Five Nights at Freddy's
NZ release: 26 October 2023
Horror, violence and cruelty Rated on: 24 October 2023
What’s it about?
A troubled security guard begins working at a closed down restaurant filled with possessed animal mascots that comes to life.
The facts
- Directed by Emma Tammi (Fair Chase, The Wind)
- English language
- Runtime: 109 minutes
- Based on the video game franchise by Scott Cawthorn: Five Nights at Freddy’s
- Starring Josh Hutcherson, Matthew Lillard, Eizabeth Lail, and Mary Stuart Masterson
- Produced by Blumhouse Productions (M3GAN, Get Out, Whiplash)
Why did it get this rating?
This film was classified by Te Mana Whakaatu – Classification Office
Violence
There is strong violence throughout the film, including stabbings and sometimes bloody wound details.
A character is chomped in half. A character is pulled into a mascot’s mouth, the scene cuts to the shadow of a mascot as it appears to bite off her upper body, accompanied by a spray of blood. We briefly see their severed lower half body in the aftermath.
A character wears an animatronic suit with metal spiked spring locks which the mascots cause to pierce his torso. We see their bloody wounds caused by them.
A character tackles and punches a man repeatedly. The camera shows only a character’s arm movements and does not show the impact of the blows or the victim.
Cruelty
Two scenes where people wake to find themselves strapped into a chair with a mask full of grinding gears descending noisily toward them. In the first of these scenes the victim does not escape. While only the sound of screaming is heard, the viewer can imagine what is happening to the man.
Horror
There are often dimly lit environments, flickering lights, sinister and unexplained sounds, jump scares, ghosts, and other supernatural occurrences.
The horror primarily comes from the aging, larger-than-life animal mascots with glowing eyes. These mascots lurk in dark corners, and stalk and kill people.
A character has a recurring dream which revolves around his little brother's abduction. There, he encounters children, revealed to be the spirits of those abducted and murdered by the owner of the restaurant. Their bodies are inside the animatronic mascots and their spirits possess them - this is not shown but instead discussed.
Offensive language
There is mild offensive language. “A*s”, “assh*le”, and “sh*t” is mentioned.
Further information
Recent featured decisions
Violence, cruelty and offensive language
A bride's wedding night takes a sinister turn when her eccentric new in-laws force her to take part in a terrifying game. Things soon turn bloody and sinister, revealing the sick rituals of the family.
Content that may disturb, Offensive language, Violence, Sex scenes, Domestic violence, Drug references
Rhiannon Lewis fades into the background – most people pass her by without a second thought. But when she’s finally pushed too far, the quiet bystander vanishes, revealing someone who could be capable of anything... even murder.