Maze Runner: Death Cure, Proud Mary, Samson, Unsane and More in This Week's MPAA Ratings Bulletin

By Chris Kavan - 01/03/18 at 11:05 AM CT

After a week-long break, the MPAA board is back, and they are on fire. There is a lot of ground to cover this time, from a YA franchise to animation, horror and action and yes, even another biblical epic. The list isn't so long this time, but it's almost full of major releases, just like it should be. Hopefully this is a good sign for the new year, because God knows we need 2018 to be a lot better than last year. So buckle those seat belts boys and girls, because it's going to be a long year.


MPAA Official Logo

It has been a long road for the Maze Runner series. While not the most popular or prolific, it has been a solid series. However, Maze Runner: The Death Cure has been delayed somewhat due to a an on-set accident that although was downplayed, was quite serious and had star Dylan O'Brien recuperating for several months. But he did recover, the film was completed and now we can look forward to the final chapter. The sequel apparently veered away quite a bit from the source novels (I never read this series, so I can't say it affected me), so it will be interesting to see how the third part plays out. In any case, the cast, old and new, is solid - Kaya Scodelario, Rosa Salazar, Walton Goggins, Patricia Clarkson, Giancarlo Esposito, Barry Pepper, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ki Hong Lee, Aidan Gillen and Nathalie Emmanue make up a quite accomplished cast. The film focuses on the disease known as the Flare and Thomas's quest to finally find a cure to the scourge that has brought humanity to near extinction. Trust has played a big part in the previous films, we'll see where this one takes us. Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language, and some thematic elements.

Taraji P. Henson is known for taking on some powerful roles - in both films and television, but she is kicking her badass status up a notch with her new role in Proud Mary. Henson plays the title role of a hitwoman working for a Boston crime family - and she is very good at her job. However, following a botched assignment, she finds herself caring for a young boy, and it will greatly affect her life. Xander Berkeley, Danny Glover, Neal McDonough, Billy Brown, Margaret Avery and newcomer Jahi Di'Allo Winston round out the cast. It's like a cross between The Professional and John Wick. It's a kickass role with emotion - a perfect combination for a talented actress and I have a feeling it's going to do just fine. Rated R for violence.

Steven Soderbergh is known for action, crime, comedy, drama - but one this conspicuously missing from his long and storied career is horror. Well, that's all about to change with the upcoming Unsane. Plus, the film was shot entirely on an iPhone camera - so, yay technology? The film follows a young woman (Claire Foy) who finds herself involuntarily committed to a mental institution only to find herself facing her greatest fear... or is it all in her head? Foy is joined by Juno Temple, Aimee Mullins, Amy Irving, Joshua Leonard and Jay Pharoah. Soderbergh had an underappreciated gem in last year's Logan Lucky, we'll see if his first horror drums up a bit more excitement. Rated R for disturbing behavior, violence, language, and sex references.

I'm not usually a huge fan of biblical tales. They are hard to get right without being preachy and the best of them (Ben-Hur - the original, not the remake, obviously) have a compelling story without hitting you over the head with the religious aspect. I don't think the upcoming Samson is going to be one of those gems. The film looks to be a pretty faithful retelling of the whole Samson and Delilah with Taylor James taking on the role the the legendary warrior with great hair and Caitlin Leahy his hair-cutting downfall. The film is populated by semi-famous people, Billy Zane, Rutger Hauer, Jackson Rathbone and Lindsay Wagner among them. This seems like it is angled directly at the kind of people who like God's Not Dead and that ilk - maybe with a bit more action, but nothing that really makes me remotely interested. Rated PG-13 for violence and battle sequences.

Lastly we have a Spanish animated film Condorito: The Movie which, doing a little digging, is apparently based on a rather popular South American comic. In any case, the titular character Condorito (voiced by Omar Chaparro) finds himself facing great odds when he must not only save his family, but also the entire world, from an alien invasion. Seeing as how Spanish-language films have become more and more popular in the last few years, this could do well if a largely Latino audience (and families in general), support it. I mean, I'm not expecting Pixar level excitement here, but it could become a minor hit. Rated PG for rude and suggestive humor, and some mild action.

Those are the big movies getting their ratings due this week, but be sure to check out the full MPAA Rating Bulletin below:


CONDORITO: THE MOVIE

PG for rude and suggestive humor and some mild action.


JOURNEY'S END

Rated R for some language and war images.


THE ODYSSEY

Rated PG for thematic material, language and smoking.


MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, language and some thematic elements.


PROUD MARY

Rated R for violence.


SAMSON

Rated PG-13 for violence and battle sequences.


STATUS UPDATE

Rated PG-13 for crude and suggestive humor, language, and some teen partying.


SUICIDE SQUAD: HELL TO PAY

Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, sexual content, brief graphic nudity and some drug material.


SWEET COUNTRY

Rated R for violence, bloody images and for language throughout.


UNSANE

Rated R for disturbing behavior, violence, language and sex references.

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