man bumped his car into his son’s; we understand that he has been banned from the ride. A pre-teen boy skis very slowly down a mountain and his three other family members are forced to wait for him.
► A husband and his wife brush their teeth and spit into a sink (we see saliva and paste). A husband and his wife eat from a room service tray in bed.

Downhill LANGUAGE 5

 – About 9 F-words, 12 sexual references, 8 anatomical terms, 1 mild obscenity, name-calling (stupid, dumb, selfish, coward), exclamations (you gotta be kidding me, screw you, boom, oh my goodness), 8 religious exclamations (e.g. Oh My God, Oh God, Good Lord). | profanity glossary |

Downhill SUBSTANCE USE

 – A man and a woman talk about “doing shrooms.” A woman drinks from a glass of wine and there are other partially filled glasses on a nightstand and a tray, people drink alcohol in a resort restaurant, men and women drink wine in a hotel suite, a man pours liquor from a flask into a coffee thermos and a woman drinks from it while he takes a drink from the flask, people in a dance club drink and dance and one man seems to be drunk, people drink in a bar, and a man drinks from a bottle of beer in bed with another (presumably empty) bottle on the nightstand. A woman talks about “partying all night.”

Downhill DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Avalanches, death of a parent, crises, infidelity, temptation, adult resorts, aging, happiness, being out of one’s comfort zone, adventure, new relationships, deciding what’s important, fertility.

Downhill MESSAGE

 – Traumatic events can cause people to reevaluate who they are.