Parents, You Should NOT Take Your Kids to See A Star Is Born, No Matter How Good It Is

Updated on 10/25/2018 at 6:40 PM

A Star Is Born is 100 percent the best new movie I've seen in quite some time, and I'm calling it now, it's going to win all of the Oscars this coming award season. But despite the beautiful, heartbreaking, emotional film being one of the most amazing — in a bittersweet way — that I've seen, it is definitely not one to take the kids to.

The tragic love story features Bradley Cooper as Jackson, a famous musician and addict who discovers Ally (Lady Gaga) in a drag bar he stumbles into looking for an alcohol fix after a gig. After hearing Ally sing, it's clear Jack's completely and utterly smitten with her, and he decides to help advance her music career by convincing her to sing on stage with him and taking her out on the rest of his tour. Although the general premise seems innocent enough, Jack's addictions and struggles with his family life are at the forefront of this film, and the back half of the over two-hour running time has some seriously dark moments.

If you're thinking of taking your kid to see this film with you, I wouldn't recommend bringing any teen under the age of 17 or 18, but you know your child and what they can handle best, so read ahead if you're considering a family movie date.

Warning: MAJOR spoilers for A Star Is Born lie ahead.

Jack is constantly seen drinking and doing drugs.

Jack suffers from alcohol and drug addiction, and it's obvious from very early on in the film — he literally goes into the bar he meets Ally in because he's in need of a fix. He's often seen drinking straight from the bottle, taking pills from prescription bottles, and snorting drugs (he also smokes). He is at one point admitted into a rehab, and it's clear how deeply he struggles with the disease. Other characters in the film are also seen drinking, most often taking shots with Jack.

Jack and Ally's physical relationship is often shown.

There's some nudity in the film, mostly when Jack and Ally are sleeping together, which is shown to varying degrees but not completely explicitly. Ally is seen completely nude for a split second as she's getting out of a bathtub, which the pair appear in naked together on occasion, and there's a whole lot of kissing.

(Just another warning, a HUGE spoiler is in the next slide. Skip over the next photo if you'd prefer not to know a major part of the film's ending.)

A suicide is alluded to, then partially shown.

While Jack is in rehab, he tells a story of attempting to take his life "just shy of 13" years old by tying a belt to a ceiling fan (which came right out of the ceiling). The story is laughed at at the time of telling, but not soon after, the details of the story are called back when Jack is shown home alone with a belt in his hands. It's obvious from there what's about to happen, as Jack walks into the garage, sets his cowboy hat down, and takes a look at his dog who he'd just served a huge steak, clearly his way of saying goodbye.

There's a brief shot later through the garage window of Jack's torso swaying back and forth, and it's clear he's hanged himself.

There's strong language throughout the film.

In addition to words like ass, b*tch, and assh*le, there are plenty of sh*ts and f-bombs to go around.

Jack struggles with his family and punches his older brother in the face.

Jack notes that his dad — who also struggled with alcohol addiction — was 63 when he had him, so it's assumed that Bobby, his older half-brother, is at least 30 years older than him. Jack treats his brother, who works for him, poorly, and there is constant tension between the pair. (Bobby had a go at being a rock star when Jackson was a kid, but then has to care for him after their dad passed when Jack was 13, so there's definitely some jealousy and animosity.) Although Bobby is clearly concerned about the path his brother is on and it's obvious that Jack loves Bobby, rather that talk through their issues together, they often fight, and Jack at one point turns to violence and punches Bobby in the face. (To note: Ally also punches someone in the face at one point.)