MOVIES
Why did Jennifer Lawrence’s new movie ‘No Hard Feelings’ get an R-rating? Bad language, sex, nudity…
The MPA R rating stands for ‘restricted’ - the classification for films which contain adult content and so children under 17 must be accompanied.
As Jennifer Lawrence turns 33 we reflect on her new movie No Hard Feelings being given an R-rating by the US Motion Picture Association (MPA) - the body that determines a film’s suitability for audiences of different ages.
The movie, a risqué comedy in which J-Law plays Maddie, a 32-year-old Uber driver who finds herself facing financial hardship after her car gets repossessed. With the prospect of no work and possibly losing her house, Maddie answers an ad in Craigslist posted by a wealthy couple looking for someone to ‘date’ their painfully shy teenage son Percy (played by Andrew Barth Feldman) to prepare him for university life at Princeton. The reward for ‘bringing him out of his shell’ - a brand new Buick Regal, just what Maddie needs to get her taxi business up and running again. She has a whole summer to make a man out of poor old Percy.
Bad language, references to sex, full frontal nudity
It’s pretty obvious why No Hard Feelings was given an R-rating, which means that under-17s will only be granted admission to watch the movie if they are accompanied by an adult. Firstly there is a lot of swearing and references to sex all the way through the movie, particularly by Maddie in her attempts to seduce Percy. That alone would merit an R rating. Some PG-rated films evaded the R rating when profanity is moderate, but “frequent use of sexually-related expletives” will usually incur an R rating.
Another reason why No Hard Feelings was flagged as an R-rated movie is that it features full frontal nudity of a sexual nature. In one the more memorable scenes, Maddie decides to treat Percy by taking him to the beach for a bit of late night skinny dipping. She strips off and heads into the water, urging Percy to follow. Unfortunately, while they are frollicking in the water, a group of kids come along and steal their clothes. Maddie races out and fights the clothes thieves - stark naked. For the MPA, straight away that pushes it into R territory.
MPA Film rating system
- G General Audiences (All ages admitted. Nothing that would offend parents for viewing by children)
- PG Parental Guidance Suggested (Some material may not be suitable for children. Parents urged to give "parental guidance". May contain some material parents might not like for their young children)
- PG-13 Parents Strongly Cautioned (Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Parents are urged to be cautious. Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers)
- R Restricted (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. Contains some adult material. Parents are urged to learn more about the film before taking their young children with them)
- NC-17 – Adults Only (No one 17 and under admitted. Clearly adult. Children are not admitted)