Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that Miss Julie is an adaptation of a play by August Strindberg; as with many play-based movies, there's far more talk than action. The title character (Jessica Chastain) is the spoiled daughter of a nobleman in 1880s Ireland who's become infatuated with a cultured servant (Colin Farrell). She orders him around while flirting and making plenty of suggestive demands, but they know that any kind of relationship is doomed. This period piece has little swearing or actual sex (just lots of sexual tension and an undercurrent of thwarted desire), but the wine flows freely, and there are some intense arguments.
Sexual
Content
A man and a woman flirt throughout the film. She approaches him, and he retreats; then he makes a move toward her, and she backs off. Undercurrent of thwarted desire in many scenes. The pair eventually embrace and start to kiss; it's suggested that more has taken place off-screen. There's a complicated power dynamic at play because she's nobility and he's a servant; her demands often cross the line.
Violence
Several intense arguments, with people screaming at each other, sometimes with very personal, cutting remarks. At one point, a woman starts to slap and hit a man; he responds by grabbing her arms. One surprisingly bloody scene.
Language
"Damn."
Social
Behavior
People don't need to be relegated to a certain station in life just because of their parents' status, even in 1880s Ireland. The daughter of a nobleman can be attracted to a servant who's well-traveled and well-read, even if such a pairing might be scandalous to others.
Consumerism
Not applicable
Drugs / Tobacco /
Alcohol
Several scenes involve drinking wine or ale. One character eventually gets quite tipsy, even after she's been warned that she should probably stop drinking, and she's soon saying some pretty harsh truths (which might have remained unsaid had she been sober).
