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The Ghost Writer | 2010 | PG-13 | - 5.4.5

After a ghost writer (Ewan McGregor) is hired to write the autobiography of a former British Prime Minister (Pierce Brosnan), he uncovers a secret that puts him, and the recent history and reputation of the country, at risk. Also with Kim Cattrall, Jim Belushi and Olivia Williams. Directed by Roman Polanski. [2:08]

SEX/NUDITY 5 - A woman wearing a robe enters a bedroom where a man is sleeping, his bare chest is seen as she sits on the edge of the bed, the man puts on a robe and gets out of the bed, and when he returns the woman appears to be nude and under the covers; the man disrobes (we see his bare buttocks), climbs into bed and the two begin to kiss (it is implied that they have had sex when next morning they are seen lying in the bed together and discussing sex).
 A man's upper chest is visible as he soaks in a bathtub and a woman almost walks into the bathroom. A man's upper bare chest is visible.
 A woman alludes several times to a man having an affair.

VIOLENCE/GORE 4 - Shots are heard and flashes are seen when a man is shot as he walks across a tarmac (no blood is seen); he is quickly shoved into a car, another man then pulls out a gun and fires at a person standing on the top of a building, who falls to the ground, and a small stream of blood comes from his mouth (both men are later confirmed to have died and we see the coffin of one of the men being carried at a funeral). A dead body (no blood) is seen with waves lapping over it.
 A man is punched in the stomach, and then face, and falls to the ground; he is later seen looking shaken when he tells another man that he is not injured, but upset that he had just been mugged.
 A man shoves a woman to the ground as he runs through a crowded boat, he leaps from the boat and onto the dock as the boat begins to pull away and scrambles over a fence as he looks around in a panic.
 A crowd of people shout and slap and punch a car containing two men as it drives cautiously through. A crowd shouts that a man is a murderer and a criminal. People shout loudly, and a man is shouting on a cell phone, which he smashes on the ground when the conversation is over.
 Television reports detail the torture of terror suspects, including showing a video clip of a person having water poured on their face, as a reporter describes "water boarding" as a torture technique.
 A loud thud is heard and it is implied that a man is struck by a fast-moving car (the actual accident is not seen); people are seen rushing in the direction of the accident. A man riding a bike has to swerve to avoid being struck by a car. A man stumbles to the ground (he is not injured) as windows shutter and sirens wail.
 People discuss a man drowning, and death by drowning, including a man telling another man that he could not be thrown into the ocean to drown, and saying that men are not "like kittens" and cannot be drowned without drawing suspicion. A man discusses with another man that a woman had fallen down stairs under suspicious circumstances and is now in a coma, unable to communicate. Posters read, "Fatal incident, please call if you have details" and "Threat level high." A man makes an off-color remark about the safety of airplanes being determined by a person's ability to run a background check on the occupants. A woman jokes that if she runs into a terrorist, she would text a man to come protect her.
 Men wear holstered guns and look for bombs under a car.

LANGUAGE 5 - About 3 F-words, 10 scatological terms, 3 anatomical terms, 16 mild obscenities, name-calling (craze, Johnny O, jerk, idiot, nerd, cheeky buggar, fool, whipping boy), 1 religious profanity, 10 religious exclamations.

SUBSTANCE USE - A photograph shows a man holding a marijuana joint, and a man jokes that he was in the photograph advising another man against the dangers of drug use. People drink and discuss alcohol, including a discussion of a man being an alcoholic and perhaps dying due to drowning while drunk. A woman smokes a cigarette and a man smokes a pipe.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Political corruption, The British Prime Minister, torture, terrorism, snipers, airport security, autobiographies, suicide, revenge, guilt, mystery.

MESSAGE - Bad deeds always catch up with you in the end.

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


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