What we flagged
View all categories
Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Rent or buy on
Apple TV Store
Amazon Video
YouTube
Fetch TV
Our take
The Cost is a grim vigilante drama built on abduction, interrogation, and talk of a past rape and murder. Strong language is almost constant, with the f-word and the s-word throughout. Violence and the threat of torture stay central, with blood and weapons in play. Sexual violence is discussed repeatedly as the reason for the kidnapping, not shown as a flashback spectacle. We land at 16 and up because the combination of rape talk, captivity, and cruelty is a hard adult watch
Story (may spoil tone)
Intent on dispensing their own brutal form of justice, two ordinary men abduct a felon who committed a horrific crime many years before.
Details
Violence Abduction, beatings, rifle threats, and plans to kill drive the whole f…
Abduction, beatings, rifle threats, and plans to kill drive the whole film. The captivity stays prolonged and intentionally cruel
Language Aggressive strong language is nearly constant, mostly the f-word. The s…
Aggressive strong language is nearly constant, mostly the f-word. The s-word and other insults fill the interrogation too
Frightening Being tied up, threatened, and unsure who will break first creates sust…
Being tied up, threatened, and unsure who will break first creates sustained dread. The bush setting makes escape feel impossible
Sexual violence A past rape and murder is named again and again as the reason for the k…
A past rape and murder is named again and again as the reason for the kidnapping. Characters also speak of other assaults; the film keeps these as dialogue and aftermath, not a graphic reenactment
Gore / death / weapons Rifles, blunt force, and blood spurts appear during the ordeal. Injury…
Rifles, blunt force, and blood spurts appear during the ordeal. Injury is clear without turning into medical-display gore
Grief / bereavement Grief for a murdered loved one fuels the revenge plan from start to fin…
Grief for a murdered loved one fuels the revenge plan from start to finish. The film sits with how that loss can warp judgment and kindness
Flashing lights We have not confirmed whether this version contains flashing lights.
We have not confirmed whether this version contains flashing lights.
Family watch notes
What other parents think.
Be the first family to leave a watch note.
Talk after watching
- The men believe the courts failed them. When does the wish for justice turn into another kind of harm?
- Revenge consumes the people chasing it. What healthier ways exist to live with an unhealed crime?
Ask ClearAge
The Cost
Ask about this guide, or name another film to open its ClearAge page.