Spectre, Truth and More in This Week's MPAA Ratings Bulletin

By Chris Kavan - 09/23/15 at 12:57 PM CT

There are a lot of films on the list this week - it's just a bit too bad most of them aren't exactly major films. At least there is one guaranteed blockbuster - that would be the next outing from everyone's favorite spy, Mr. James Bond. Otherwise it's kind of slim pickings - and a couple of limited release films that may or may not thrill audiences with their subject matter. I'm still waiting for a big update, but I'll take things as they come, hopefully the next time around will deliver more of a punch.

MPAA Official Logo

By far the biggest film on the list this week is Spectre, the latest in the James Bond series. I was hesitant at first when Daniel Craig was cast, but other than the disappointing Quantum of Solace, the series has been excellent. Skyfall was brilliant and now we're getting into some series territory with Spectre - essentially the worst of the worst and highly connected. Thought Quantum of Solace was boring, in my opinion, it did lay the groundwork for this shady organization (when someone better be stroking a white cat, dammit). Much like the other Bond films in this current iteration, I expect things to get rather dark - but the inevitable gritty reboot has worked out well for Craig, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw and Ralph Fiennes. The addition of Monica Bellucci, Léa Seydoux, Christoph Waltz and Dave Bautista should only serve to make things even more interesting. Spectre receives a PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, some disturbing images, sensuality and language. Disturbing and sensual? Count me in.

The first limited release film of note is Truth. Although it's only seeing a limited release in October, the cast looks intriguing - Robert Redford as newscaster Dan Rather, Cate Blanchett as CBS news head Mary Mapes, and a great supporting cast of Elisabeth Moss, Topher Grace, Dennis Quaid, Bruce Greenwood and David Lyons. It's the subject matter that, depending on its handled, will come across as an excellent biographic drama or a slanted piece of propaganda.. Essentially it covers events leading up to the 2004 presidential election where 60 Minutes aired a piece on George W. Bush alleging his father's connections helped him avoid the Vietnam draft. Of course, it came out all this information they had was falsified and because they went ahead with the story anyways, it resulted in several careers being ended (including Mapes) and was probably a big factor in Rather's retirement. Now, I have to say with the caliber of actors involved, I really hope they don't make this too political. That being said, coming out of Toronto, Blanchett has been getting major kudos so we'll see if it can make its mark on audiences (and critics) here. The film receives an R for language and a brief nude photo (hopefully not of Bush).

The second would be Experimenter, which follows the true story of Stanley Milgram (Peter Sarsgaard), who, in 1961 conducted an experiment to see just how far people would go to obey authority. The electric shock experiment sparked a public outcry, but it's really the results that were, pardon my pun, shocking. The film also stars Winona Ryder as Milgram's wife, along with Taryn Manning, Anton Yelchin, Kellan Lutz, John Leguizamo, Lori Singer, Anthony Edwards, Dennis Haysbert and Jim Gaffigan (quite the collection there). Experimenter is also getting a limited release in October and it will be interesting to see if it can stand out in a crowded adult field. It has a great cast, so that will help. The film receives a PG-13 for thematic material and brief strong language.

The full ratings bulletin is below:

AWAKEN

Rated R for violence.


CAPTAIN FANTASTIC

Rated R for language and brief graphic nudity.


EATING HAPPINESS

Rated R for some disturbing images of animal cruelty.


EL CLAN

Rated R for violence, language and a scene of sexuality/nudity.


EXPERIMENTER

Rated PG-13 for thematic material and brief strong language.


GENIUS

Rated PG-13 for some thematic elements and suggestive content.


JEREMY SCOTT: THE PEOPLE'S DESIGNER

Rated PG-13 for language and some suggestive images/nudity.


JULIA

Rated R for a brutal rape, strong bloody violence, graphic nudity, language and some drug use.


THE LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE

Rated PG for thematic elements, action and brief language.


MI AMERICA

Rated R for language throughout and some violence.


MUSTANG

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, sexual content and a rude gesture.


SANTA'S LITTLE HELPER

Rated PG for a comic fight scene and some suggestive humor.


SPECTRE

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, some disturbing images, sensuality and language.


TRUTH

Rated R for language and a brief nude photo.


YOUTH

Rated R for graphic nudity, some sexuality, and language.

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