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Mean Creek | 2004 | R | - 4.5.8

Rory Culkin stars as a boy who has been bullied one too many times. He and his older brother (Trevor Morgan) devise a plan of revenge against the bully (Josh Peck) during a boat trip. While they soon start having second thoughts, a friend of theirs (Scott Mechlowicz) is determined to follow through. Also with Ryan Kelley and Carly Schroeder. Directed by Jacob Aaron Estes. [1:27]

SEX/NUDITY 4 - A boy and a girl kiss. Young men talk about becoming sexually aroused. A young man pulls down his pants to show a group of people his endowment (we see his bare buttocks). A young man holds a phone receiver to his crotch and makes sexual sounds (panting and moaning). A young man makes a sexual gesture with a bottle. Two men talk about going to have sex with women. Three young men talk about masturbation and one describes what he thinks about while doing so (a young woman performing oral sex on him). A boy is dared to "strip naked and jump in the river."

VIOLENCE/GORE 5 - A boy is pushed off a boat and into a river, he flails about, hits his head on a rock (we see a bit of blood in the water) and a girl performs CPR on him. A boy tackles another boy to the ground and hits him leaving him with a bloody and bruised cheek and eyebrow. A young man grabs his younger brother by the ear and hair and holds his head near the ground while twisting. A girl stabs a snail with a knife (we hear a squish and see goo ooze out of it). A young man with a gun robs a convenience store. A young man shoves another young man to the ground and holds him, and then he shoves another young man to the ground. A boy says to a young man repeatedly that his father put a gun in his mouth and "splattered his brains all over the wall." A boy yells at and insults a group of people. We see a dead body with blue-tinged skin, and we see a dead body being buried (it is dragged by the feet and put in a hole in the ground). People cut their fingers with a knife (we see slicing and blood). A young man does target practice with a handgun. A young man grabs a baseball bat, walks toward a man, and then breaks a bottle with the bat. People tease a young man for having "two dads." A young man talks about "getting raped every night" if he were to go to prison. A woman cries and grieves at the death of her child. A young man punches another young man in the arm. A boy talks about another boy having hit him in the head with a baseball bat. A boy vomits (we see goo and hear gagging). A young man urinates off a ledge (we see the stream). A boy gives his brother chewing gum from his mouth, and he chews it.

LANGUAGE 8 - 38 F-words, 1 obscene hand gesture, 2 sexual references, 19 scatological terms, 25 anatomical terms, 9 mild obscenities, 6 derogatory terms for homosexuals.

SUBSTANCE USE - Underage people are shown smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana. A young man drinks beer while driving.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Bullies, revenge, lying, anger, rage, death of a parent, death of a child, physical abuse, homosexuality, dyslexia, desperation, learning disabilities, truth or dare, homosexual parenting, fate.

MESSAGE - Everything happens for a reason.

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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