Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that 48 Hrs. is the hit 1982 movie starring Nick Nolte as a cop and Eddie Murphy as a convict put in an unlikely partnership to try to stop a cop-killing sociopath who has just escaped from prison. The frequent violence and gunplay, sex and nudity, and profanity ("f--k" is common) alone give this a solid R-rating; Nolte's character's often-enough usage of racial epithets such as the "N" word, "spear chucker," and "watermelon" when speaking with Murphy's character are as gratuitous as they are pointless, and that goes for usage of the words "faggot" and "dyke" as well. Given the now long-overused story formula to the graphic language and the smoking, 48 Hrs. has not aged well and is about as '80s as big hair and fat shoelaces.
Sexual
Content
One of the characters has been in prison for almost three years and is constantly talking about wanting to have sex. Breasts and female buttocks are exposed in a scene in which one of the bad guys is sitting in a hotel with a prostitute.
Violence
Prison wardens, police detectives, and police officers are shown being shot and killed by the bad guys. Frequent gun violence. The two main characters get into a lengthy fistfight. Shots are fired into a crowd waiting at a BART station. A woman hits a man in the side with a baseball bat.
Language
Frequent profanity of all varieties. Although "f--k," "a--hole," "s--t," and "p---y" are often used, the white cop uses terms such as the "N" word, "spear chucker," and "watermelon" when speaking to the African-American convict he has temporarily partnered up with to help solve the case. The word "faggot" is used, and two women living together are called "dykes."
Social
Behavior
As an all-too-typical 1980s cop flick, there isn't much in the way of positive messages.
Consumerism
Not applicable
Drugs / Tobacco /
Alcohol
Early in the movie, one of the main characters is shown pouring whiskey into his coffee. Throughout the movie, he's shown taking sips from a flask of whiskey he keeps hidden in his sport coat pocket. He also chain-smokes. His partner in the movie, a convict released for 48 hours to help solve the case, is shown drinking in bars. Other characters are shown drinking in bars and smoking; characters are shown smoking in the police precinct.
