The Tree of Life (2011)

The Tree of Life parents guide

Heads up on moderate sex and nudity. That is past what the PG-13 on the box suggests. Beyond that, mild language and some violence.

Our estimate: fine from about 16, higher than the PG-13 suggests, because of the sex and nudity.

Scare

Not scary

Jump scares

None noted

Gore

No gore

Violence

Some violence

Some fighting or peril.

Sex and nudity

Moderate

Moderate means a sex scene or nudity on screen, even brief, or sexual violence that is described or implied but never shown.

Language

Mild

Mild words like damn, hell or crap.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

What is The Tree of Life about?

The impressionistic story of a Texas family in the 1950s. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father. Jack finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.

Cast and crew

More like The Tree of Life

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• Donnie Darko (2001)Melancholy · full attention · strong violence · emotionally devastatingA troubled teenager's visions of a giant rabbit lead to surreal crimes and a suspenseful, dreamlike mystery.
• Paris, Texas (1984)Melancholy · full attention · emotionally devastating · a slow burnA silent wanderer slowly pieces together his past, confronting the intimate, bleak memories of a broken family.
• American Beauty (1999)Dry wit · darkly comic · full attention · emotionally devastatingA suburban father's mid-life crisis becomes a darkly comic, melancholy, and intimate satire.
• Good Will Hunting (1997)Dry wit · intimate · comfort watch · emotionally devastatingA brilliant but troubled young man finds his way with the help of a compassionate therapist.
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• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)Melancholy · date night · emotionally devastating · measuredA man erases memories of a lost love, only to find his heart still clinging to their surreal romance.

More like this feeling

Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.

• “a movie that will make me cry”
• “a thriller with a twist, no spoilers”
• “funny but not stupid, under two hours”

Lists with the same feel: Tearjerkers and Weird and surreal.