Prime parents guide

Prime Parent Guide

Overall C-

Meryl Streep plays a psychoanalyst who happily encourages her 37 year-old client (Uma Thurman) to indulge in a sexual fling with a 23-year-old man-- until the good doctor discovers it is her own son (Bryan Greenberg) who is the older woman's boyfriend.

Release date October 27, 2005

Violence B
Sexual Content D+
Profanity D+
Substance Use C+

Why is Prime rated PG-13? The MPAA rated Prime PG-13 (on appeal) for sexual content including dialogue, and for language.

Parent Movie Review

Meryl Streep is primed and ready to play the role of a New York psychoanalyst. As Lisa Metzger, she counsels with a 37-year-old woman who works in the fashion industry.

When Rafi Gardet’s (Uma Thurman) marriage goes sour, Lisa is by her side offering encouragement through the entire divorce process. When Rafi meets a new man only two weeks later, Lisa supports her 100%, even though the guy is considerably younger. Listening to intimate details of the couple’s wild sexual escapades, the therapist agrees wholeheartedly with her patient’s desire to find happiness as a recently single woman.

But Lisa’s unreserved approval for her client’s actions comes to an impasse when she unwittingly realizes the body she has heard so thoroughly described belongs to none other than her 23-year-old son. Torn between her professional ethics and the moral dilemma she feels as a mother, she ends up visiting the couch of her own therapist for guidance.

Meanwhile, as the romance blossoms between Rafi and Dave (Bryan Greenberg), they discover they’re dealing with more differences than just a span in birthdates. Well-established in her job, Rafi has impressive connections in the corporation. She likes to spend relaxing weekends at the cottage of her wealthy gay friends in a prestigious locale, and is into fine wine and expensive art. Dave, on the other hand, is just acquiring a taste for beer, lives with his grandparents in Brooklyn and hangs around with a socially inept friend (Jon Abrahams) who can’t get past the first date with a girl. Painting as a hobby, Dave is also stuck in entry-level jobs while looking for a career.

In fact, the only thing they seem to have in common is their highly sexualized physical attraction. While the film offers a brief comment about safe sex, the shadowed bedroom scenes, passionate kisses and candid discussions leave little to the imagination and in no way support the seemingly token statement.

In addition to the more obvious concerns, Lisa also worries about her son marrying outside of his religious faith and the effect it will have on his future children. Although these apprehensions are dealt with in a fairly positive manner, the script is hindered by frequent coarse language and alcohol use.

Aside from some well-crafted scenes between Streep and Thurman, the script suffers from the indecisive and often immature nature of the unlikely couple. Despite their dissimilarities, they can’t walk away from their lusty desires and are caught up in an endless cycle of an on-again/off-again relationship. After a while, it’s impossible to believe it could ever evolve into a long-term commitment—even if both characters are in their Prime.

Starring Meryl Streep, Uma Thurman, Bryan Greenberg. Theatrical release October 27, 2005. Updated

Prime
Rating & Content Info

Why is Prime rated PG-13? Prime is rated PG-13 by the MPAA (on appeal) for sexual content including dialogue, and for language.

The fact that Prime achieved a PG-13 rating on appeal for sexual content should give parents a heads up about the amount of subject matter in this film. Detailed sexual dialogue, including the use of medical terms for body parts, is frequent, as are scenes and sounds of sexual passion. Most alcohol use takes place in the home or a bar setting, with one character portrayed as totally drunk. Language concerns include repeated profanities, terms of Deity and one extreme term.

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Prime Parents' Guide

Why does Lisa give different advice concerning moral issues to her clients than she does to her children? How does she balance her own beliefs with the advice she hands out?

According to Lisa, how important is religion in a relationship? Do you think it is better to wed within your belief system? What challenges can come from interfaith marriages?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Prime movie is March 6, 2006. Here are some details…

Release Date: 7 March 2006
Universal Studios releases Prime onto DVD with the following bonus extras: commentary by director Ben Younger and Producer Jennifer Todd, deleted scenes, outtakes and the featurette Prime-Time Players. Audio tracks are available in English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and French (Dolby Digital 5.1), with subtitles in English, Spanish and French.

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Meryl Streep’s achievements in a variety of roles have earned her 13 Academy Award nominations and two Oscars. In Music of the Heart, she plays a teacher who gives violin lessons to inner city children. She transforms herself into an exceptionally paranoid aunt in Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events.