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The Old Way | 2023 | R | – 1.6.4

content-ratingsWhy is “The Old Way” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “violence.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes an implied sex scene, many scenes of gunfire exchanges causing death and bloodshed, the off-screen murder of a woman with blood shown at the scene, a near hanging, a couple of gunfire exchanges including people being pinned under their horses after the animals are shot, a house and a barn are set on fire, discussions of murder and killing, and some strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.


A hardened gunslinger (Nicolas Cage) thinks he can escape his violent past, but when the son (Noah Le Gros) of a man he killed 20 years earlier comes to seek revenge, he’s forced to revert to his old ways. Also with Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Dean Armstrong, Katelyn Bauer, Nick Searcy, Abraham Benrubi, Clint Howard, Everett Blunck and Kerry Knuppe. Directed by Brett Donowho. [Running Time: 1:35]

The Old Way SEX/NUDITY 1

 – A man and a woman kiss tenderly. A man tells two women outside a saloon that he is “In need of their services” (a sexual invitation is implied).
 A woman wears an off-the shoulder top that reveals cleavage and her bare shoulder in a few scenes

The Old Way VIOLENCE/GORE 6

 – A man startles a woman and he tells her that he is there with a few of his men; the men seem threatening and the woman tries to get away from them, she kicks a man in the groin, hits another man with a basket of laundry and runs away to hide in a barn; the men follow her with guns drawn, the woman races out of the barn on a horse, a man shoots the horse, it whinnies and falls pinning the woman and breaking her arm, a man grabs the woman and another man hits her in the face with his gun (we see the woman with blood on her arm and face); she is taken to the barn and threatened by a man and the scene ends (we are told later that the woman was killed but we do not see the act).
 A man stands precariously on a wagon with a rope around his neck in a town where another man proclaims that the first man stole from him and should hang; several men in the area are shot as the accuser calls for the accused to be hanged (blood spurts), the man hanging from the noose swings briefly until a man cuts the rope, and another man draws a gun on another man and is shot in the head (we see the bloody bullet hole). Gunfire erupts in a mountain pass and men are struck, one is killed and others continue shooting at each other (we see bloody wounds), a man is pinned under his horse and he complains of a broken leg and another man is shot in the back (we see blood). A man goes into a building and we hear a scuffle and a crunch and he comes out with a knife in his back; he stumbles through a street and his attacker pulls the blade out of his back and slashes his throat (we see blood spurt). A man with a gun searches for another man, the man shoots him and as he falls dead, he shoots back hitting him in the arm. Two men enter a building and we hear gunshots (we understand that they are both killed). A man shoots another man and another man shoots him (he falls back with a bloody abdominal wound); a young girl shoots a man twice and we see bloody bullet wounds.
 A man with a bloody leg wound threatens to shoot a young girl, but she steps on his wound causing him to yell in pain and she steals his gun. During a disagreement, a man breaks another man’s finger (we hear a crack). A man with a bloody arm wound is held at gunpoint by another man. A man hits another man hard in the face (we see his bloody lip) and reprimands him. A bloody handprint and words painted using blood are shown on a saddle and a barn wall. A man points a loaded gun at his young daughter (he does not shoot). A man sets his house and barn on fire. A man sharpens and heats a knife and uses it to remove a bullet from another man’s arm and cauterize the wound (we see some blood and the man yells in pain) while a young girl holds a stick in the wounded man’s mouth and says that the burning flesh smells like rabbit chops. A young girl takes target practice using her hat as the target, and we see later that her hat has holes in it.
 A man digs a hole and buries a woman’s body. A man tells a young girl that her father was a violent man and that he killed people. A young girl pretends to cry to distract a man. A man talks to his young daughter about how he killed people and that he has trouble feeling fear.
 A man tries to steal a handful of jellybeans from a jar in a store and puts them back when he sees that a young girl is watching him; the girl is upset later because she says the man’s hands were dirty, and she wipes each bean. A young girl seems disappointed that her father is going to walk her to school. A sign reads that a teacher is ill and that there will be no school; a young girl suspects that she is ill with “pox.” A young girl tells a man that she doesn’t want to eat a plate of food because it could be poisoned.

The Old Way LANGUAGE 4

 – 19 scatological terms, 7 anatomical terms, 18 mild obscenities, name-calling (sinner, fools, meanest, bastards, dirty rat, selfish, stupid, devil, crazy, snake, wizard, monster), exclamations (hooey, shut your [mild obscenity deleted] mouth), 3 religious profanities (GD), 14 religious exclamations (e.g. power handed down by God, it’s God’s will, God help us, will of God, oh God, thank God, I swear to God, Christ Almighty, God, Holy [scatological term deleted]). | profanity glossary |

The Old Way SUBSTANCE USE

 – Two men drink from flasks in a couple of scenes, and a man drinks liquor in a saloon.

The Old Way DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Sociopathy, not feeling fear or sadness, empathy, lessons, murder for money, vengeance, feelings, pain, fear, violence, power, greed, revenge.

The Old Way MESSAGE

 – Neither you, nor your descendants, can escape the violence in your past.

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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