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Story

Gillian Armstrong’s Death Defying Acts tells the story of a psychic’s brief love encounter with the infamous escapologist Harry Houdini (Guy Pearce).

The story is set in the Scottish town of Edinburgh, during the last leg of the great Houdini’s 1926 world tour. Mary McGarvie (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is a pseudo-psychic entertainer struggling to make ends meet for herself and her daughter, Benji (Saoirse Ronan), when she hears of a challenge put forth by Harry Houdini. In the hope of contacting his late mother, Houdini offers a monetary reward of $10 000 to any psychic who can make contact with her and prove it by revealing her dying words to her son.  With the aid of her daughter, Benji, Mary sets out to con Houdini and claim the cash prize.

Mary’s plan is constrained by the intense attraction that Houdini develops towards her, and what follows is a tangled love affair between the two.

Themes

The supernatural; use of a child for illegal activity.

Violence

  • There are two scenes in which Houdini is punched in the stomach by another man. In the second scene, the blow results in Houdini’s death.
  • Mary’s daughter Benji deceives and steals from unwitting adults.

Sexual references

There are several conversations between adults where subtle sexual references are made. These are unlikely to be understood by younger children.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

There are some scenes showing limited social drinking by adults.

Nudity and sexual activity

  • In attempt to gain information about Houdini’s relationship with his mother, Mary calls on the help of a male library assistant to access unauthorised documents.  In return for this favour, the library assistant asks for sexualised favours from Mary, including asking her to walk up a ladder so that he can see up her skirt and bend over so that he can observe her bottom and see down her top.  He also requests sex from Mary and she refuses.
  • There are several scenes throughout the movie where passionate kissing is observed between two consenting adults.
  • Mary and Houdini share a passionate kiss, which leads to an implied sexual encounter. The following morning, Mary appears to be naked in the bed and Houdini is standing outside, apparently also naked.

Product placement

None

Coarse language

This movie contains infrequent mild coarse language and put-downs.

Ideas to discuss with your children

Death Defying Acts is a love story about striving for what you want.

You might like to talk to your child about some of the values in this movie, such as determination and independence. You could talk about your family values on the topics of parental love and a family sticking together through thick and thin, as well as the real-life consequences of theft and deceit.

Supported By

  • Department of Social Services

Raising Children Network is supported by the Australian Government. Member organisations are the Parenting Research Centre and the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute with The Royal Children’s Hospital Centre for Community Child Health.

Member Organisations

  • Parenting Research Centre
  • The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne
  • Murdoch Children's Research Institute

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