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"A THOUSAND WORDS"
(2012) (Eddie Murphy, Kerry Washington) (PG-13)


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


QUICK TAKE:
Comedy: A motor-mouthed literary agent is cursed by a magic tree to limit himself to 1,000 words the rest of his life, which throws his marriage and career into a tailspin.
PLOT:
Jack McCall (EDDIE MURPHY) is a high-strung, motor-mouthed literary agent who works for Samantha (ALLISON JANNEY) and becomes obsessed with signing the world's hottest self-help guru Dr. Sinja (CLIFF CURTIS) to a book deal. At his meditation facility, though, he scratches himself on the bark of a tree that then magically sprouts up in the backyard of his house. Leaves start falling off with each word Jack says, and Sinja deduces that Jack and the tree are psychically linked. When the tree loses all of its leaves, it and Jack die...unless Jack can find inner calm.

It's hard for Jack, because his father ran out on him and his mother at an early age and he's never come to terms with that. He rose through the publishing industry thanks to his own drive and iron will and subsequently married a beautiful woman named Caroline (KERRY WASHINGTON), who then gave birth to a son. But his career and his marriage are put at risk as his behavior gets increasingly bizarre with so few words and so little time left.

When it becomes clear that he needs to start making his words count and show the people around him how much he really cares, he starts to have some hope he can lift the curse. He even gets help from his put-upon assistant, Aaron (CLARK DUKE), who comes to understand late the troubles Jack is going through. But it might be too little, too late.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
It's being marketed as a family-friendly (but not child-friendly) film, and Murphy does have a following among younger people thanks to his "Nutty Professor" and "Shrek" work.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13
For sexual situations including dialogue, language and some drug-related humor.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • EDDIE MURPHY plays a motor-mouthed literary agent devoted to his career who becomes...


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