Based on the novella by Scott Sommer, the plot involves the film's namesake, twelve-year-old Chris Cross (David Arnott), whose mother (Goldie Hawn) reluctantly becomes a stripper.

SEX/NUDITY 4 - Some bare bottoms and barely covered chests. A man moons the umpire during a baseball game. A woman strips down to a thong and pasties. A boy hitches a ride with a woman on a motorcycle who tells him to hang on tight and put his hands on her breasts. A woman sleeps with a man but only sounds are discernible; they're seen sitting in bed together. A teen couple take their clothes off but nothing else happens; we see the boy's derriere.

VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - A boy pulls a switchblade on another boy. Some punches thrown and a gunshot or two. It's unclear whether anyone dies, but no blood is shown.

LANGUAGE 2 - Little use of harsh words.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - The Vietnam war, making ends meet, single motherhood, drugs, the 60's.

MESSAGE - The end doesn't justify the means. Nothing good comes from doing bad.