One of the most anticipated movies of the past two years is finally in theaters on October 22. Is Dune safe for kids? Is it too scary? This parent movie review will help you decide if Dune is ok for your family to watch. ps- check out the movie quotes from Dune 2021 and when you can pee during Dune, because this is a long movie!
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About Dune (2021)
A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, “Dune” tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people.
As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.
Dune is in theaters and on HBOMax on October 22.
Watch the trailer for Dune (2021) here.
Is The Dune Movie Safe For Kids? Parent Movie Review
Dune is a sweeping epic whose biggest hurdle for kids might be the length and slow pacing.
At over 2 hours and 35 minutes long, this one may be hard for many kids to sit through and enjoy.
But is Dune safe for kids? Is Dune too scary for your family?
Starring Timothee Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Zendaya, and a ton of other very popular actors, Dune is sure to be tops of your teen and tweens list of movies to see this fall.
Here’s what you need to know about the language, violence, sex/nudity, and adult content in Dune to determine if it’s kid-friendly for your family.
Is Dune Movie Safe For Kids? Language
Language is a little rough in Dune when it comes to content and context.
Belittling and bullying language is used, along with crude terms for body parts.
There are instances of the use of the words d@mn, h@ll, sh!t, cr@p, and @ss throughout the movie.
Violence
Please note: this is a story that was never really intended for children. And the violence and fight scenes bare that out in Dune.
This movie has a lot going on in the violence department, as most post-apocalyptic type sci-fi movies will.
There are tons of deaths that happen in gruesome ways, some on-screen, some just off but implied.
Beheadings, burnings, stabbings, knife fights, and poisonings all happen in Dune and are intense. Bright red dripping blood is shown a few times.
Most of the fights are hand-to-hand combat, which means swords and knives bloodily slicing characters.
This would be the hardest section to answer if the 2021 Dune movie is safe for kids since it really may depend on what they have been exposed to in the past.
Sex and Nudity In Dune: Is Dune Ok For Kids?
There’s not really much in this category to mention. Dune doesn’t have much sex or nudity and is generally ok for kids.
There is a darkly lit nude male body, but it’s brief. And another scene of a fully nude man, but he’s sitting behind a table, so nothing revealing is shown. You just know he’s nude.
Teen characters kiss in a dream and there are shirtless males seen a few times.
Is The Dune Movie Too Scary For Kids?
Dune has some incredibly intense moments that may make Dune too scary for kids.
There are scenes where large-scale attacks on people happen, with loss of life in horrific ways.
Probably the biggest scare factor is the famous giant sandworms in Dune. INTENSE!
What Ages Is The Dune Movie Appropriate For?
Dune is rated PG-13 for its content as mentioned above.
The subject matter certainly could have pushed this movie into the R category, but it hangs just below that in a few ways (most notable lack of nudity and sex on screen).
What ages should watch Dune? We’d say middle school and up is a good guideline, but please note: this movie is long and plodding in parts.
Dune is only one half of the story: there should be a sequel completing the story that the novel tells. That leaves this one as a lot of setup and background info for the next movie to resolve.
We wouldn’t call it slow and boring, but your younger teens just might.
You can try watching Dune with kids ages 11 and up, but we’d stick to the HBOMax option just in case you need to pause or abandon due to disinterest. Dune is safe for kids who have seen similar movies (Enders Game, The Fifth Element, etc.).
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Patty Holliday is a parent movie reviewer, writer, and podcaster living in the Washington, DC area. Her goal is to bridge the gap between casual fandom and picky critic with parent movie and television reviews. As a lifelong fangirl and pop culture connoisseur, she’s been creating online since 2009. You can find her work at No-Guilt Disney.com, No-Guilt Fangirl.com, No-Guilt Life, and as host of the top-rated No-Guilt Disney Podcast.