Heaven & Earth
Movie • 1993
ReportLe Ly lives in a small Vietnamese village whose serenity is shattered when war breaks out. Caught between the Viet Cong and the South Vietnamese army, the village is all but destroyed. After being both brutalized and raped, Le Ly resolves to flee. She leaves for the city, surviving desperate situations, but surviving nonetheless. Eventually she meets a U.S. Marine named Steve Butler who treats her kindly and tells her he would like to be married -- maybe to her.
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Are animals abused?
248 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
A tiger is abused at 1:26:57 (after the bus). It is pinned under a net by soldiers, and acts visibly stressed (pacing, and panting).
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
Starting at about 34:55 after the main character is held over an open grave by two men, they shove her down into the mud and then she is assaulted on-screen until about 35:35. It cuts to other images in between such as grass, it is over when she's standing silhouetted against a dark blue sky/landscape.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
Starting at about 34:55 after the main character is held over an open grave by two men, they shove her down into the mud and then she is assaulted on-screen until about 35:35. It cuts to other images in between such as grass, it is over when she's standing silhouetted against a dark blue sky/landscape.
Women are taken from a bus at 1:26:10 and return at 1:26:23 all beat up from being raped, you don't actually see the rape, it's heavily implied. You may want to skip to about 1:26:37 if you don't want to see the injured women after they get back on the bus.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
Women are taken from a bus at 1:26:10 and return at 1:26:23 all beat up from being raped, you don't actually see the rape, it's heavily implied. You may want to skip to about 1:26:37 if you don't want to see the injured women after they get back on the bus.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
It's implied, we briefly hear a pig squealing off screen early in the film, this might be the pig being killed, or it could be someone moving it in a hurry/roughly. This movie is about war, and we do see animals in areas affected by the war. None are dead though.
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Does someone vomit?
118 supporters
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Le Ly vomits into a paper bag at about 1:26:03 while on a bus that has been stopped by South Vietnamese soldiers. She does this to avoid being raped. You don't actually see any vomit but you hear her gag/retch.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is a woman brutalized for spectacle?
108 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
As this film is based on a memoir of a real person who lived through this (she has a cameo in the film) women aren't abused for the spectacle of the viewers of the film. However situations occur where women are abused/mistreated and in the actual situation it was partly for spectacle. For example when she is taken prisoner and tortured publicly with other women, the public nature of this draws spectacle of the characters to humiliate the women. There are instances of women being raped, murdered, and mistreated throughout the film.
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Are there incestuous relationships?
National Sexual Assault Hotline 800.656.4673
99 supporters
Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
2:00:30 - 2:01:00 Steve (Le Ly's husband) commits suicide with a gun in a van after she calls him and says she wants to help him and that she loves him. She runs up to the van at night in the rain and we see his nude body (no visible genitalia), they show the body twice.
You'll see a man in a bright yellow raincoat and her sister will say "he killed himself" right before she sees him.
At about 1:50:00 - 1:50:13 Steve threatens to kill himself by putting a gun in his mouth while arguing with Le Ly (removes the gun then they continue to talk).
You'll see a man in a bright yellow raincoat and her sister will say "he killed himself" right before she sees him.
At about 1:50:00 - 1:50:13 Steve threatens to kill himself by putting a gun in his mouth while arguing with Le Ly (removes the gun then they continue to talk).
1 comment | Add comment
Is rape mentioned?
96 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
It is mentioned a couple of scenes after it happens to the main character (on-screen).
Women are taken from a bus at 1:26:10 and return at 1:26:23 all beat up from being raped, you don't actually see the rape, it's heavily implied. You may want to skip to about 1:26:37 if you don't want to see the injured women after they get back on the bus.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
Women are taken from a bus at 1:26:10 and return at 1:26:23 all beat up from being raped, you don't actually see the rape, it's heavily implied. You may want to skip to about 1:26:37 if you don't want to see the injured women after they get back on the bus.
When Steve puts a gun to Le Ly's head she experiences flashbacks to the rape which we also see.
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
About 1:46:18 - 1:47:05
Steve and Le Ly are arguing and he threatens her by holding one of the guns to her head. Shortly before this she slaps him after he starts getting guns out of the cabinet (he "drinks and shoots" according to her so the guns aren't out specifically to threaten her).
Steve and Le Ly are arguing and he threatens her by holding one of the guns to her head. Shortly before this she slaps him after he starts getting guns out of the cabinet (he "drinks and shoots" according to her so the guns aren't out specifically to threaten her).
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there abusive parents?
61 supporters
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Le Ly's mum is harsh in the way she speaks to her, she slaps her, and it is her choice to see the herbalist to try to get rid of Le Ly's pregnancy.
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Is there decapitation?
51 supporters
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You don't see the decapitation itself however you see dismembered body of a sex worker in a bin bag and the head is at the top.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there throat mutilation?
48 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve mentions slitting someone's throat as he talks to Le Ly after he threatens to kill himself. While he does this we see a flashback where it happens.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does an abused person forgive their abuser?
45 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly never really holds it against her mum the way she is, she feels hurt and angry but still cares for her and visits her.
Le Ly tells her husband who had been verbally abusing her while drunk and pointed a gun at her head that she loves him and wants to help him.
Le Ly tells her husband who had been verbally abusing her while drunk and pointed a gun at her head that she loves him and wants to help him.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there a large age gap?
39 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly is several years younger than her husband Steve.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there hate speech?
38 supporters
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People say hateful things and use slurs regarding Vietnamese people. There are threats, and horrible racial stereotyping. People are talked about like they're not people. There's no big speech inciting a specific act of violence seen/heard in the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is a child abandoned by a parent?
36 supporters
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The father of Le Ly's first son has someome provision for them when they're sent away.
You could argue that Steve abandons his two sons when he commits suicide but it isn't about that and he shows prior to that that he wanted to stay with his family, his struggles (PTSD) just got to be too much.
You could argue that Steve abandons his two sons when he commits suicide but it isn't about that and he shows prior to that that he wanted to stay with his family, his struggles (PTSD) just got to be too much.
1 comment | Add comment
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Le Ly slaps Steve once in an argument, but it isn't hard and happens once.
1 comment | Add comment
Does someone suffer from PTSD?
33 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly, and Steve are the main portrayals, however many others do to including her mother and most of her family and village. You see Le Ly, and Steve experiencing flashbacks (we see the flashbacks too), having nightmares, and having their lives affected by this in several ways. Steve develops a drinking problem and then commits suicide.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is an infant abducted?
32 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve abducts his kids because he doesn't want the divorce or to lose anything he has.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is someone restrained?
31 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
The main character is restrained multiple times. She is taken prisoner and restrained by soldiers holding her arms and making her walk at about 26:38 - 27:05 as they take her from her home. The next shot at 27:05 shows her blindfolded and being led/dragged by her arms while standing by two soldiers. At about 27:50 she is restrained in a chair and electric shocked until roughly 29:12. We see a room full of people who are restrained (cuffed to metal bars on the floor by ankles) at 29:19 when they come to get her for further torture. Then from about 30:33 - 32:00 Le Ly and 2 other women are tied to a vertical pole and tortured. To skip the whole sequence it'd be roughly 26:38 - 32:00 as people are restrained for most of it. The southern soldiers are trying to find people who are or are helping the Viet Cong during this segment. She is released following this.
At about 34:55-35:35 Le Ly is restrained and raped by two Viet Cong men.
At about 34:55-35:35 Le Ly is restrained and raped by two Viet Cong men.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is reality unstable or unhinged?
30 supporters
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The closest thing is characters experiencing flashbacks which isn't the same.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does a parent die?
28 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve commits suicide, he is biological father to two of their kids and step-dad to the other.
Le Ly's dad dies, we don't see it happen but we see the funeral.
Le Ly's dad dies, we don't see it happen but we see the funeral.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there anxiety attacks?
26 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
People have symptoms similar to anxiety attacks, combined with flashbacks due to PTSD
1 comment | Add comment
Is electro-therapy used?
26 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly is shocked as torture but not as therapy.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there addiction?
25 supporters
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Alcoholism
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
Slapped and more. This film follows a woman trying to survive through several bad situations in and caused by the Vietnam war so there would be quite a lot to be aware of/skip.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there snakes?
24 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
In a torture scene when Le Ly is imprisoned, ants are put on the three womens feet and snakes are put down their tops. You don't see any biting, the snakes are fairly small, but there are 3 snakes.
1 comment | Add comment
Does a baby cry?
23 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
There are many shots of crying babies/children in the first half of the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does a family member die?
23 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
One of Le Ly's brothers dies off-screen, her father dies off-screen, and her husband commits suicide (we see the body not the death).
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone abuse alcohol?
21 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve suffers from alcoholism caused by his PTSD from what haplened during the war. We see this towards the end of the film in multiple scenes after Le Ly and their family go to America.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there babies or unborn children?
17 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly has kids during the film (we don't see the birth, we do see the babies and kids).
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone have a seizure?
16 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
When Le Ly is shocked with electricity the spasms could resemble some seizures.
1 comment | Add comment
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It is only mentioned.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone have a mental illness?
9 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Multiple characters have PTSD
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there sharks?
8 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
They're mentioned once as a metaphor. There are no sharks in the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there menstruation?
5 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
It is mentioned when Le Ly's mother suspects that Le Ly is pregnant after she has sex with Anh (her employer at the time). It's not a graphic or lengthy mention, and you never see any menstruation.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there incarceration?
5 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly is taken prisoner, as are many others.
1 comment | Add comment
Are there natural bodies of water?
3 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Rice fields at the village. When returning to Vietnam from America we see ocean surrounding Viernam from the plane.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there abortions?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
It is referenced, and Le Ly and her mother attempt to stop a pregnancy by seeing a herbalist, it fails. It isn't graphic.
1 comment | Add comment
Does someone cheat?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
When Le Ly and her mother move to Saigon she gets a job working as a live-in housekeeper for a wealthy man, and his wife. He claims he cares about her to get her to have sex with him. She then becomes pregnant and though they try to stop the pregnancy, this is unsuccessful. The wife finds out and is angry, Le Ly and her mother are then sent away at the wife's request. The man and Le Ly hug/kiss at about 40:10 - 40:57 then he gets changed and at about 41:10 - 42:04 is the sex scene (no visible nudity).
Cheating is also mentioned when an American soldier is offering her money for sex with 2 of his soldiers, one of whom we are told is about to go home to his wife.
Cheating is also mentioned when an American soldier is offering her money for sex with 2 of his soldiers, one of whom we are told is about to go home to his wife.
1 comment | Add comment
Does a major character die?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve commits suicide near the end of the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is a mentally ill person violent?
1 supporters
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It's clearly framed that the war is the cause of the violence, not mental illness, and that the war causes PTSD which causes more violence but ultimately that's still because of the war.
Steve owns guns and threatens to shoot Le Ly while drunk because of his PTSD. We don't see him being physically violent with her. There's also the implication and mention of other veterans being violent in similar situations, and many soldiers likely also have PTSD.
Steve owns guns and threatens to shoot Le Ly while drunk because of his PTSD. We don't see him being physically violent with her. There's also the implication and mention of other veterans being violent in similar situations, and many soldiers likely also have PTSD.
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
2:00:30 - 2:01:00 Steve (Le Ly's husband) commits suicide with a gun in a van after she calls him and says she wants to help him and that she loves him. She runs up to the van at night in the rain and we see his nude body (no visible genitalia), they show the body twice.
You'll see a man in a bright yellow raincoat and her sister will say "he killed himself" right before she sees him.
At about 1:50:00 - 1:50:13 Steve threatens to kill himself by putting a gun in his mouth while arguing with Le Ly (removes the gun then they continue to talk).
You'll see a man in a bright yellow raincoat and her sister will say "he killed himself" right before she sees him.
At about 1:50:00 - 1:50:13 Steve threatens to kill himself by putting a gun in his mouth while arguing with Le Ly (removes the gun then they continue to talk).
1 comment | Add comment
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0
Does someone fall to their death?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
20:49 - 21:22 Le Ly has a dream where her brother is intentionally thrown from a helicopter by a soldier while being interrogated, they then grab and threaten her and she wakes up.
1 comment | Add comment
Does someone fall down stairs?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
The herbalist (after Le Ly is found out to be pregnant by her mother) makes Le Ly jump on each step down some stairs, she doesn't fall but it might make you worry if you're concerned about this.
1 comment | Add comment
Are any teeth damaged?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Due to living conditions Le Ly's mother's teeth are damaged. They don't sustain actual damage in the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve commits suicide. There's no self harm.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone say "I'll kill myself"?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Doesn't say the words, but Steve puts the gun in his mouth in front of Le Ly, not in a manipulative way.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there amputation?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
You don't see the act of amputation, however when Le Ly returns to her village towards the middle of the film you see people who have lost limbs. Any wounds have healed though.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone become unconscious?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Implied by camera cuts following violence in some cases.
1 comment | Add comment
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Does someone struggle to breathe?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Le Ly is given electric shocks as torture and she struggles to breathe somewhat during this.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there obscene language/gestures?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Swearing throughout, and slurs against Vietnamese people.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there flashing lights or images?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
The PTSD flashbacks throughout the film often have flashing imagery, and some have flashing lights.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there childbirth?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
She's pregnant but we never see her give birth, time just progresses to after the births.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is someone buried alive?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Two Viet Cong take Le Ly to threaten her over an open grave, they're likely threatening to kill her first then bury her though.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there genital trauma/mutilation?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
There's a rape though.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there ableist language or behavior?
1 supporters
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0
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whatshouldntiwatch
They do throw around words like crazy in reference to mental health because things weren't well understood and people didn't receive support. For example Steve calls himself crazy.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is an animal abandoned?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Implied purely because it's a war and people sometimes lose an animal and often die. This isn't mentioned at all, you just see animals existing.
1 comment | Add comment
Is religion discussed?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
Steve is Christian, Le Ly is Buddhist. Buddhist beliefs and practices come up a few times throughout the film and they go to a church (we see this once and Steve references it when he takes the kids).
1 comment | Add comment
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Are there bugs?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
When imprisoned and tortured three women have have honey spread on their feet and ants are released onto them.
Possibly little flies/mosquitos but they're never the focus they just exist.
Possibly little flies/mosquitos but they're never the focus they just exist.
1 comment | Add comment
Are there nude scenes?
1 supporters
Yes
0
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whatshouldntiwatch
Naked babies/toddlers in a few scenes in the first half of the film.
Steve is naked when he commits suicide, but we don't see his genitals.
Steve is naked when he commits suicide, but we don't see his genitals.
1 comment | Add comment
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Are rabbits harmed?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
No rabbits are seen
1 comment | Add comment
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Is an animal sad?
1 supporters
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0
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whatshouldntiwatch
Stressed tiger.
1 comment | Add comment
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Is there blood/gore?
1 supporters
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whatshouldntiwatch
There's blood and torture. You see sprays of blood from a distance as people are shot but it isn't lots and doesn't last long. People get beaten and have small bits of blood on their faces and bruising. People are tortured with ants and snakes, and shocked with electricity. When Steve commits suicide there is some blood visible on the window. This stuff is throughout the film, but moreso in the first half.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there gun violence?
1 supporters
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0
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whatshouldntiwatch
Not a film to watch if this is one of your triggers as is shows the Vietnam war, and its effects. There are incidents involving gun use, or threats with guns throughout, particularly in the first two thirds or so of the film.
1 comment | Add comment
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