Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this moody adaptation of a classic 1950s crime novel centers on extreme violence toward women, which makes it iffy for even the most mature teens. The violence isn't constant, but a few key scenes are intensely brutal and disturbing, with the main character -- an amoral sociopath -- slowly pummeling two women to death with his bare hands. He also has sex with several women, many times, in a violent and aggressive way. Characters also drink and smoke throughout the film, though they don't swear much.
Sexual
Content
The main character has rough sex with two women, slapping, mauling, and bruising them. He wraps his belt around a girl's neck and uses it to "whip" her. Flashbacks show him spanking a third woman and molesting a young girl. There's also a suggestion of oral sex performed on the male character. One of the female characters is a prostitute, though she's not seen having sex with anyone else. Nudity includes female buttocks.
Violence
The main character brutally murders two women by pummelling them with his fists over a prolonged period of time. He also shoots and kills a man and indirectly causes the deaths of three other characters (one dies from gunshots). A flashback scene suggests that the main character is molesting a young girl.
Language
Language includes "bastard" and "son of a bitch" several times each, plus "hell," "damn," and at least one exclamation of "Jesus."
Social
Behavior
The movie is told from the point of view of a sociopath who kills almost for the sport of it. He never seems to feel the slightest bit guilty about his crimes, though he does pay for them in the end.
Consumerism
Not applicable.
Drugs / Tobacco /
Alcohol
Characters drink hard alcohol and smoke cigars and cigarettes often. The main character burns a man's hand with his cigar. A secondary character drinks to excess and falls asleep.