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"SAFE HOUSE"
 (2012) (Ryan Reynolds, Denzel Washington) (R)

At-A-Glace Content Summary

Alcohol/Drugs Mild
Blood/Gross Stuff Extreme
Disrespectful/Bad Attitude Extreme
Frightening/Tense Scenes Heavy
Gun/Weapons Extreme
Imitative Behavior Heavy
Jump Scenes Heavy
Music (Scary/Tense) Extreme
Music (Inappropriate) None
Profanity Heavy
Sex/Nudity Moderate
Smoking None
Tense Family Scenes Mild
Topics to Talk About Heavy
Violence Extreme

QUICK TAKE:
Action: A CIA agent longs for something more than running an agency "safe house" and gets that when he's suddenly in charge of a renegade agent who many people want dead.
PLOT:
Matt Weston (RYAN REYNOLDS) is a young CIA agent stationed in Cape Town, South Africa where he runs one of the agency's "safe houses." He's bored there and longs for something more, and hates that he can't tell his girlfriend, Ana (NORA ARNEZEDER), what he really does. His superior, David Barlow (BRENDAN GLEESON), promises that better things will come his way, but even he doesn't realize how much things will change for Matt.

And that's because renegade CIA agent Tobin Frost (DENZEL WASHINGTON), in an effort to elude armed men who are after him, has just turned himself into the U.S. Consulate. Tobin went rogue years ago, allegedly selling important government information to the highest bidder, and the agency wants every bit of intel out of him. Accordingly, its extraction team, led by Daniel Kiefer (ROBERT PATRICK), takes Tobin to Matt's safe house and proceeds to torture him to make him talk.

Before he can spit out anything, however, armed goons breach the house and kill everyone except for Matt who manages to get Tobin out of the house before either of them joins the rest of the deceased. Barlow's associate, Catherine Linklater (VERA FARMIGA), believes that Matt is now in cahoots with Tobin, something Barlow disagrees with, while their big boss, Deputy Director Harlan Whitford (SAM SHEPARD), simply wants them to resolve the situation and make sure Tobin is brought in.

Back on the scene, Matt tries to figure out how to handle and later recapture Tobin, all while the renegade agent tries to open Matt's eyes about how the agency really works, and as both try to avoid the armed gunmen who are after them.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
Some teenagers might be interested, especially if they're into hard-hitting action flicks and/or are fans of someone in the cast.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R
For strong violence throughout and some language.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • RYAN REYNOLDS plays a young CIA agent who's frustrated that...

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