It Ends With Us

Story

Lily Bloom (Blake Lively) can think of nothing nice to share about her father at his funeral. She loved him even though he spent her lifetime abusing her mother. Sitting on a rooftop, attempting to process his loss she meets handsome neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni) and sparks immediately fly.

In the weeks that follow, Lily is busy setting up her lifelong dream of opening a florist shop and has all but forgotten Ryle Kincaid. When she hires Alyssa (Jenny Slate), a lively shop assistant, to help her out she has no idea that Ryle is Alyssa’s brother and that their paths will soon intertwine. Ryle is the store’s first customer and he and Lily pick up where they left off.

Things seem perfect but then, in just a few seconds, everything changes. Ryle hits Lily, knocking her to the ground. Ryle is injured too and claims it was an accident, but small things continue to happen. Lily shrugs them away, believing Ryle is sorry, believing it is her fault, believing it will never happen again.

When they run into Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar) at the restaurant he runs, Lily is surprised to see her first love again and Ryle is unprepared for the fury that rises within him. When a dangerous situation escalates, Lily runs straight to Atlas. He lends a helping hand, offers her his heart and gives her the space to make one of the most difficult decisions of her life.

Themes

Family violence; homelessness; family breakdown; sexual violence and manipulation

Violence

It Ends With Us has some violence. For example:

Ryle tells Lily about how, at the hospital, he watched a little boy die after a gun went off by accident.
Atlas tells Lily that his mother likes dating guys who beat her.
A teenage Lily watches her parents fight as her dad attacks her mum.
Ryle knocks Lily down while he is getting something out of the oven. He falls backwards onto some broken glass and cuts his hand. Her eye is bruised and swollen, and his hand is shown wrapped and bandaged.
Atlas threatens Ryle, telling him that if he ever touches Lily again, he will cut off his hand and shove it down his throat.
Atlas and Ryle shove, hit and push each other.
Lily tells Ryle that her dad used to hit her mum and that he nearly killed Atlas.
Atlas tells Lily that he went to an abandoned house to kill himself but that as soon as he saw Lily’s face, he couldn’t do it. He tells her that she saved his life.
Alyssa tells Lily about the time Ryle and their older brother were playing in the house with a gun. Ryle was six and he didn’t know the gun was real until it went off. He shot and killed his brother and hasn’t been the same since.

Sexual references

It Ends With Us has some sexual references. For example:

Reference is made to prostitution.
Lily shares that the first guy she had sex with was homeless.
Soon after meeting Lily, Ryle confesses that he wants to have sex with her.
When Ryle tells Alyssa and her husband that he and Lily shared their naked truths. Her husband begins substituting the word ‘talk’ for ‘sex’, for example, ‘We talk 3-5 times a week’ and ‘You want to talk right now?’
Alyssa advises Lily not to get involved with her brother, telling her that Ryle ‘Runs through women like candy.’
Lily introduces Ryle to her mother, saying, ‘This is Ryle, who I now sleep with.’
Lily tells Ryle that she ‘feels like she is in a porno.’
While they banter at breakfast, Ryle mentions Lily’s vagina.
Ryle scoffs at Lily for ‘wasting her virginity’ on Atlas.
Lily’s mum tells her to, ‘make me a grand baby.’
Lily tells a doctor that she wasn’t raped. She is repeatedly asked if Ryle tried to rape her.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

It Ends With Us has some substance use. For example:

Characters frequently drink alcoholic beverages, including beer, wine and champagne, in bars, restaurants, karaoke clubs, parties, a bowling alley and at home.
Ryle smokes what appears to be marijuana.
A character suggests ordering cocktails at a restaurant and Lily says, ‘I need alcohol now.’
There is a reference to Ryle being drunk on baby milk.

Nudity and sexual activity

It Ends With Us has some nudity and sexual activity. For example:

After telling Lily that he wants to have sex with her, Ryle takes her hand, touching it in a sensual way as he explores her boundaries. He starts to slide the shirt off her shoulder but is interrupted by a phone call.
Ryle and Lily kiss passionately.
Lily wears a low-cut evening gown that also exposes part of her stomach.
Ryle takes Lily to his apartment where they begin to kiss passionately. Ryle kisses Lily’s stomach and then takes off his shirt. He takes off her dress leaving her standing in her bra and underwear. They fall into bed, continuing to kiss, but Lily puts a stop to it and they spend the night together but do not have sex.
Lily and Ryle kiss while their hands explore each other’s bodies. His bare chest is shown, and he moves his hands slowly up Lily’s thighs. He then lays on top of her and seductively runs his hands up her legs. Further events are alluded to but not shown on screen.
Lily has flashbacks to when she and Atlas first had sex in her bedroom. They are under the sheets when Atlas mentions that he doesn’t have a condom. Lily produces the one she got from health class and confesses that she has never had sex before. Atlas admits he has only done it once.
Ryle and Lily kiss, their hands are everywhere and there is a close-up of Lily’s breasts.
Lily is shown in the shower, though nothing explicit is exposed.
Lily is shown giving birth. Her big belly is exposed, and her bare legs are bent in the air.

Product placement

It Ends With Us has some product placement. For example:

Lily watches the Ellen DeGeneres Show.
A subtle reference is made to a character on The Simpsons.
Characters repeatedly get Starbucks coffee and the logo on the takeaway cups is clearly displayed.

Coarse language

It Ends With Us contains some coarse language and insults.

Ideas to discuss with your children

It Ends With Us is a powerful drama based on the best-selling book by Colleen Hoover. The movie features compelling performances about an important topic and encourages women in similar circumstances to break the cycle of family violence. Due to mature themes and content, the movie is best suited to audiences over the age of 16.

These are the main messages from It Ends With Us:

It’s important to get help if you’re experiencing family violence.
Often people have more courage and resilience than they know.
Every individual has the right to end the cycle of violence, no matter how impossible it may seem.

Values in It Ends With Us that you could reinforce with your children are compassion, forgiveness, kindness, courage and resilience.

It Ends With Us could also give you the chance to talk with your children about real-life issues like the impact of family violence and the lasting effects of intergenerational violence.