There are going to be some down and dirty spoilers for Sausage Party in this article, so parental discretion is advised.
This year has seen the release of plenty of kid-friendly movies that performed great at the box office. Zootopia, Finding Dory, and The Secret Life of Pets all kept the kids busy while providing just enough laughs for grown-ups. Then along came Sausage Party, an R-rated movie about food items going through an existential crisis, with at least one plot point devoted to showing a hot dog having sex with a bun (among MANY other things). The movie is much too dicey for kids, but one country feels just a bit differently. In Sweden, Sausage Party can be seen at ages as young as seven.
According to the Guardian, Sweden has given Sausage Party a rating of 11, which is basically the equivalent of PG here in the states. As to why Sausage Party - a film that has a literal douche as the villain - was given a surprisingly low rating by American standards, it has to do with how the Swedish rating system works. A film is not granted a rating based on suitability, but to "judge the relative risk of filmed materials to a child's well-being." Movies are divided into All Ages, 7 (children under the age of seven), 11 (ages 7-11), and Not Approved/15 (everyone over 15). Sausage Party's rating is essentially based on how likely it is to negatively affect a child. Apparently, Swedish kids are used to seeing some shit.
While some wouldn't think twice about keeping their kids away from the movie, different cultures have different ways of seeing things. For instance, China banned Ghostbusters because Chinese censorship guidelines prohibit films that "promote cults or superstition". While Sausage Party seemingly goes out of its way to offend anybody it can, the film does have a surprisingly positive and intricate stance on faith. At the end of the day, the film is about accepting others beliefs while sticking to your own, which isn't really a bad message for kids. Though maybe they don't have to learn that right after watching a hot dog, bun, bagel, taco and falafel have graphic sex with each other.
Sausage Party was created by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and features the voice talents of Kristen Wiig, Salma Hayek, Edward Norton and Michael Cera. The film follows a hot dog named Frank (Rogen) and his girlfriend Brenda the Bun (Wiig) as they learn that the "gods" that take them to paradise actually just want to murder and devour them. The film contains drug use, racial stereotypes, harsh language, and sex of pretty much every variety, so if you do take your kid to see, be ready to explain some things after.
It's up to you whether your kid is ready for Sausage Party, but the adult animated comedy is currently still in theaters if you want to make him feel cool before school starts.
