Parents need to know that Bully is a no-holds-barred documentary
that intimately portrays bullying victims’ daily lives. While
it’s often heartbreaking and deals with tough issues like
suicide, the movie addresses an incredibly important, timely
topic — bullying — in a frank, relatable way that’s age
appropriate for teens and relevant for middle schoolers if an
adult is present to guide discussion. Bully‘s strong language
(including a brutal, profanity-laden scene in which one boy says
to another that he’ll “shove a broomstick up your a–” and “cut
your face off and s–t”) earned it an R rating, but none of the
swearing is gratuitous. Like it or not, it’s a realistic
portrayal of what every middle schooler and older hears every
day. This gives the film veracity and credibility with kids, and
it will justifiably shock parents. Conceptually, Bully‘s most
challenging material isn’t just the language, but the suicides.
Seeing grieving parents and friends could potentially be
upsetting to teens and preteens, so they