Abduction Parent Guide
Like all action films, this one packs a punch with frequent gunfire, dead bodies, explosions and a sense of peril for the young characters.
Parent Movie Review
With his own movie production company (Tailor Made) and the lead role in Abduction, Taylor Lautner no longer has to play lone wolf while a vampire makes off with the girl.
However this film’s opening minutes parade out a sequence of teen activities most parents won’t want their own kids mimicking|dangerous driving stunts, unsupervised home parties and alcohol consumption to the point of passing out.
Nathan’s (Taylor Lautner) father (Jason Isaacs) is none too happy with those antics either when he picks up his partially disrobed son from a party. (Yes, expect to see Lautner take his shirt off more than once in this movie.) When they get home, Kevin tosses the boy a pair of boxing gloves and begins their daily sparring session although the teen complains about a hangover.
But despite positive parental involvement and two good buddies at school (William Peltz, Denzel Whitaker), Nathan feels like he doesn’t fit in with the rest of his peers. Then while doing a school project with his next-door neighbor Karen (Lily Collins, daughter of musician Phil Collins), he stumbles upon something that confirms his sense of alienation. On a website for missing children, he finds himself. But just as he is about to get some answers from the woman he calls mom (Maria Bello), two armed men break into the house and gun down the adults.
Cautioned by his shrink (Sigourney Weaver) to trust no one, Nathan grabs his study partner and takes off on a course that would keep Jason Bourne on his toes. Not knowing who is after them, Nathan is surprised when he and Karen are contacted by CIA agent Burton (Alfred Molina) who seems able to intercept Nathan’s telephone calls whether he’s using a land line, cell or pay phone. Nathan also discovers he is the target of European criminal Kozlow (Michael Nyqvist) who knows more about his past than he does.
Like all action films, this one packs a punch with frequent gunfire, dead bodies, explosions and a sense of peril for the young characters as they make their way across the country in search of Nathan’s true identity. Luckily the teens have the good sense to cut short a passionate make-out session before it puts them in a compromising position on a train with an armed thug intent on killing them.
Playing to the premise that Nathan is no average boy, the script gives this adolescent the chance to prove he is genetically programmed for greatness at least when it comes to fending off gun-toting felons. Unfortunately the everyday actions he toys with (excessive drinking and dangerous stunts) may prove fatal for ordinary teens who might try to do the same.
Directed by John Singleton . Starring Taylor Lautner, Lily Collins, Alfred Molina. Running time: 106 minutes. Theatrical release September 23, 2011. Updated July 17, 2017
Abduction
Rating & Content Info
Why is Abduction rated PG-13? Abduction is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for sequences of intense violence and action, brief language, some sexual content and teen partying.
Violence: Teens engage in dangerous driving stunts, hold a house party while parents are away and drink to the point of passing out. Characters are kicked, hit in the face and punched during a sparring session. A teen discusses his rage issues after being taunted by another character. Men break into a home and fight with inhabitants before shooting them and blowing up the house. A man attacks a woman. During a fight, a man breaks another character’s neck. A teen beats a man with a fireplace poker. A man attacks a girl, threatens her with a gun and ties her up. Characters engage in a fight that includes choking, head smashing and other brutal hits before one man is thrown from a speeding train. Numerous characters are shot with machine guns or rifles. A man threatens to kill all of a boy’s friends and associates. A man pulls a gun and threatens a character in a busy public location. Characters lie to others.
Sexual Content: Boys make brief lewd references to two bikini clad girls who are wrestling. Characters are seen in swimming suits and without shirts. A teen couple kisses passionately in a prolonged scene. An adult man makes a brief comment about a teen girl’s attractiveness. A teen boy comments about his virginity.
Language: The script contains a strong sexual expletive and infrequent profanities, scatological slang and terms of Deity.
Alcohol / Drug Use: Teen characters drink alcohol at a party until some of them pass out. A teen complains of having a hangover. Adults drink wine with dinner.
Other: Characters do not wear helmets while riding motorcycles. A character makes extra cash by producing and selling fake I.D. cards.
Page last updated July 17, 2017
Abduction Parents' Guide
A man threatens to kill a boy’s associates and friends on Facebook. Are there dangers linked with friending someone on social networking sites? Is this a realistic concern people should have?
Nathan feels like he doesn’t fit in with his peers. Do many children and teens feel this way at some point in their lives? Does the script do an adequate job of supporting Nathan’s notion?
Is it uncommon for children or teens to wish they had a secret identity? How does this same script play out in movies like Spy Kids where they discover their parents are international spies or in The Princess Diaries where the main character finds out she is really the daughter of royalty? Why do people sometimes fancy themselves as someone special? Is there harm in entertaining these fantasies?
Home Video
The most recent home video release of Abduction movie is January 17, 2012. Here are some details…
Home Video Notes: Abduction
Release Date: 17January 2012
Abduction releases to home video with the following bonus extras:
- Abduction Chronicle (production journal with Taylor Lautner)
- Initiation of an Action Hero: Taylor’s Amazing Stunts
- The Fight For The Truth: Making Abduction
- Pulled Punches (gag reel)
Related home video titles:
Taylor Lautner also appears in the Twilight franchise. Others who find secrets lurking in their childhood include aliens raised as humans (Superman and Escape to Witch Mountain), a music protégé (August Rush), boys with infamous parents (Harry Potter and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl) and a man who thinks he is an ape (Tarzan).