Soapy melodrama has mixed messages about love and marriage.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
some
In one scene, two adults drink heavily, snort cocaine (it's obscured but clear that's what they're doing), and act generally out of it. Otherwise, mostly just a glass of wine here, another of champagne there, at parties or dinner.
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A couple of uses of "s--t," "bitch," "a--hole," "ass," "hell," "damn," and "oh my God." Milder words like "hell," "jerk," "jackass," etc. are used sporadically but not frequently.
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No nudity, but many references to sex and adultery, as well as a couple of sex (or just before/after sex ) scenes. A man claims that a married woman can't be sexually satisfied with her husband if she's never had sex with anyone else; he makes many overt advances and propositions. A wife tries to have "animalistic" sex with her husband, who initially rebuffs her. Two sex scenes are shown without much skin, but there's definitely kissing. At a party, several couples (both same- and opposite-sex) are shown making out, and a woman sits provocatively on another woman's lap.
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Some brands are visible (mostly Apple, Jimmy Choo, and Ferrari), but products aren't usually the focus of a scene, except when a woman shops at a high-end boutique and a man compliments another man on his sports car.
Violence & Scariness
a little
For most of the movie, there isn't any violence. But there are a couple of upsetting scenes: A man beats a woman and leaves her battered and bruised in a bathtub. And a man beats another man (who is himself a domestic abuser). In other scenes, a man nearly comes to blow with a bicyclist who accidentally hits a woman he's interested in while they're running, and a man angrily tries to remove his wife from a party and then slams his door so furiously that the side mirror breaks. A woman also slaps and pushes a man away before they start kissing passionately.
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Tyler Perry's movies always aim to offer life-affirming messages about faith, family, friendship, and, in this case, marriage. That said, the main character in Temptation demonstrates how easy it is for even the most faithful to succumb to temptation. And there are several mixed messages about gender roles within a relationship and whether a relationship can survive infidelity. A man challenges the notion that a couple who has never had sex with anyone else can truly have a "sexually compatible" relationship.
Positive Role Models
very little
Although he forgets his wife's birthday two years in a row, Brice is still a loving husband who does his best to genuinely apologize and make up for his mistakes. Even after Judith leaves him, he still loves her enough to save her from a destructive relationship. Judith starts out being a positive role model, but once she gives in to Harley's overwhelming advances, she stops being herself and acts completely out of character.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Temptation is another Tyler Perry drama that deals with issues of marriage, fidelity, and faith. Like most of Perry's movies, there's an emphasis on mature (and sometimes disturbing) issues like adultery, domestic abuse, and even HIV. There are a couple of sex scenes (as well as a party where both same- and opposite-sex couples kiss) and plenty of sexual references. Language includes a few uses of "s--t," "a--hole," and "bitch," and there's some upsetting violence: A man beats his girlfriend nearly unconscious, a woman describes how her ex tried to kill her, and a man pounds on another man after learning of his despicable actions. Substance abuse (alcohol and cocaine) is also depicted. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
The movie was not what I expected, the movie was slow the plot got in at towards the ending. Violence is an issue, some blood is shown and beating a woman is seen. A beaten woman is shown in a bathtub with blood, not graphic but some viewers may see it as graphic. Positive messages are shown through out the movie. The sex scene is very quick and very mild other viewers may see it as graphic but isn't, no nudity is shown. Adult Language is very mild and not frequent. Consumeration is shown throughout the movie but not really as focused. The movie is not worth the money. I should've waited til it came out on DVD or Netflix. The movie is a waste of money and very disappointing.
temptation is a good drama movie written by the person who plays the character madea Tyler perry but this is one of those drama movies that have mature theme issues that your young kids are not ready to see or undertsand such as marriage, fidelity, faith, adultery, domestic abuse, and even HIV and with that being said this drama movie is best left for your older teens to see and parents you need to know that temptation has some violence and has two sexuality scenes but no nudity shown there's also some mild language used and some drinking and drug used such as cocaine, wine, and champagne the only few good messages that this movie has it's about faith, family, friendship, and, in this case, marriage and the role models are that Brice is a loving husband who does his best to genuinely apologize and make up for his mistakes even after Judith leaves him he still loves her enough to save her from a destructive relationship judith starts out being a positive role model but once she gives in to Harley's overwhelming advances, she stops being herself and acts completely out of character.
What's the Story?
TYLER PERRY'S TEMPTATION is about a marriage counselor who tells a cautionary tale to one of her clients. The story is about her "sister," Judith (Jurnee Smollett), who marries her childhood sweetheart, Brice (Lance Gross), at age 19 and moves to Washington, D.C., where she eventually works for millionaire matchmaker Janice (Vanessa Williams), while her husband works at a small pharmacy. At work, Judith is ordered to consult with handsome Internet billionaire Harley (Robbie Jones), a prospective investor. Their business dealings about matchmaking turn personal as Harley begins to overtly proposition and compliment Judith, asking her if she can truly be happy with her sweet but unambitious husband. Brice, meanwhile, is concerned about his new coworker, Melinda (Brandy Norwood), who's constantly worried about her abusive ex discovering her whereabouts.
It's a shame that so many talented actors seem to feel obliged to work for Perry, because he again and again wastes their abilities. What's worse is that, for once, there's not much of an inspiring message in Temptation, which is a dreadful treatise on young marriage. Smollett, who was so impressive in Eve's Bayou and Friday Night Lights, does her best with the cheesy, overwrought material, as do her two men: Gross as the sweet but boring husband and Jones as the arrogant, bedroom-eyed love. Making an already bad movie even more laughable is Kim Kardashian, who makes a distracting appearance as Judith's materialistic, looks-obsessed coworker.
Also as (almost) always, Perry manages to fill his movies with enough inauthentic, cliched dialogue ("I want to make love to you right now" and "I don't want to be with a good man, I want to be with a phenomenal man" are two gems), and melodramatic twists that, by the last act, anyone who's not a faithful Perry devotee will find themselves laughing at deadly serious moments. The story is that ridiculous.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what Tyler Perry's Temptation has to say about marriage. Is there a bias against "young" marriage in the movie? Do you agree with the idea that people should be intimate with more than one person in order to know if they're truly compatible? Parents, talk to your teens about your own values regarding sex and relationships.
Does it seem believable that someone like Judith would turn away from her marriage (especially considering she's a marriage counselor) so easily? What could she have done to avoid the titular "temptation"?
Critics of Perry's movies complain that they're too preachy and soap operaish. Do you think there were too many "issues" explored in the movie? Did it seem like a morality tale? If so, what's the takeaway?
MPAA explanation:
some violence, sexuality and drug content
Last updated:
May 22, 2024
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By Sandie Angulo Chen
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