Ezra | 2023 | R | – 4.5.8

Why is “Ezra” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “language, some sexual references and drug use.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes an implied sex scene, a couple of kisses on the cheek, a man getting in shoving and punching scuffles with people, many scenes of situations where an 11-year-old boy is upset and yells fearing being touched, a man taking his son out of his home at night and driving across the country with him, many arguments, a man driving off the road and causing his car to break down, a man hitchhiking with his young son, and about 37 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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A stand-up comedian (Bobby Cannavale) who lives with his father (Robert De Niro) and is trying to co-parent his 11-year-old autistic son (William A. Fitzgerald) with his ex-wife (Rose Byrne), decides to take him on a cross-country road trip that has a remarkable impact on their lives. Also with Vera Farmiga, Rainn Wilson, Whoopi Goldberg and Tess Goldwyn. Directed by Tony Goldwyn. [Running Time: 1:40]

Ezra SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A woman in a club offers to buy a man a drink and we see them later in bed together (sex is implied); the woman gets up and puts on her bra (we hear a strap snap and see her bare shoulders) as the man sits at the foot of the bed covered with a sheet (we see his bare shoulders and chest).
► A woman kisses a man on the cheek twice.
► An 11-year-old boy says that he will “die a virgin.” We understand that a man and woman are separated or divorced and the woman appears to be in a relationship with another man.
► A woman wears a low-cut top that reveals cleavage. A young boy is shirtless and we see his bare chest, abdomen and back.

Ezra VIOLENCE/GORE 5

 – A boy overhears a man telling his mother that he can get rid of the boy’s father for her and the child takes it literally and runs out of the house; a dog on a leash jumps toward him on the sidewalk and the child runs into the street where he is struck by a taxi (we see him in the hospital with a bandage on his head). A woman yells at her ex-husband over the phone after he has taken their son away.
► A man yells at a woman in a club and makes a crude remark; another man confronts the first man and they lunge at each other but are pulled apart by security and a young boy bites the woman on the arm when she grabs him from behind (we do not see injuries). An FBI agent approaches a man and tells him that he is being arrested; the man dodges the agent and he is knocked to the floor where the man’s young son pushes the agent away and talks to his father to calm him down. A doctor tells a man and a woman that their son is a ward of the state and that he will be required to go to a special needs school and take a particular medication (Risperdal); the man becomes angry and lunges at the doctor and we understand that he hits him (the man is shown in a jail cell). A woman yells at a man and holds a table knife to his throat asking for information. A man slaps another man in the back of the head. A man is told that a restraining order against him keeps him from seeing his son. A man becomes upset and ends a standup set abruptly when he shares a story about his son. Two men argue in a street as one man drives away with his young son. A woman pounds on a man’s door and throws stones at the house when he won’t answer. A man drives off a road into woods, trying to avoid a police roadblock and the car is damaged and won’t run; his young son runs away and into the dark woods as the man calls for him in a panic, and when the child reappears, the man yells at him and nearly hits him. A man hitchhikes with his young son. A woman touches a boy on the knee and he yells and spins around.
► A young boy sits in a tub of scalding hot water and his father panics and pulls him out of the water; the boy says that he doesn’t feel hot and we see that his skin is reddened. A boy panics when he sees bananas in a bowl of oatmeal at a diner; his father helps him to the bathroom and cleans the spilled oatmeal from his shirt. A boy yells that metal utensils hurt his mouth and that he needs to use plastic; he throws a metal fork across the room and slurps from a plate of food. A young boy is shown seeming upset about having to go to a new school and we see his father watching him from outside the gates and tearing up.
► A teacher tries to keep students in order and one student runs into the hallway followed by others; we hear that they ran out of the school. A man complains about children bullying his son in school. Teachers meet with an 11-year old boy’s parents after he causes a disruption and they tell them that their son will be suspended and possibly expelled. Two agents reprimand a woman for not calling the police when her son was taken away by her ex-husband and that the man has a restraining order against him; one agent says that they will initiate an amber alert. A news report shows pictures of a man and a boy indicating that the child has been kidnapped. A sheriff comes to the door of a woman’s house and tells her that they got a call about a man and his young son hitchhiking.
► A boy is expelled from school and the administration indicates that he needs to be in a special needs setting. We hear that a man punched another man in the groin. A man describes catching on fire from his birthday candles when he was young. A man describes that his father used to lock him in an attic chained to a radiator (he’s exaggerating). A woman tells a story about a man biting a dog when they were young. A boy says, “Football causes brain injuries.” A man describes being a breech baby and that he was born with a black eye. A boy shares a story about Ernest Hemingway and that his parents gave him a gun when he was young that he used many years later to kill himself.
► A man and a woman try to touch and hug their 11-year-old son and he yells each time. A young boy growls at a man that tries to talk to him. A man describes his young son and says that he didn’t speak for a long time and now he won’t be quiet. A man demonstrates a gunshot with his finger in the shape of a pistol. A boy asks a man if he is sad because he is bald. A young boy describes a psychiatric evaluation asking him if his parents ever hit him or if he ever tried to hurt himself. A man jokes about another man defrauding the Vatican.
► A man urinates in the woods (we hear the stream). A boy urinates in the bathroom, sprays urine on the wall and smiles.

Ezra LANGUAGE 8

 – About 37 F-words, 2 sexual references, 11 scatological terms, 10 anatomical terms, 10 mild obscenities, 2 derogatory terms for a person with a disability, name-calling (kiddo, fat farmers, stupid, jerk, strange dude, chicks, on the spectrum, sociopath, freak, random, normal, loser, issues, Greek [anatomical term deleted], thief, demon movie waiting to happen, crazy, Zorba, sadist, criminally insane, idiot, twisted moral compass), exclamations (come on, oh man, my bad, whatever, shut-up, what’s the matter with you), 7 religious exclamations (e.g. oh my God, Holy [scatological term deleted], God, God bless, Jesus Christ). | profanity glossary |

Ezra SUBSTANCE USE

 – A man smokes a marijuana cigarette in a comedy club before his performance, and two men smoke marijuana from a large bong. People drink liquor and beer in several comedy club scenes, and two men drink bottles of beer in a couple of scenes.

Ezra DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Autism, abandonment, disabilities, luck, opportunity, humiliation, sacrifice, fear, feeling helpless, consequences, courage, missing and exploited children, self-destructive personality.

Ezra MESSAGE

 – Love and patience are the best ways to support children.