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"SEXY BEAST"
(2001) (Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley) (R)

Alcohol/
Drugs
Blood/Gore Disrespectful/
Bad Attitude
Frightening/
Tense Scenes
Guns/
Weapons
Moderate Heavy Extreme Heavy Extreme
Imitative
Behavior
Jump
Scenes
Music
(Scary/Tense)
Music
(Inappropriate)
Profanity
Mild None Heavy *Mild Extreme
Sex/
Nudity
Smoking Tense Family
Scenes
Topics To
Talk About
Violence
Heavy Heavy Minor Mild Extreme


QUICK TAKE:
Drama: A retired criminal tries to refuse the offer made to him by a menacing gangster who wants him for one last heist.
PLOT:
Gary "Gal" Dove (RAY WINSTONE) is a former British criminal who's now retired and living on Spain's Costa del Sol with his wife, Deedee (AMANDA REDMAN), a former porn actress. Content to spend his days sunbathing by the pool as his Spanish houseboy, Enrique (ALVARO MONJE), works around the home, Gal has few cares in the world and enjoys spending time with Deedee and their friends Aitch (CAVAN KENDALL) and Jackie (JULIANNE WHITE).

That tranquility is broken when the latter inform Gal that notorious London gangster Don Logan (BEN KINGSLEY) is arriving the next day to recruit Gal for another job. It seems that Don's associate, Teddy Bass (IAN McSHANE), has masterminded an elaborate bank heist and wants Gal on it. The ex-con, however, wants no part of any further wrongdoings, a point of contention that Don doesn't appreciate discovering upon his arrival.

As both men stubbornly hold to their convictions, it's only a matter of time before things reach a boiling point, leaving Gal in a tough and dicey spot as he tries to cover and save his own hide while maintaining his low-key lifestyle.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
Some older male teens may want to see it if they're into stylish gangster flicks, as might anyone who's a fan of someone in the cast. It doesn't seem likely, however, that most other kids will be interested in it.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R
For pervasive language, strong violence and some sexuality.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • RAY WINSTONE plays a British ex-con who's now retired from the world of crime and must repeatedly refuse Don's offer and then demands that he participate in a bank heist (that he ultimately does to protect himself and Deedee). He also smokes, drinks and uses strong profanity.
  • BEN KINGSLEY plays a tough London gangster who's sent to recruit Gal for another job. He uses strong profanity, is mean and intimidating to others, and reportedly slept with Jackie sometime in the past.
  • IAN McSHANE plays the criminal boss who's masterminded the bank heist. He uses strong profanity and shoots one man dead.
  • AMANDA REDMAN plays Gal's wife, a former porn actress who violently takes matters into her own hands when she tires of Don's presence and intimidation.
  • CAVAN KENDALL plays Gal's friend who uses strong profanity and smokes and is just as unhappy about Don's arrival as is his friend/lover played by JULIANNE WHITE.
  • ALVARO MONJE plays the Spanish houseboy who briefly threatens Don with a gun.
  • CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

    HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE


    Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
    Then read OUR TAKE of this film.


    (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).


    OUR WORD TO PARENTS:
    The following is a brief look at the content found in this R-rated thriller. Profanity is listed as extreme due to the use of at least 108 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also used. Some sexually explicit dialogue is present, while an orgy scene (with clothed spectators) includes female nudity (breasts and behinds) and related sounds, and another scene apparently involves a partially seen homosexual encounter.

    One character is noted as being a former porn actress, while others are seen nude or in scanty attire, but no explicit nudity is seen in those cases. Violence consists of two deaths (one by an execution style shooting, the other a combination of being shot and beaten) as well as brutal/intense, but non-lethal acts.

    Some of them have bloody results and may be unsettling or tense to some viewers (as might some non-related material/moments). Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, while they and others also drink and/or smoke. Should you still be concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone in your home who may want to see it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed content listings for more specific examples of what occurs in it.


    ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE
  • We see some drinks around Gal, his wife and their friends.
  • Gal, Deedee and others have wine with dinner, and Jackie orders a brandy.
  • Gal has a beer.
  • Don has a drink, as do others.
  • Don and Gal carry beers.
  • Don and another man have drinks.
  • It sounds like someone mentions (in voice over narration) that some cocaine was at an orgy that's seen in flashback.
  • Some people have drinks at an orgy.
  • Teddy has a drink.
  • Don has a drink at some club where others also drink.
  • Jackie has a drink, while Don has a beer in front of him.
  • Aitch has a drink.
  • Various men drink before and after a heist.
  • Gal says that he'll have whiskey after Teddy takes him to another man's house for a drink.
  • BLOOD/GORE
  • We hear Don urinating and then see him purposefully allow his urine to land on the carpet.
  • Gal has a large bruise on his face after being punched.
  • Don hits Gal on the head with a glass, resulting in lots of blood.
  • We see a bloody bandage lying in a running shower with the blood running from it.
  • We see a flashback to a person shooting a gun and hitting another person in the chest, causing that person to fall backwards (with some blood). We then see that victim on the ground with lots of blood on his clothing and around him on the ground.
  • We see that person again and see more blood as others beat and then shoot that person.
  • DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE
  • Gal is some sort of retired criminal while Don is a current criminal who won't accept Gal's refusal of his offer for another job and is mean and intimidating toward Gal and others.
  • Other men, including Teddy are also criminals who are planning a huge heist.
  • We hear Don urinating and then see him purposefully allow his urine to land on the carpet in Gal's home.
  • Don smokes on a plane before it takes off and won't stop and becomes belligerent when asked to stop. After being held for several hours by the authorities, Don concocts a story where he accuses a male flight attendant of sexually harassing him (and that he smoked in shaken response to that).
  • Various men break into a vault filled with safety-deposit boxes and steal the contents of them.
  • FRIGHTENING SCENES
  • Scenes listed under "Violence" and/or "Blood/Gore" may also be tense or unsettling to viewers, including various moments of yelling and screaming that lead up to them.
  • A huge boulder careens down a hill and barely misses Gal as it lands in his pool.
  • Those sensitive to seeing animals hunted may find a scene where the men go rabbit hunting as unsettling (as the men prepare to shoot the bunnies), but nothing ultimately happens to the animals.
  • Various odd and imagined shots of or scenes with a hairy, devil-like beast may be unsettling to some viewers.
  • A crime boss gives a ride to Gal, with the latter (and the viewer) believing that the former is going to do something bad to him.
  • GUNS/WEAPONS
  • Hunting Rifles: Carried by Gal, Aitch and Enrique while hunting for rabbit. Enrique tries firing his, but it misfires, knocking him to the ground. Aitch tries to fire his, but the gun falls apart.
  • Machine gun: Carried by a hairy, devil-like beast in one of Gal's dreams/visions.
  • Rifles/Handguns: Used by various characters to threaten, injure or kill others.
  • IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR
  • Due to strong accents, poor enunciation and/or poor recording techniques, some of the dialogue is hard to understand. Therefore, the following phrases should be considered a minimum: "F*ck off," "There's always a f*cking way," "Is this a f*ck off?" "What the f*ck /happened?" "You fat f*cking c*nt," "You're the f*cking problem," "No f*cking way," "F*ck that," "Get out of the f*cking car," "What a sh*thole," "Sh*tting themselves," "Shut up," "Bloody" (adjective), "Piss," "A piece of piss," "Bastard," "Wanker," "Bloke" and "Bollocks."
  • JUMP SCENES
  • None.
  • MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)
  • A heavy amount of ominous and suspenseful music plays during the film.
  • MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)
  • A song sounded like it had the lyrics, "Walking along the beaches looking at the bitches" (although it might have been "fishes" for the last word). The song also sounded like it contained the "s" word.
  • PROFANITY
  • Due to strong accents, poor enunciation and/or poor recording techniques, some of the dialogue is hard to understand. Therefore, the following should be considered a minimum. At least 108 "f" words (6 used sexually), 5 "s" words, 19 slang terms using female genitals ("c*nt" and "p*ssy"), 1 slang term using male genitals ("pr*ck"), 2 slang terms for breasts ("t*ts"), 1 ass, 1 bollocks, 1 wanker and 1 use of "Oh Christ" as exclamations.
  • SEX/NUDITY
  • We see Gal lounging about the pool area in a very small and very tight bathing suit (he applies a bag of ice to his crotch while doing so).
  • A woman shows some cleavage.
  • Deedee does some sensuous/sexy dancing in front of Gal (clothed).
  • In a flashback, we see an orgy scene where we hear sexual sounds and see people passively watching some sexual encounter. We see women's bare breasts and bare butts as someone mentions in voice over that "wanking," "spanking" and "f*cking" was occurring.
  • We see a man's expression as someone apparently has sex with him from behind him (after a question was asked of someone else about men or women).
  • Don mentions that Jackie has "big t*ts." He then mentions that he "f*cked" her several years ago. While describing that encounter, Don says that when she tried to stick her finger up his "bum," he nearly hit the roof.
  • Gal asks Deedee if she knew that Don "f*cked" Jackie.
  • We see Deedee's bare back as she lies in bed, otherwise under the sheets.
  • Don mentions that Deedee is a former porn actress.
  • We see Gal sitting nude, but due to the positioning of his body and the camera, we don't see anything explicit.
  • Don again mentions that he "f*cked" Jackie.
  • The contents of various safety-deposit boxes are seen and one includes what look like photos of a bound/gagged woman (possibly of a sexual context).
  • SMOKING
  • Gal smokes cigars and cigarettes at least 8 times, while Teddy, Aitch, Don and others smoke several times, and various miscellaneous characters also smoke.
  • TENSE FAMILY SCENES
  • Don't presence seems to put a bit of a strain on Gal and Deedee's marriage.
  • TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT
  • Why Don needed Gal for the job and why Gal so adamantly refused to participate.
  • The symbolism of the devil-like creature that appears in some of Gal's dreams/fantasies.
  • The dangers of sunbathing (which is Gal's favorite pastime).
  • VIOLENCE
  • Don punches Gal in the thigh.
  • Don goes into a bedroom and punches Gal while he sleeps.
  • Don violently kicks the counter in a kitchen.
  • Don hits Gal on the head with a glass, resulting in lots of blood. Enrique then aims a rifle at Don, but can't shoot him. Don then takes the gun from him and hits Enrique on the head with it.
  • Gal has a vision/dream of a hairy, devil-like creature pointing a gun at him.
  • We see a flashback to a person shooting a gun and hitting another person in the chest, causing that person to fall backwards (with some blood). We then see that victim on the ground with lots of blood on his clothing and around him on the ground.
  • We see that person again and see more blood, and then see a person come up and repeatedly punch the victim, while a woman kicks that victim. A person then puts a rifle up against the victim's chest and shoots him (resulting in lots of blood). Another person then raises what looks like a large metal box over his head and then strikes the victim with it (we don't see the impact but this apparently turns out to be the fatal blow).
  • Teddy shoots a man dead (point blank in the head).
  • We see a hairy, devil-like creature kicking through something.



  • Reviewed May 25, 2001 / Posted June 22, 2001

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