The Astronaut's Wife (1999)

Screen It! is not attempting to rate the movie as good or bad but to give parents the tools to decide whether it's appropriate for their kids.

This movie has been screened for objectional content in 15 areas. Click for a detailed look.

OUR WORD TO PARENTS: Here's a quick look at the content found in this R-rated suspense/thriller. Profanity is extreme due to varied uses of the "f" word, while other profanities and a few colorful phrases are also present. Violence is rated as extreme due to several violent deaths -- two by electrocution -- and those scenes and other, generally suspenseful and supernatural ones may be unsettling or tense to some viewers. A sexual encounter that includes graphic movement and related sounds gives that category a heavy rating, although no nudity is present. Another less obvious and non-graphic encounter is present as is a sexually related bit of dialogue. Beyond other related material (extreme suspenseful music), a few, mildly bloody scenes and a moderate amount of drinking (with one character stating she's drunk), the rest of the film is relatively void of major objectionable content. As always, however, should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to take a closer look at the listed content.

Of special note for those concerned with repetitive flashing of bright lights on the screen, some of that occurs toward the end of the movie.

QUICK TAKE:: Suspense/Thriller: An astronaut's wife becomes suspicious of her husband and her ensuing pregnancy after he returns from a space mission, during which he blacked out for two minutes, and begins acting differently.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: If they're fans of Depp or Theron, they might, but otherwise this one probably won't be high on most kids' list of movies to see.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R: For violence, language and a strong scene of sexuality.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: JOHNNY DEPP plays a gung-ho astronaut who returns from space a changed man. He drinks and uses strong profanity and also begins to act sinister and diabolical around his wife (at one point striking her) and apparently kills several others.
CHARLIZE THERON plays his wife, a woman prone to nervous breakdowns and drinking. After becoming pregnant and increasingly suspicious, she makes various attempts (including nearly taking some abortion-inducing pills) to remedy the situation.
JOE MORTON plays a NASA official who risks everything to warn Jillian about what he thinks is occurring with Spencer and her pregnancy.; CHARLIZE THERON plays his wife, a woman prone to nervous breakdowns and drinking. After becoming pregnant and increasingly suspicious, she makes various attempts (including nearly taking some abortion-inducing pills) to remedy the situation.
JOE MORTON plays a NASA official who risks everything to warn Jillian about what he thinks is occurring with Spencer and her pregnancy.; JOE MORTON plays a NASA official who risks everything to warn Jillian about what he thinks is occurring with Spencer and her pregnancy.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: Moderate: Jillian and her sister have wine.
People have drinks at a party, including Spencer (cocktail) and Jillian (beer). We then see Spencer and several others drinking shots of liquor.
People have drinks at a reception where Spencer has a cocktail while Jillian has champagne. Jillian and another woman then have more champagne (the latter leaves when she hears something about "burning rum balls" in the kitchen), and when Spencer later brings his wife yet another glass, she states that she's drunk. The two then go off and begin to fool around (still in this public place, but out of sight) and the next morning he apologizes if he was rough during sex, stating that he was drunk.

We see a drink by the radio that Spencer's listening to.
Spencer and Jillian have wine with another couple at dinner.
We see some beer in Jillian's fridge.
Spencer and Nan have wine with dinner and Jillian looked like she was also drinking wine (while pregnant).
A woman has wine with lunch with Jillian.

BLOOD/GORE: Mild: We see that the tip of Jillian's finger is bloody after she sliced it while cutting vegetables.
We see a hypodermic needle get jabbed into a patient's chest.
Alex is somewhat bloody (from the mouth, some on his neck) when he collapses at a party.
We see some surgeons whose gloves are a bit bloody.
As a person squeezes another person to death, we see some blood flowing from fingernail wounds to a hand, and then see blood flowing from the victim's ear and mouth.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: Extreme: Obviously Spencer and whatever alien life force is inside him have both types of attitudes.
Some may find a woman who gives Jillian abortion-inducing pills as having both, and likewise Jillian for considering and then nearly taking the pills.

FRIGHTENING SCENES: *Heavy: Depending on one's tolerance for such material -- including the film's overall supernatural tone -- the following may or may not be suspenseful/scary.

A scene where Alex has a convulsion, goes into cardiac arrest and must be zapped with a defibrillator may be intense or unsettling to some viewers.
Alex begins to act weirdly at a party before finally collapsing.
The power goes out, a girl screams and we then see that a person has committed suicide by electrocuting herself in the shower with a plugged-in radio. Later, there's a flashback nightmare to this scene where Jillian sees herself as the suicide victim.
The way that Reese seems to be acting somewhat crazy around Jillian may be unsettling to some viewers.
As Jillian goes to meet Reese at a subway entrance, Spencer suddenly shows up and she must hide from him.
As Jillian sits in a closed storage room, the lights suddenly go out. Panicked, she races out into the dimly lit hallway, while we (and possibly she) hear whispering voices and she tries to find her way out of the maze-like hallways. At the end, someone suddenly grabs her arm, but it's just someone showing her how to turn back on the automatic shutoff lights.
Spencer nearly watches a tape that Reese sent Jillian warning her about him.
Spencer has a dream that shows the outer space encounter (accompanied by suspenseful music).
Spencer yells at Jillian, acts menacingly toward her and then slaps her hard enough to send her to the floor.
As a person squeezes another person to death, we see some blood flowing from fingernail wounds to a hand, and then see blood flowing from the victim's ear and mouth.

Jillian sees or imagines menacing events as she tries to get home (including someone following her in a cab and then a rapid fire montage of scenes as she travels on the subway). She then tries to get into her apartment as Spencer slowly follows her and then threatens to electrocute herself and/or Spencer if he comes near her.

GUNS/WEAPONS: None: None.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: Mild: Phrases: "F*cking A," "Piece of sh*t" and "Freak."
A person commits suicide by electrocuting herself in the shower with a plugged-in radio. Later, a person purposefully kills another person by electrocuting them as they stand in a puddle of water.

JUMP SCENES: Mild: A person suddenly shows up behind a fridge door when it's closed.
A hand suddenly grabs Jillian at the end of a suspenseful scene.
Spencer surprises Jillian.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): Extreme: An extreme amount of suspenseful, ominous and/or scary music occurs throughout the film

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): None: None.

PROFANITY: Extreme: At least 9 "f" words (1 used sexually, another with "mother"), 7 "s" words, 1 possible slang term for female genitals ("c*nt"), 5 asses, 5 hells, and 6 uses of "Oh God," 5 of "Oh my God," 3 of "Jesus Christ," 2 each of "G-damn" and "Jesus" and 1 use of "My God" as exclamations.

SEX/NUDITY: Heavy: We see Spencer and Jillian in bed under the covers with her lying on top of his back. Although we don't see any nudity, he does make a comment about whether she likes fruit or not. When she says that she does, he rolls her over, makes a comment about "Ain't that a peach" and we then hear her ask, "Is that for me?" as they vigorously roll around, completely under the covers.
At a reception, but out of sight, Spencer and Jillian passionately start to make out against a wall. He removes her jacket and then runs his hand down to her crotch and then up inside her skirt. We then hear him undo his pants (along with her heavy breathing), see him lift up her leg around his waist and then start having sex (after talking about wanting to be inside her). As the camera then tilts sideways, we see what looks like the two of them in bed with him on top of her. Although most of what we see is a head and shoulders shot of the two, we occasionally see near full shots of them with graphic movement and related sounds (including him climaxing), but no nudity. Later, we see her bare back as she sits up nude in bed (but don't see anything else).

As Spencer gives Jillian a sponge bath, we see her bare back as well as just the tops of her breasts as she sits in the tub.
When Jillian tells Spencer that he killed her husband, he replies "And I f*cked his wife."

SMOKING: Mild: Natalie smokes once, a friend of the main couple smokes a cigar and some miscellaneous characters also smoke.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: Moderate: Jillian's paranoia about her husband, as well as his behavior toward her, obviously puts some strain on their marriage.
The wives worry about their husbands after they return from their space mission. Natalie then sees her husband go into cardiac arrest, and later sees him convulse and die at a party.
Nan briefly comments about their parents dying some time ago and it severely affecting Jillian.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Moderate: Suicide.
Nervous breakdowns.
The abortion-inducing pills that a woman gives Jillian to take care of her problem (at the time Jillian doesn't know whether she's impregnated with aliens or may simply be going crazy).

VIOLENCE: Extreme: Alex forces a kiss on Natalie who pushes him away. He then knocks things from their table, gets up and then collapses onto another table.

A person commits suicide by electrocuting herself in the shower with a plugged-in radio.
Jillian takes a hammer and smashes a small tape recorder.
Jillian tells a story about an enemy prince killing the good prince and then raping the princess (thus leaving the princess pregnant and unsure of whom the father is).
Jillian throws a drinking glass across a room where it shatters upon impact.
It's implied that a man is murdered by another man.
Spencer yells at Jillian, acts menacingly toward her and then slaps her hard enough to send her to the floor.
Jillian tumbles down a staircase, causing her to end up in a hospital.
As a person squeezes another person to death, we see some blood flowing from fingernail wounds to a hand, and then see blood flowing from the victim's ear and mouth.
A person purposefully electrocutes another person who's standing in a puddle of water.