Reference: Content Detail Line

Rick Retro’s Reference Rundown #14: Content Block, Content Detail Line

Retro Reviews Reference

In the Content Block, we looked at the Overall Content Line, and examined the overall content rating and how it is determined.
The next line of the Content Block is the Content Detail Line where we will look at the five component content ratings. All five areas of content will be rated from +3 to -4 and parallel the overall content guidelines, which are as follows:

✅3️⃣ Acceptable for younger children, grades K-2.
✅2️⃣ Acceptable for older children, grades 3-7.
✅1️⃣ Acceptable for most teenagers, grades 8-12 and adults.
✅0️⃣ Generally OK for teenagers, might bother sensitive teenagers and adults.
❌0️⃣ Problematic for teenagers and sensitive adults.
❌1️⃣ Adults only, light adult content.
❌2️⃣ Adults only, moderate adult content.
❌3️⃣ Adults only, heavy adult content.
❌4️⃣ Adults only, extreme adult content.

Now we will look at how that scale applies to each individual area of content.

😡 Violence/Scariness

+3 = No violence or scariness.
+2 = No violence or just cartoonish violence, possibly scary for younger kids.
+1 = Cartoonish violence, including superhero or sci-fi, standard TV violence, injury with a little blood, or bloodless deaths.
+0 = Standard TV violence, death with little or no blood.
-0 = A little worse, maybe a good bit of blood, not quite R-rated violence.
-1 = Light R-rated violence.
-2 = Moderate R-rated violence, moderate blood, little gore.
-3 = Heavy, very violent, very bloody, moderate gore.
-4 = Extreme, very violent, bloody and gory.

Some movies, especially intense horror movies, can have enough suspense to increase fear and scariness. Typically I will subtract one more point in such a case, unless the violence alone is already a -4.

😵‍💫 Substances (Smoking, Alcohol, Drugs)

+3 = No substances are mentioned or portrayed.

Pipe smoking and wine at meals are acceptable for all remaining ratings.

+2 = Two or fewer other instances of smoking or alcohol usage are mentioned or portrayed. No drunkenness is mentioned or portrayed. No drug use is mentioned or portrayed.
+1 = Five or fewer other instances of smoking or alcohol usage are mentioned or portrayed. Drunkenness counts double, but may not be a main character or lead to violence. No drug use is mentioned or portrayed.
+0 = Ten or fewer other instances of smoking or alcohol usage are mentioned or portrayed. Drunkenness counts double, but may not be a main character or lead to violence. Drug use may be mentioned, but not portrayed.
-0 = Twenty or fewer other instances of smoking or alcohol usage are mentioned or portrayed. Drunkenness counts double, triple if it includes a main character, and quadruple if it leads to violence. Two or fewer instances of drug usage are mentioned or portrayed, but may not be a main character or lead to violence. Drug sales counts double.
-1 = Heavy smoking, heavy alcohol abuse and drunkenness with violence are portrayed. Five or fewer instances of drug usage are mentioned or portrayed. Drug sales counts double.

Excessive smoking, alcohol abuse and drunkenness may be portrayed in all remaining ratings.

-2 = Ten or fewer instances of drug usage are mentioned or portrayed. Drug sales counts double.
-3 = Heavy drug usage or sales is portrayed.
-4 = Excessive drug usage or sales is portrayed.

Please note that for these content ratings, “drug” refers to any drug used for recreational purposes, or abused for any purpose, whether legal or illegal in the portrayed setting.

🤬 Language

First let me define a couple of terms. I use the term “profanities” to describe language taking the name of God or the Lord Jesus Christ in vain. I use the term “obscenities” to describe other foul language, including disgusting, lewd, filthy or offensive terms or slurs.

Next I begin the rating process by classifying specific words used into groups according to generally accepted public views as to how offensive they are, informed by usage and public ratings of works over the years. While I personally would put many profanities into more offensive groups than the public does, it makes more sense to go with the generally accepted views so that we all start with the same frame of reference. I don’t want to provide a vocabulary guide for bad language, so I will include only a few examples for each grouping.

Language Categories:
Insults: Idiot, Stupid, etc.
Stand-In Language: Dang, Heck, etc.
Borderline Language: Damn, God, Hell, etc.
Mild Language: Ass, Bitch, Crap, etc.
Problematic Language: D*ck, Sh*t, etc.
Moderate Language: A**hole, Jesus, middle finger gesture, etc.
Heavy Language: F-word and variants, certain obscene gestures, etc.
Extreme Language: Filthy sexual or genital words, etc.

Special case: Depending on the specific language, some racial and sexual slurs were considered less offensive in the past than they are today. I will take into account the era a work was created, but still consider that language to at least be problematic even in very old works. The same language in more recent or current works might be considered to be moderate or heavy. (Language considered extreme today is bad enough that it’s never really been acceptable.)

Now, while I don’t personally like to spend my viewing time counting bad words in a film, other people seem to, so I will use their counts whenever possible, supplemented by my own only when necessary. That will lead us to the following ratings:

🤬 Language

+3 = May include up to five insults to stand-in terms, and up to two stand-in terms, nothing worse.
+2 = May include up to ten insults to borderline terms, up to five stand-in to borderline terms, and up to two borderline terms, nothing worse.

Unlimited insults to stand-in terms may be used in all remaining ratings.

+1 = Fits older TV standards. May include up to ten borderline to mild terms, and up to five mild terms, nothing worse.
+0 = Fits more modern TV standards. May include up to 25 borderline to problematic terms, up to ten mild to problematic terms or up to 5 problematic terms, nothing worse.

Unlimited borderline terms may be used in all remaining ratings.

-0 = May include up to 25 mild to moderate terms, up to ten problematic to moderate terms or up to five moderate terms, nothing worse.

Unlimited mild terms may be used in all remaining ratings.

-1 = May include up to 25 problematic to heavy terms, up to ten moderate to heavy terms, or up to five heavy terms, nothing worse.

Unlimited problematic terms may be used in all remaining ratings.

-2 = May include up to 25 moderate to heavy terms, or up to ten heavy terms, nothing worse
-3 = May include unlimited moderate language, up to 25 heavy to extreme terms or up to five extreme terms, nothing worse
-4 = Doesn't qualify for any higher level.

🤭 Sex

This rating will be influenced by sexual obscenities that also influence the language rating, and by sexual and/or gratuitous nudity that also influence the nudity rating, since both influence the overall sexual tone of a work.

+3 = No sexual discussion or situations.
+2 = May include sexual innuendo or situations that only adults are likely to notice. May include public kissing.
+1 = May include a bit more innuendo that children won't get, but teens might. May include light private kissing.
+0 = Fits older TV standards. A small amount of sexual discussion may occur, without obscenities. May imply sexual situations, including with preliminary kissing or undressing, but without nudity or simulated sex portrayed.
-0 = Fits modern TV standards. Sex is openly, perhaps even frequently discussed or implied, but with minimal or no obscene language, and without technical nudity or simulated sex portrayed.
-1 = Light adults-only sexual content. Sexual situations are not frequent, but when they occur they may include more adult sexual language, gratuitous nudity and simulated sex portrayals without nudity.
-2 = Moderate adults-only sexual content. Sexual situations are not uncommon and there may be a lot of adult sexual language. There may be a moderate amount of gratuitous nudity and nudity may be included in simulated sex portrayals.
-3 = Heavy adults-only sexual content.
-4 = Excessive adults-only sexual content.

🫣 Nudity

+3 = Costuming is not revealing or sexual. No nudity is mentioned, implied or portrayed.
+2 = Costuming may be slightly revealing or sexy. Offscreen nudity may be mentioned or implied, but no nudity is implied or portrayed on screen.
+1 = Fits middle 20th century TV standards. Costuming may be slightly revealing or sexy. Onscreen nudity may be implied, but it is covered, with no nudity actually shown.
+0 = Fits later 20th century TV standards. Costuming may be moderately revealing or sexy. May include one or two instances of characters in underwear or swimwear, such as topless men, or women in bikinis. Onscreen nudity may be implied, but it is covered, with no nudity actually shown.
-0 = Fits modern TV standards. Costuming may be very revealing, gratuitous or inadequate, including characters in underwear, thongs or swimwear, such as topless men, women showing considerable cleavage, or in skimpy bikinis. Onscreen nudity may be implied, but it is barely covered, with no nudity technically shown.
-1 = Brief nudity. No below the waist frontal nudity.
-2 = Moderate nudity. Too much or too graphic to be considered brief.
-3 = Heavy nudity. Too much or too graphic to be considered moderate.
-4 = Extreme nudity. So much or so graphic that it would most likely earn the most restrictive public content rating of its time.

As exceptions, works rated +0 and -0 may include babies’ bottoms in live-action works, or any non-sexualized buttocks in animated works. Artwork or mannequins in live-action works rated +0 or -0 may include non-sexualized buttocks and “smoothed” non-explicit frontal nudity. Artwork or mannequins in live-action works rated -0 may include slightly more explicit nudity if it is background and not prurient.

Final Notes

In all five areas of content, a mitigated rating is indicated by up or down arrows. This indicates that while a rating technically represents a certain level of content, mitigating factors, such as the overall viewpoint, message or tone of the work, make this content less (^) or more (v) troubling than the numerical rating indicates.

When rating Substances (Smoking, Alcohol and Drugs) or Sex, both the terms “heavy” and “excessive” can refer to an unlimited amount of the content in question. The difference is that the term “excessive” is used, and the -4 rating applied, when the work can be characterized as being about that content. The term “heavy” is used, and the -3 rating applied, when the work is ostensibly about something other than the substances or sex, but still includes the “heavy” content.

Originally posted to text group in five parts, 2025-01-22, 2025-01-23, 2025-01-24 and two parts on 2025-01-25
Last updated 2025-03-12

Retro Reviews Reference Pages:

Reference Overview
Header Block:
Primary Information Line
Version Line
Secondary Information Line
Franchise/Series Lines
Opinion Block:
Grade Line
Entertainment Quality Line
Dark Whimsy Line
POPCAP Line
Left-Right Line
Footer Block:
Review Lines
Genre Line
Content Block:
Overall Content Line
Content Detail Line
Viewpoint Block:
My View Line
Christian Values Line
Biblical Values Line
Political Values Line

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