The MPAA has named Kelly McMahon to succeed Joan Graves as chair of the Classification and Rating Administration, CARA.
Graves, a 77-year-old grandmother of two, retires next year after 30 years with the organization.
McMahon, joined the MPAA 11 years ago and currently serves as VP and corporate counsel. She is the legal counsel to CARA, providing guidance about compliance with the CARA rules and the advertising review process. She also oversees the CARA
Appeals Board process.
CARA was created by former MPAA president and CEO Jack Valenti 50 years ago this month. This voluntary program provided an alternative to government censorship of movies and was designed first and foremost to be a resource for parents, while
simultaneously protecting the First Amendment, the rights of filmmakers, and the creative process.
He Loves Me is a 2018 Greece / UK gay drama by Konstantinos Menelaou.
Starring Thanos Lekkas, Hermes Pittakos and Sanuye Shoteka.
There are no censorship issues with this release.
UK: Passed 18 uncut for real sex ( 72:42s ) :
2019 Tla Releasing R2 DVD
at UK Amazon released on 11th February 2019
Summary Notes
What happens when two gay men in a disintegrating relationship leave the big city to spend some time alone, together in nature? Is it possible for nature to reveal the truth, their true essence and help them to change? Can these two wounded men;
traumatised, hurt, lost and desperate on a remote beach find a way back to innocence? Is there a way back to reality, back to love? Their relationship was formed against fear and loneliness. They fell in love, but they can't handle love. They've
both made mistakes, poisoning their relationship through secrets and lies. They suffer when together, but they can't be apart. Life in the big city hasn't been letting them breathe, think or feel - creating constant and never-ending problems.
Are they both ready for the next step?
The Equalizer 2 is a 2018 USA action crime thriller by Antoine Fuqua.
Starring Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington and Bill Pullman.
BBFC Category cuts were required for a 15 rated cinema release in 2018. Thanks to Ben who notes that the same cut version looks set for 15 rated DVD and Blu-ray, but the 4k Blu-ray is uncut and 18 rated. Uncut and MPAA R rated in the US.
A cut DVD/Blu-ray with an uncut 4k Bu-ray follows the same patterns as for the home video release for the original, The Equalizer.
UK: The uncut 18 rated version looks set for
2018 Sony Pictures RB 4k Blu-ray
at UK Amazon released on 10th December 2018
UK: The cut version will be 15 rated for
2018 Sony Pictures RB Blu-ray
at UK Amazon released on 10th December 2018
2018 Sony Pictures R2 DVD
at UK Amazon released on 10th December 2018
2018 Sony Pictures Amazon Prime VoD [UK only]
at UK Amazon
The BBFC commented:
This film was originally seen for advice at which stage the company was informed it was likely to be classified 18 uncut but that their preferred 15 classification could be achieved by making reductions to scenes of strong violence and gore.
When the film was submitted for formal classification these scenes had been acceptably reduced.
Promotional Material
Denzel Washington returns to one of his signature roles in the first sequel of his career. Robert McCall serves an unflinching justice for the exploited and oppressed, but how far will he go when that is someone he
loves?
Overlord is a 2018 USA action war horror by Julius Avery.
Starring Wyatt Russell, Bokeem Woodbine and Iain De Caestecker.
On the eve of D-Day, American paratroopers are dropped behind enemy lines to carry out a mission crucial to the invasion's success. But as they approach their target, they begin to realize there is more going on in this Nazi-occupied village
than a simple military operation. They find themselves fighting against supernatural forces, part of a Nazi experiment.
Overlord has been cut in Australia for MA15+ cinema and home video release. MA15+ is something like a 15A in UK terms.
The film was originally rated R18+ uncut for: High impact violence; Strong impact themes; Moderate impact language. However distributors Paramount preferred a lower rating and a month later submitted a cut version. This was duly rated
MA15+ for Strong impact themes, violence; Moderate impact language:
For comparison:
UK: Passed 18 uncut for strong bloody violence, gory images
US: Rated R uncut for strong bloody violence, disturbing images, language, and brief sexual content.
Zombie (aka Zombie Flesh Eaters) is a 1979 Italian horror film by Lucio Fulci
With Tisa Farrow and Ian McCulloch.
Heavily cut by the BBFC for 1979 cinema release. Banned as a video nasty in 1983. Cut by the BBFC from 1992 to 1999. BBFC uncut since 2005. Uncut and MPAA Unrated in the US.
US: Uncut and MPAA R rated for:
2018 Blue Underground 40th Anniversary Limited Edition RA Blu-ray
at US Amazon released on 27th November 2018
Promotional Material
40TH ANNIVERSARY LIMITED EDITION! NEW 4K RESTORATION!
In Italy, it was considered the 'unofficial sequel' to DAWN OF THE DEAD. In England, it was known as ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS and banned as obscene. In America, it was called ZOMBIE and advertised with the depraved tag line ''WE ARE GOING TO EAT
YOU!''; Tisa Farrow (THE GRIM REAPER), Ian McCulloch (CONTAMINATION), Al Cliver (CANNIBALS), and Richard Johnson (THE HAUNTING) star in this worldwide splatter sensation directed by 'Maestro Of Gore' Lucio Fulci (CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD, THE
HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY) that remains one of the most eye-skewering, skin-ripping, gore-gushingly graphic horror hits of all time!
Just in time for its 40th Anniversary, Blue Underground is proud to present ZOMBIE in a brand-new 4K Restoration from the original uncut and uncensored camera negative. This is ZOMBIE like you've truly never seen it before, bursting at the seams
with hours of new and archival Extras!
SPECIAL FEATURES:
WORLD PREMIERE! New 4K Restoration from uncensored original camera negative!
3-Disc Set includes High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray Widescreen 2.40:1 feature presentation + a Blu-ray PACKED with bonus material + Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD with score by Fabio Frizzi
Deadpool 2 is a 2018 USA action comedy adventure by David Leitch.
Starring Josh Brolin, Morena Baccarin and Zazie Beetz.
There are no censorship issues with this release. The film was initially released as an MPAA R rated Theatrical Version and an unrated extended 'Super Duper $@%!#& Cut', Both are 15 rated by the BBFC. The film was cut in India for an
adults-only 'A' rating and was banned in China.
Later the film was cut for an MPAA PG-13 rated version titled Once Upon a Deadpool. This version has just been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for intense sequences of violence and action, crude sexual content, language, thematic elements and brief
drug material.
A Star Is Born is a 2018 USA romance by Bradley Cooper.
Starring Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper and Sam Elliott.
Seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) discovers-and falls in love with-struggling artist Ally (Gaga). She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer - until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally's
career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
New Zealand film chief censor, David Shanks, has demanded a new warning be added to prints of the Oscar-tipped remake of A Star Is Born .
Shanks reacted after complaints of viewer distress from Police Victim Support, who said two vulnerable young people had been severely 'triggered' after watching a suicide scene in the film. The Office of Film & Literature Classification said
further complaints were also filed to them by the Mental Health Foundation.
The film was rated M (PG-15 in US terminology) in Australia and this rating then automatically accepted for distribution in New Zealand albeit with the age recommendation increased to 16. The Australian consumer advice noted: Sex scenes,
offensive language and drug use, but the New Zealand censor has now added suicide to the list.
Shanks praised the film's handling of the topic but said he felt that the addition was still necessary. He said:
Many people in New Zealand have been impacted by suicide. For those who have lost someone close to them, a warning gives them a chance to make an informed choice about watching.
Hunter Killer is a 2017 China / USA action thriller by Donovan Marsh.
Starring Gary Oldman, Gerard Butler and Michael Nyqvist.
An untested American submarine captain teams with U.S. Navy Seals to rescue the Russian president, who has been kidnapped by a rogue general.
Hollywood blockbuster Hunter Killer has been blocked from release in Russia just hours before its premiere.
Critics say the Kremlin banned it because it shows a Russian president being deposed and kidnapped in a coup before being rescued by American soldiers. Opposition politician Dmitry Gudkov suggested that the ministry could be blocking the movie
for suggesting even a fictional possibility that a Russian President could be deposed. He commented on Facebook:
What are these bastards from Hollywood suggesting? That someday (Defence Minister Sergei) Shoigu... comes out quietly and tops Putin? That will not happen.
Moscow claimed the film's license was revoked because producers had not provided a good enough copy for its state archive.
The movie's troubles in Russia follow its mysterious failure to open in neighbouring Ukraine, with the distribution company telling AFP that the government is preventing the film from screening. (The state film committee) watched the film, it
fell under some law and was banned, said a representative of Kinomania, a Ukrainian film distributor which in August announced the premiere of Hunter Killer on October 25.
Though there is no official explanation of the ban in Ukraine, reports have cited a Ukrainian law which bans films popularising a military of the aggressor state or creating a positive image of its employees.
Climax is a 2018 France musical horror mystery by Gaspar Noé.
Starring Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic and Souheila Yacoub.
Birth and death are extraordinary life experiences. Life is a fleeting pleasure. Following a successful and visually dazzling rehearsal, a dance troupe celebrates with a party. But when it becomes apparent that someone has spiked the Sangria,
the dancers soon begin to turn on each other in an orgiastic frenzy.
The third edition of Maskoon, the first festival in the Arab region specializing in horror, fantasy, thriller, action and science fiction movies, has opened in Lebanon. However the festival is missing two items from its schedule.The country's
censorship authorities have banned two films: one is a short Lebanese film titled Nocturnal Deconstruction by Laura El Alam and the second is a Gaspar Noe's Climax.
Nocturnal Deconstruction is a 16-minute film telling the story of a woman who has decided to overcome the void in her life by trying a drug that eliminates the problems of self-confidence, and allows everyone who takes it to love himself again.
Myriam Sassine, the festival's director, said in a speech that censorship had decided to ban the two films for vague and unclear reasons.
The festivals' Artistic director Antoine Waked expressed his regret for the ban of The Climax film, saying this movies was made to be shown in cinemas, and its artistic value appears on the big screen, but now everyone will see it via DVD, or
download it from the internet, so all the censorship has done was depriving people from the chance to see it on the big screen, he said.
The House That Jack Built is a 2018 Denmark / France / Germany / Sweden horror thriller by Lars von Trier.
Starring Matt Dillon, Bruno Ganz and Uma Thurman.
USA in the 1970s. We follow the highly intelligent Jack over a span of 12 years and are introduced to the murders that define Jack's development as a serial killer. We experience the story from Jack's point of view, while he postulates each
murder is an artwork in itself. As the inevitable police intervention is drawing nearer, he is taking greater and greater risks in his attempt to create the ultimate artwork. Along the way we experience Jack's descriptions of his personal
condition, problems and thoughts through a recurring conversation with the unknown Verge - a grotesque mixture of sophistry mixed with an almost childlike self-pity and psychopathic explanations. The House That Jack Built is a dark and sinister
story, yet presented through a philosophical and occasional humorous tale.
Lars von Trier's The House That Jack Built caused a little controversy at its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Critics were divided as a few walked out in disgust at the violence and cruelty, whilst others gave it a standing ovation.
[ Spoilers! hover or click text below]
A particularly controversial moment was Jack as a young boy snipping off the leg of a duck. But even that got a mixed response as animal rights campaigners PETA defended the film i praising its accurate portrayal of the link between adolescent
animal abuse and psychopathy. Of course the effect was achieved in CGI and no ducks were harmed in the making of the film.
Anyway the controversy seems to have resulted in the creation of a different version for general distribution in the US. The version shown at Cannes is now tagged as the Director's Cut and will be screened for one day only on 28th November. The
film will then be put on wider release on 14th December in an MPAA R rated Theatrical Version. However it will be the Director' Cut that is released online also on 14th December. It is not yet clear what has been cut for the Theatrical Version.
The MPAA has named Kelly McMahon to succeed Joan Graves as chair of the Classification and Rating Administration, CARA.
A Star Is Born is a 2018 USA romance by Bradley Cooper. 
