Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (adapted from a classic John le Carre spy novel) is an intelligent, adult movie. Violence isn't constant but includes guns and shooting, dead bodies, blood and gore, and violence against women (a mother is killed while nursing her baby, and another woman's head is beaten against a window). Language is also infrequent but includes a few uses of "f--k." There's also some nudity and onscreen sex (toplessness, a woman shown from behind while atop a man, etc.), plus some innuendo. Since the story is set in the early 1970s, characters smoke cigarettes freely and drink casually. For grown-ups and mature teens, this is a terrific film, arguably one of the best spy movies ever made.
Sexual
Content
A couple is seen having sex in bed, from a distance; the woman is on top and is shown from behind. A man is seen almost naked. A topless woman appears at a club. A young couple passionately makes out on a couch. Other kissing, moaning, and fondling. There's a hint of an extramarital affair. Some sexual innuendo; male characters size up a pretty new office worker.
Violence
Throat-slashing and dead bodies, with strong blood and gore in a few scenes. A mother is killed while nursing her baby. A man beats a woman's head against a window. Some guns and shooting, but not as much as in many other spy movies. A man kills a bird that's entered a room through a fireplace.
Language
Language is relatively infrequent but includes a few uses of "f--k," plus "s--t," "prick," "hell," "damn," "goddamn," "Christ," and "God" (as exclamations).
Social
Behavior
Amid the often-violent spy activities, the movie includes problem solving and ethical choice-making. Good, wise characters with plenty of common sense stand up to shady characters who would use fear to increase their own power.
Consumerism
Not applicable
Drugs / Tobacco /
Alcohol
Most of the characters -- except the hero -- smoke cigarettes and drink casually throughout (the story is set in the early 1970s). They drink a bit extra during a Christmas party sequence.
