Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach (Video Game, 2021)
(Note - vague spoilers ahead.)
Known Triggers (x):
- Jump Scares - A series wide staple. Most of these are triggered upon game over, though there is a running gag involving humorous jump scares (the character that does it is harmless).
- Themes of Child Endangerment, Abduction, Abuse, and Death- A recurring theme across the franchise. This game’s premise involves Gregory, a young boy, being trapped after hours in an indoor amusement park with dangerous animatronics and a copycat killer of a serial child murder hunting him down. Said serial killer both appears as a costumed character and a mascot. There are allusions to child murder, such as a bundle of children’s clothes in one area and mentions of ‘disappearances.’ One of the animatronics is mostly localized to one area and is intended to look after toddler-age children, but is an enemy that, according to one note, terrified at least one child with strict, cruel, and erratic behavior that it also demonstrates in front of Gregory during its segment. In a series of collectables, there are allusions to custody battles, an abusive father, the potential death of a mother (possibly through suicide), and the long term effects this has on a (now adult) character. While it’s ambiguous in context how much they’re telling the truth, the character in question is unambiguously a current victim of abuse through implied brainwashing and psychological manipulation by an older male figure who may or may not be of relation.
- Homelessness/Poverty - There are allusions to such involving a child character. It’s mostly through implication, though one potential ending makes it more clear.
- Supernatural and Science-Fiction Horror Tropes, Including Some Involving Possession and Brainwashing- This includes both human and animatronic characters.
- Character Death and Grief - Two separate endings feature the character death of a father figure. A third leaves his fate ambiguous, while two others have near-misses. The aforementioned implied homeless child character does not appear to have any parents or other legal guardians, possibly suggesting that they are an orphan or was abandoned (however, the issue is not discussed). The aforementioned collectables imply that a mother may have died after a custody battle, possibly from suicide. There is also an implied death of an animatronic in the backstory, with the further implication that another animatronic was responsible. Some dialogue has a different animatronic expressing grief for their lost friend.
- Violence - As mentioned, there are themes of child death and endangerment. Most of these are alluded to via implication. There are two named human characters who can potentially die in several endings, but these deaths mostly use discretion shots (though one is a child, and the other has a death that, while it takes place just offscreen, is particularly brutal). The animatronics also experience significant amounts of damage which is more detailed in comparison (both damaging incidents and immediate aftermaths are shown). Said animatronics are practically sentient and are full-fledged characters in their own right, and at least three of these are the result of actions the player carries out, which may upset some people.
- Body Horror: While not involving human characters, the animatronics after getting damaged have legitimately disturbing appearances and realistic emotional reactions to their predicament. They are still enemies at this point in the game.
- Arachnophobia imagery- While the imagery is more cartoony, there are still bits involving oversized spider-like animatronics, with one being particularly massive as part of a boss battle.
- Mental Illness/Disordered Eating Themes- Aside from the therapy collectables, the enemy animatronics are sentient enough to develop maladaptive behavior that can be evocative of various disorders. One animatronic, while programmed to be a comedic foodie, regularly binge-eats to the point of digging food out of the garbage out of desperation which may be an ED trigger. A second one has significant violent anger issues. A third is outwardly arrogant, but is actually extremely insecure and uses particularly vitriolic language towards the child protagonist (which is implied to be projection).
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TW: The new Batman (2022) with Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz features several references to domestic violence and choking, imcluding a depiction of the latter.
Multiple cases of death of a parent (Batman and Catwoman. The latter is fairly traumatized by her mother’s murder and seeking revenge).
Pulp Fiction (1994 film, rated R)
Vague spoilers ahead.
Known Triggers*:
- Tons of violence/blood/murder
- Rape - We see an extremely graphic depiction of (male-on-male) rape. (Takes place fairly far into the film)
- Racism - Quentin Tarantino loooves getting to use the n-word, and he drops it every chance he gets. While human life in general is considered a cheap commodity in the movie, the cavalier attitude towards the death of a certain black character is particularly unsettling, and once deceased he is repeatedly referred to as a “dead n*****” for no other reason than the writers/producers apparently thought it sounded like a funny phrase. :/ There is also a scene featuring a gun shop with a confederate flag hanging up, and things only go downhill from there.
- Drug Abuse - multiple scenes depict drug abuse (cocaine and heroin to be specific). A character also suffers from a very graphic drug overdose, but ultimately survives.
- Trypanophobia and Emetophobia - In a scene with heroin use, we see the needle and the blood. In the overdose scene (and possibly others) if I recall correctly we see someone get sick.
- Death of a Parent - In a flashback, we see a young boy being visited by one of his recently-deceased father’s friends, who gives him a cherished item that belonged to his late dad. As an adult, the character still has an extremely high attachment to the item.
- Car Accident - Fairly graphic, and includes lots of blood.
- Torture
Did I leave something out? Have a suggestion for future content? As always, stay safe! <3
Black Panther (2018 film, rated PG-13)
SOOOO I got to see this movie early because I work at a movie theater. It was overall AMAZING and safe for most of the major triggers, but there are a few things worth a head’s up.
Note: To see the most recent version of this post, click here. Vague Spoilers ahead.
Known Triggers*:
- Death of a Parent: if you’re familiar with the MCU, you know the current Black Panther’s father was killed in a previous movie. The relationship between him and his father and his grief at his father’s death is mentioned multiple times throughout the movie, but it’s relatively mild in nature.
- There is also another character who lost his father during childhood, and we see flashbacks of the event. The character was clearly very traumatized by the incident.
- Finally, there’s a (perceived) death of an (adult) child, and the character’s family and friends being very upset about it before the reveal.
- Racism: As you might expect, there is discussion of racial topics and the history of white supremacy and colonialism, although this upsetting issue is juxtaposed with incredible Black Power imagery and is ultimately extremely optimistic and uplifting. (Warning, a white character also repeatedly refers to the black community by a racist term, ‘savages’).
- Abandonment of a Child
- Cultural Body Modification: A character has a very large body modification (a gage, I guess?) in his mouth, the visual of which could unintentionally bother people (despite not intending to be graphic in its cultural context). He has fairly little screentime but I made sure to look away whenever he was in the shot. [ETA: an anon informed me this is actually called a ‘lip plate’. Thanks anon!]
- Self-Harm (Self-Mutilation) /Dermatosiophobia/Trypophobia/Scarification: A character has a ‘kill count’ etched into his skin, representing how many people he’s murdered. We first see it on his arm, then (vague spoilers) we see that it actually extends more onto his chest. The scars form this sort of roundish raised bumps that, while not gory, made me uncomfortable to look at. Just something to be aware of.
- Car Accidents: There are cars driving recklessly, and at least one explosion. There are also plane ‘crashes’ (one crash with no injuries, and a few small aircraft are shot down).
- Violence Against Women: There is a scene in which a male character briefly chokes a female character (thanks for reminding me of this @jiemba). Domestic Violence isn’t a theme or anything, but the visual could be triggering nonetheless.
Got something to add? Have a suggestion for future content? As always, stay safe! <3
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017 Film)
(Note - vague spoilers ahead.)
Known Triggers (x):
- Blood and some Gore (including a long close-up shot of a heart surgery)
- Gun Violence
- Character Death
- Terminal Illness and Hospital Imagery
- Eating Disorder (sort of, the characters’ disease makes them unwilling/unable to eat)
- Eye Horror (bleeding from the eyes)
- Mentions of past Alcoholism
- Death of a Parent (happens before the events of the film but is a plot point)
- Incest/Sexual Assault (not sure how I should describe this, but a character talks about something he did to his father when he was a child in a scene which I found pretty uncomfortable)
- Casual Smoking
Let me know if I missed something and if you want details you can message me @lyricdissonance!
Spoilers:
Halloween III: “Season of the Witch” (1982 film)
By request. (Note, vague spoilers ahead.)
Known Triggers (x):
- Insectophobia/Entomophobia and Ophidiophobia - a scene features snakes and bugs attacking. There are also multiple gross moments involving bugs.
- Lots of jump scares
- Divorce - a character with two children is recently divorced.
- Hospital Imagery - the main character is a doctor, we see him at work.
- Mental Illness - a character is believed insane and forcibly sedated.
- Gore/Body Horror (Details under cut)*
- Self-Immolation
- Car Accident**
- Fire - a building catches on fire.
- Death of a Parent - a young woman finds out her father has been murdered and is upset/comforted. Later they mention his funeral, a good portion of the movie is dedicated to her investigating his death.
- Alcoholism - Brief, one scene***
- Electrocution****
- Surveillance/Paranoia - Phones are tapped, surveillance cameras exist all over a town. There’s also a subplot involving people not being exactly who they appear to be, but I can’t be more specific without giving major spoilers. (Message me if you’re curious.)
- Epilepsy Warning - a commercial features a flashing jack-o-lantern
- Tension (vague spoilers) - the movie ends ambiguously/on a cliffhanger
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Star Wars: Rogue One (2016 film)
Known Triggers*:
- Death of a Parent (one scene in the beginning, one towards the end. Very emotional)
- Major Character Death (MANY! This can get emotionally intense, especially if you’re not prepared for it)
- General Action Violence/Explosions/War Imagery (this film is a bit more brutal and gritty than the others in the saga, imo)
- Suicide - several of the characters take on a “suicide mission”, although these aren’t related to mental illness.
- Unhappy Ending (or at least, bittersweet).
Did I leave something out? Have a suggestion for future content? As always, stay safe and take care of yourself, friends! <3
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Known Triggers*:
- Unsurprisingly, there are depictions of ableism (including abuse and attempted murder). There is also racism against African-Americans (specific details can be provided if requested), as well as a slur against Asians.
- Body Horror (the elderly-looking baby and child could be disturbing).
- Hospital Imagery and Terminal Illness (the premise of the movie is an adult woman reading a diary to her mother on her deathbed).
- Tokophobia - a birth is briefly shown, a woman dies during childbirth, another character ends up pregnant (so also unplanned pregnancy) and almost has a miscarriage (blood is shown).
- Infertility (Averted)
- Child Abuse - A parent tries to kill their child and then abandons them.
- Sex Work (Full Service)
- Underage Sex and Pedophilia - two instances (the first instance is not actual sex or pedophilia, just implied from imagery*). Later, Benjamin is brought to a brothel, despite being underage. I was distressed by the depiction, and can give details if asked.
- Death of A Parent (Several Instances)
- Alcohol Abuse and Emetophobia
- Car Accident (a character is hit by a car)
- Other potentially triggering material: Natural Disasters/Hurricane Katrina, Adultery, Career-Ending Injury, Depiction of War (WW II, and mention of WW I), and Nursing Homes (Benjamin grows up in one and several elderly [and non-elderly] people die, dementia is also portrayed). Also, a man is shown struck by lightning several times - played for laughs, dark humor in that he’s extremely unlucky to have it happen more than once.
Did I leave something out? Have a suggestion for future content? As always, stay safe friends! <3
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