Throughout the movie, there is a focus on sex slavery, although only explicitly stated once. At the beginning of the movie a man sell’s his daughter as a prostitute to a gang leader. Laz says that most girls without a family will eventually sell themselves into prostitution.
Hudson is seen in bed talking with his wife. There is no kissing or nudity.
Violence/Gore
The opening scene describes in detail how drug lords run the slums and how dangerous the slums can be. Narrator (Rubelyn) lists off a number of weapons. During the narration, you see a slum leader run from police officers who have their guns out, pointing them at the man. The flash of gunshots are seen outside the home of the girl who is being sold followed by a sequence of police and gang members shooting at each other. Ruby’s dad is shot and falls. No blood is seen until later when he staggers around an alley. He looks at his hand after touching his wound on his back and it is covered in blood. There are sequences of gunfire throughout the movie.
After hearing of her father’s death, Rubelyn violently punches a mirror which breaks and cuts her hand. Plenty of blood is visible.
At the orphanage, a girl bullies Ruby and makes her sing for her food. She slams Ruby’s food down on the table and says “You call that singing?!” She is stopped by a worker at the orphanage.
Matches, one of the kids in the circus, is frequently experimenting with fireworks and executing pyrotechnics.
Ruby pulls a knife on Hud when he finds her after trying to run from him.
A boy is seen vomiting as another boy cries asking “will he be okay?”
The kids steal some food out of the open window of home. The Woman who lives there runs outside yelling at the kids and hitting Hud and the kids with her broom.
Genghis joins a gang. The leader says that if the filmmaker saw what Genghis was doing, he’d have to kill him. As Hud is spying on them there is a drive-by shooting. Genghis’ brother dies from a gunshot. Blood is seen coming from his mouth. Later, Genghis says he wants to kill the men who killed his brother.
A gun is put to Ruby’s face when she is found on the street by the gang. One of the gangsters talks violently to Ruby after aggressively forcing her into a truck and taking her to a shipping yard. He tells her to “shut up!” Laz is interrogated and beaten. You see blood on his face and multiple hits with a metal rod. The gang leader asks if he’d die for Ruby. He says “yes.” Laz is seen being shot.
Profanity
No profanity is used. There are violent words from some of the gang members but no cursing. Hud talks to Ruby about how he had no choice to leave her at the orphanage the first night. She gets angry and argues with him. She says “I’m not a stupid Americano.”
Drug use
The opening scene shows drug lords making deals, quietly passing their products to their customers. There are multiple circumstances where you see drugs in small plastic packages. Ruby's father sells her for drugs. Another scene shows Ruby’s father die from an overdose on drugs. A man is seen smoking a cigarette.
Other Serious Content
The orphanage Ruby is taken to has a very hostile atmosphere. Genghis tries to join a gang. There are multiple scenes that carry with them a higher level of suspense. Ruby recalls a conversation with her father deciding to sell her. He tells her that he has no money to provide for her and not to call him “Dad” anymore.
