What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that this movie deals frankly, if not graphically, with severe child abuse, including sexual abuse. Characters use strong language, including the "N" word (used by African-Americans) and a gay slur. Fisher is justifiably proud of himself for not drinking, using drugs, or having promiscuous sex.
- Families can talk about what kept Fisher strong through all of the abuse. How did he have enough of a sense of himself to resist becoming a criminal, a drug user, or an abuser? Families can also discuss the theme of forgiveness, the ability "to regard without ill will despite an offence." Why is forgiveness more important for the person doing the forgiving than for the person being forgiven? Talk about Fisher's saying that he was ashamed for being unwanted, and the importance of forgiving those who do not appreciate us as a way of appreciating ourselves.