The Ref
Movie • 1994 • Comedy
ReportSynopsis
Caroline and Lloyd are a married couple constantly at each other's throats, masters at crafting acid-tongued barbs at the other's expense. Indeed, they are so obsessed with belittling each other that they never stop -- not even at gunpoint. The gunman is Gus, a thief on the run from the police, who kidnaps the couple as an insurance policy, planning to use their home as a hideout. But their incessant bickering proves more than Gus bargained for, forcing him -- for the sake of his own sanity -- into the unenviable role of peacemaker. To make things even worse for Gus, he discovers that he has taken the couple hostage the night of their big Christmas party, and the guests are already on the way. Not wanting to leave Lloyd and Caroline unattended, Gus opts to attend the party, pretending to be the couple's marriage counselor. This naturally leads to a series of comic confusions, as the hostage crisis and marital tensions head towards their inevitable conclusion.
Filter to only show:
Both
Yes
No
Your Triggers
Yes
0
No
4
Needs More Answers
Yes
0
No
2
Yes
0
No
1
Yes
0
No
1
Yes
0
No
2
Yes
0
No
2
Yes
0
No
2
Yes
0
No
1
Yes
0
No
2
Yes
2
No
0
Yes
0
No
1
Abuse
Yes
2
No
1
0
jamieblazej
A mother repeatedly smacks her son on the head, shoulder, etc when he does anything that annoys her. It doesn’t seem to hurt the kid too badly but it is physical. The mother is called out for hitting her son and stops.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
1
No
2
2
DarthWooper
No physical violence, but the family has MANY loud, emotional, insult-filled arguments. Especially the lead couple.
2 comments | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Addiction
Is there addiction?
29 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
0
DarthWooper
One person lied about quitting smoking cigarettes. Someone else smokes on and off throughout the film.
1 comment | Add comment
Does someone abuse alcohol?
24 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
0
DarthWooper
A few people drink alcohol, but the one drunk person is a side character only shown for a few brief scenes.
2 comments | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Animal
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Is there a dead animal?
166 supporters
Yes
2
No
1
1
jamieblazej
In the scene where the robber is facing off with the guard dog, Cannibal, there is something on the floor that is shown a few times very briefly. I’ve seen the movie multiple times and can’t figure out if it’s some kind of stuffed toy or a dead animal. Since the dog is a guard dog and is supposed to be scary, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was meant to be an animal.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
1
No
2
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Assault
Yes
0
No
3
Is someone restrained?
37 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
1
jamieblazej
The main couple is restrained several times with various materials (bungee cords, sheets, etc) and other characters are restrained in a similar fashion later.
2 comments | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Bodily Harm
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Is someone tortured?
116 supporters
Yes
0
No
3
1
DarthWooper
No, but hostages are tied up in various ways for a good portion of the film.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Children
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Is an infant abducted?
35 supporters
Yes
0
No
3
1
jamieblazej
No babies in the movie. A teenager steals the wooden baby Jesus from the town lawn nativity before the movie takes place. It is mentioned repeatedly and the doll is shown for a second.
1 comment | Add comment
Death
Yes
0
No
3
Drugs/Alcohol
Yes
0
No
3
Family
Is a child's toy destroyed?
39 supporters
Yes
1
No
2
1
ycats333
the lady has antique dolls. and the man is swinging one around and then rips its head off and throws it. no one really cares
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
3
No
0
Does someone cheat?
0 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
0
DarthWooper
Various people's cheating is discussed, but no cheating is shown.
1 comment | Add comment
Fear
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Gross
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
LGBTQ+
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Medical
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Mental Health
Does someone die by suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
118 supporters
Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Does someone attempt suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
112 supporters
Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Is there a claustrophobic scene?
27 supporters
Yes
1
No
2
1
DarthWooper
One person is shut in a closet for a while, but is not shown much while in there. And he's angry about being put there, but not claustrophobic.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Noxious
Yes
0
No
3
Are there flashing lights or images?
60 supporters
Yes
2
No
1
1
jamieblazej
Police car lights are shown throughout the movie.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Paranoia
Yes
0
No
3
Pregnancy
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Prejudice
Are there fat jokes?
65 supporters
Yes
0
No
3
1
DarthWooper
No, but a slightly heavier kid is briefly weight-shamed by an extended family member.
1 comment | Add comment
Are there homophobic slurs?
64 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
1
DarthWooper
One off-hand comment about someone's [bundle of sticks f-word] dogs humping.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
4
Is there hate speech?
44 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
0
DarthWooper
One homophobic slur, and one weight-shaming moment.
2 comments | Add comment
Yes
0
No
4
Yes
0
No
3
Sex
Yes
0
No
3
1
jamieblazej
A character and his mother have a very strange relationship that borders on emotional incest at times. The unhealthy dynamic is called out during an argument between the man’s wife and his mother. The son eventually sets boundaries in a very satisfying way and the ending of the movie is hopeful and happy in this regard.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there sexual content?
81 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
1
jamieblazej
Additionally, there is a scene where a character’s sexual arousal is mentioned because it happens under relatively unconventional circumstances. It’s not super detailed and is more hinted at than anything else.
2 comments | Add comment
Spoiler
Yes
0
No
3
Is Santa (et al) spoiled?
8 supporters
Yes
2
No
1
0
jamieblazej
A man in town dresses up as Santa and goes door to door to drop off fruitcake and visit kids. Over the course of the movie he’s drinking alcohol and gets progressively more drunk and belligerent. He becomes unkind to the children he’s visiting and resorts to public urination at one point by p*****g in someone’s bushes in their front yard. The children seem pretty upset.
1 comment | Add comment
Vehicular
Is someone hit by a car?
31 supporters
Yes
0
No
3
2
DarthWooper
No, but there's a very close call when some of the main characters run a stop sign.
1 comment | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Violence
Is there blood/gore?
71 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
1
DarthWooper
A leg with a bloody dog bite is briefly shown.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there gun violence?
41 supporters
Yes
3
No
0
1
DarthWooper
A hand gun is used throughout the film to threaten people, but never fired.
2 comments | Add comment
Yes
0
No
3
Yes
0
No
3
Where to Watch
