Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant

Why Is Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant Rated PG-13?

This story about two teens that become transformed into vampires contains scenes of intense hand-to-hand fighting, yet because these characters are immortal, injuries that should be serious or fatal do not result in death. A truck hits a man. Men fight with shovels, hit each other on the head, throw one another great distances and smash each other on the ground. A teacher is fatally attacked (one of the assailants is his student). An immortal man rips the flesh off his arm, leaving just a bone. A poisonous spider bites a boy, resulting in a swollen face and the possibility of dying. A boy drinks poison (so he can die and become a vampire) and then a man (who is a vampire) breaks his neck and throws him from a roof. High school students skip school, engage in minor vandalism, lie and sneak out of their homes. In a freak show environment, strange characters do dangerous things like putting a lit blowtorch in a mouth, swallowing knives and re-growing a hand after it is bitten off. A character appears to have no skin covering his abdomen. A boy eats raw meat. A man and boy exchange blood through their fingers. A boy attempts suicide by jumping from a roof, but is stopped. A teen girl offers her neck so a boy can drink her blood. A romance develops between teens, who later share a short kiss. Language includes two rude anatomical references, two scatological terms, and other infrequent mild profanities. A character says he is “f-ed up,” but later explains he means “freaked up.” Adults drink socially.