Suburbicon

Ah “Suburbicon”! According to the writers of this film, this fictional place is everyone’s idea of dream living in the 1950s. Yes, people are flocking from all over the country to live there: Ohio, New York, and yes, even from Mississippi! It’s the “perfect” neighborhood, many churches, full of “perfect” people (portrayed as all white) who greet each other on the street every morning with a firm handshake or a smile, where every house is lined up perfectly with each other, and there’s never been any history of crime.

That’s the loaded setup for this dark social satire.

The story focuses on the lives of the Dodge family. Mrs. Rose Dodge (Julianne Moore) has recently been in an car accident; her husband was driving. Now, she is confined to her wheelchair at home—her only companions are her husband Gardner (Matt Damon), son Nicholas and Rose’s only sister, Maggie (also Julianne Moore).

On top of that, Gardner is in a bit of a jam himself, owing a large debt to the mob, who one night visits his family to collect. In the process, they knock-out Gardner, Nicholas and Maggie and murder Mrs. Dodge.

I guess every town has its skeletons…

I’m just going to come right out and say it… “Suburbicon” is an absolute mess of a film—from start to finish. It seems to spend the whole time trying to figure out what kind of film it wants to be. At times, it tries to be darkly comedic, at other times it’s a murder mystery, and then for some bizarre reason, which made my mouth drop wide open for most of the film, it tries to address American racism and civil rights in the middle of all this!

I wish there was something… anything… positive that I could honestly praise about the film, but there’s just so much inconsistency and discrepancy, not to mention the appalling lack of morality on display, that it is really hard to find anything redeeming or good to commend, except maybe, perhaps, the performances of some of the main characters.

Content of concern

There is a lot of ugly, angry content in “Suburbicon.”

Racism

True Bible-believing, obedient followers of Christ have long opposed racism—knowing that we are all made in the image of God; we are all of one blood.

RACISM—What are the consequences of racial prejudice and false beliefs about the origin of races? Answer

Get biblical answers to racial hot-topics. Where did the races come from? How did skin color come about? Why is it important to have a biblical foundation for such issues?

What is Christian love? Answer

What is HUMILITY? Answer

Violence: • A man is poisoned with lye, and as he runs—choking and in agony—a character takes a poker or crowbar and clubs him to death—splattering blood. • We see the club sticking out the dead man’s head, as another person tries repeatedly to yank it out with his foot planted on the man’s head. • There is a pool of blood and bloody clothing. • A man is knifed in his back and bleeds heavily. • A character describes to his son what he will do to him if he doesn’t do what he says—that is, he will have to kill him—and then he proceeds to graphically describe the details of how he’ll cover up his murder. • Another character is suddenly gruesomely struck by a fire truck, manages to survive a moment, and then ignited fuel flows toward him, and a car explodes. • Characters are murdered with knives and guns. • A man strangles a woman to death, another person is killed after swallowing food and drink poisoned with grounded-up medication. • There are riot scenes. • There is a frightening home invasion; a family is tied up and chloroformed using rags, one of which intentionally suffocates (to death) a disabled mother. • Two gangsters beat a man’s face (we see bruises, black eyes, scarred and bleeding nose).

Sexual Content or Nudity: Gardner, the father, is adulterous (with his wife’s sister), and this began before his wife’s injury. Mom’s now dead and out of Dad’s way, and the son returns home and walks in on his Dad and his replacement Mom (his real mother’s sister) having sex with each other; the actual sex position is displayed and some of new Mom’s underwear. There is sex play in the basement. The audience witnesses Dad on top of new Mom about to have sex, and again later they are seen in bed together. The son is shown in the bathtub (but nothing overly graphic).

Language: • F**k (15+), including “a f*cking hard-on” • “c**ks*cker” • a man looking for revenge says that when he finds the person(s) responsible, “he will peel them back from their a**h*les and let their guts spill out” • Jesus’ name is taken in vain twice • G*d-d**n (2) • “Episcopalians are all full of sh*t” • “Swear to G*d” • “My G*d” • d*mn (2) • h*ll (2) • “a**” • “N*ggers” • “N*gro” • another s-word

There is absolutely NOTHING redeeming about this film. In short, I do not recommend this film for Christian audiences, period. Do not subject your spirit to what is, frankly, downright ungodly on many levels. There are much more spiritually edifying things to do with your short time on Earth. And certainly, please do NOT take children to see this.

• Violence: Very Heavy
• Profane language: Moderate
• Vulgar/Crude language: Very Heavy
• Nudity: Moderate
• Sex: Heavy

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.