Movie News

The Angel's Share is a 2012 UK drama by Ken Loach.

The film has just been passed 15 for very strong language and strong violence after BBFC category cuts for:

• UK 2012 cinema release

The BBFC commented:

• Company chose to reduce the number of uses of very strong language (in this case 'cunt') in order to obtain a 15 classification. An uncut 18 classification was available.

Comment: Beyond Absurd

And as goatboy said on the Melon Farmers Forum:

Beyond Absurd! We must protect the 16 and 17 year olds from a word they probably hear every day!

Jaws is a 1975 US thriller by Steven Spielberg. With Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss. See IMDb.

The film is set for a re-release as part of the celebration for the 100th Anniversary of Universal.

But as if to celebrate a modern age of extreme child protection, the BBFC have upped the age rating to a 12A for cinema release.

Previously the BBFC have rated the film as PG (known as 'A' when the film was first released) from 1975 until the 25th Anniversary DVD released in 2000. The same version was released without BBFC input in 2005.

But now its 12A rated for moderate threat and occasional gory moments.

No doubt the BBFC will point out that had a 12 rating existed in 1975 then Jaws would have been rated as 12 all along.

Summer blockbusters are seldom rated 15 -- they get a 12A, ensuring that the movie is accessible to the masses -- so Prometheus is a rarity. Yet even this relatively adult rating has caused disapproval among sci-fi die-hards who feel that anything less than an 18 certificate is a cop-out by the director.

They are sanguine about this at the BBFC. If we rated Alien now, says Cooke, it would be a 15. For a film to get an 18 certificate today it has to be either utterly terrifying throughout or there would have to be a level of sadistic violence. It seems that over the past 30 years or so we have become far more tolerant of blood, guts and gore, not to mention bad language. [In fact the BBFC have rated Alien as 15 since 2003].

The examiners will watch a film under natural conditions so that it feels as if we are actually going to the cinema, he says. We always view it straight through, though obviously at the end we can go back and look at stuff. There is a cinema at the BBFC headquarters in central London, where examiners watch about three films a day. But sometimes -- as with Prometheus -- they go to the film company to watch the movie, to ensure its security.

That film has been passed with no cuts. But even if it had been censored, you'd barely be able to tell. When we make cuts, people think in terms of 'snip-snip', says senior examiner Craig Lapper, but these days, with digital, there are so many other ways you can make a film more acceptable. You can suggest soundtrack changes and things like colour darkening, putting shadows in to obscure the more gory elements of a scene. So in The Woman in Black, the adaptation of Susan Hill's ghost story starring Daniel Radcliffe, we didn't hear the crack of the woman's neck as she hung from a noose -- and, thanks to the cunning use of shadows, neither did we see her face.

I won't say what the film was, continues Lapper, but there's a forthcoming British movie that was a little bit too gory to get a 15 certificate. So I nipped round to the place where they were editing it and they [the film-makers] increased the shadows so that you could no longer see someone's jaw hanging off.

...Read the full interview

The producer of the Vietnamese movie Bay Cap 3 also announced its release on May 18 complete with a prominent publicity campaign. However, information about this film on websites of big cinemas like MegaStar, Galaxy and BHD Star were removed on May 8.

A member of the National Movie Censorship Council said that movie was not approved because its content is illogical, non-educational and its technical quality is unqualified.

The official decision is going to be announced this week.

The movie producer, Tran Trong Dan, told VNExpress newswire that violence and sex in Bay Cap 3 does not exceed many Vietnamese and American movies that were released in Vietnam before. It is a horror movie about a group of high-school students who experience a nightmare during their tour to Da Lat city. Each of them is gradually killed by a mysterious killer. They are trapped by unexpected and dangerous methods.

For a long time US DVDs and Blu-rays have included a 10s warning from the FBI about not copying disks. And of course no matter how many times you have read it, you cannot skip it or fast forward through it.

Well unfortunately the annoyance is doubling. DVDs and Blu-rays from six major studios will now carry two unskippable, 10-second warnings. Immigration & Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations unit, now want their share of the opportunity to annoy viewers.

It seems that they want to encourage viewers to seek out pirate copies where the wasteful 20s has been thankfully removed.

The New Zealand film censor at the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC). Has banned Tom Six's Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence).

The film was banned as 'objectionable' on 4th April 2012.

The OFLC summarised its reasons for the ban:

The publication is a DVD containing a sequel to a well-known horror film and a number of extra components relating to its development and marketing.

The availability of the publication is likely to he injurious to the public good.

The feature is an unsubtle portrait of a sexually deranged man who tortures a group of largely anonymous victims in extreme, unflinching detail. Despite the occasional flashes of humour and a degree of sub-textural irony, these elements are overwhelmed by the feature's sustained, gratuitous focus on victims' torture, mutilation, forced defecation, rape and murder. These images are linked by a threadbare plot that provides limited narrative justification.

While the feature does not promote or support this material, the likely injury to the public good is one of inuring people more generally to cruel, violent and degrading material through its presentation as entertaining, and of eroding the viewer's ability to empathise with others. This material would disturb and shock most people.

Consideration was given to offering excisions in order to remove the strongest images, however due to the pervasiveness of this material excisions were not deemed practical.

While the classification is an absolute restriction on the freedom of expression as contained in the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, it is a restriction consistent with Parliament's intention that publications containing such a high extent and degree of torture, violence, cruelty, sexual violence and strongly degrading, dehumanising and demeaning material can be classified as objectionable to prevent the likelihood of injury to the public good.

Brave from the makers of Toy Story and Finding Nemo is getting a lot of attention in Scotland in the hope of a tourism boost from a hit film.

But American censors have dealt cinema giants Disney and Pixar a box office blow after imposing a PG rating on their eagerly-awaited fantasy set in the Highlands.

Scenes of kilted characters lifting up the traditional Scottish garb are thought to have earned the film the rating, with an MPAA warning: contains rude humour.

In one scene featured in Brave trailers, one character is seen lifting his kilt and loudly declaring: Feast your eyes.

Pixar's teaser, said to promote a new product by Ruff McLauren, states:

What makes a man feel like a man, is it tossing logs, is it fighting bears, or is it freedom -- the freedom a man feels when he is wearing a small plaid skirt?

One film blogger, John Young, said: It's definitely worth a laugh, but for me, the movie's advertising campaign is starting to raise some concerns. I feel like Disney's trailers and ads have emphasised the rude humour aspect.

A spokeswoman for VisitScotland, which is spearheading a £7 million campaign to promote Brave, said:

The Scots are very good at laughing at themselves and we think the film captures our sense of humour perfectly. It all looks harmless fun.

theflickcast.com writes:

For all of you who have been buying into the drama surrounding Prometheus' ultimate rating, we have some good news for you. Fox has confirmed that the moody, dark and probably terrifying sci-fi film will indeed be rated R for sci-fi violence including intense images, and brief language.

Many people never believed that a PG-13 rating was possible for the subject matter, so when it took this long to get a confirmed rating people were getting nervous. It also didn't help that Ridley Scott has been telling people conflicted things about the movie, the process and the rating for months now.

...Read the full article

Update: BBFC 15 Rated

10th May 2012. See article from entertainmentcocktail.com

The BBFC have rated Prometheus a 15 uncut for Intense images and brief strong language.

This was confirmed by Fox studio execs at a press conference, they said:

Fox confirms there will be no edit to Prometheus to secure a lower rating, it will be a 15.

Update: BBFC 15 Officially Conformed

11th May 2012. See article from bbfc.co.uk

The BBFC have now officially rated Prometheus as 15 uncut for 'strong violence, gore, threat and horror' for:

• UK 2012 cinema release in 2D and 3D

LD Entertainment will release William Friedkin's Killer Joe with an NC-17 rating, opting not to edit it for a more commercial R Rating..

David Dinerstein president of LD Entertainment said:

As we support the artistic integrity of our filmmakers [...] 'Killer Joe' will be released in theaters on July 27th in its original version as an NC-17 film.

The film has played to enthusiastic crowds at the Venice, Toronto and South-by-Southwest Film Festivals where many critics have noted this is Matthew McConaughey's best performance to date. As our initial LD Entertainment release, we are excited to bring this very entertaining, funny and provocative film to audiences this summer.

The last major film to bow with an NC-17 ratings was Shame, which earned the vast majority of its grosses overseas.

Some sad news as director James Isaac has passed away at age 51.

Isaac was heavily influenced by David Cronenberg (note Cronenberg's appearance in Jason X) and also did special effects work for eXistenz.

James Isaac directed his first film, The Horror Show, in the late 1980s. He then concentrated on being a visual and special effects supervisor and did not direct another film until 2001. This film was the 10th installment in the Friday The 13th franchise, entitled Jason X which was a small box-office success but panned by critics. He later created two more films in the 2000s: Skinwalkers and Pig Hunt.

The Woman in Black is a 2012 UK/Canada/Sweden ghost story by James Watkins. With Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer and Ciarán Hinds. See IMDb

UK: Passed 15 Uncut for:

• UK 2012 Technicolor/Momentum video

The BBFC commented:

The film was originally classified 12A for cinema release and 12 for video release after visual cuts, visual darkening and sound reductions were made in a number of scenes. This is the uncut version of the film, restoring the cuts and reductions originally made, and has been classified 15 for strong supernatural threat and horror.

It is not yet clear what versions are planned for the UK 18th June release

A Ben Stiller comedy has been given a new title to avoid it being linked to the controversial shooting of an unarmed teenager in Florida.

Neighborhood Watch had already had promotional material pulled following the death of Trayvon Martin, who was killed by a Neighborhood Watch volunteer.

The film will now be called The Watch.

The distributors have emphasised that the film is in not connected with the Trayvon Martin killing, it in fact features a group of fathers that band together to fight extra-terrestrials.

The distributor had requested a 15 rating But the examiners' reports show that they had concerns about scenes of violence at this category. They also recommended against cuts to a film expertly and technically executed. Examiners considered the impact on the audience of the combination of action and violence as well as the likely appeal of the film to teenagers. But ultimately the Examiners concluded that the levels of punchy and upfront violence would best be represented by an 18 certificate.

...read the full article

The filmmaker and distributor behind Chained, a thriller about a serial killer have had their rating appeal rejected by the MPAA. The movie, which was directed by Jennifer Lynch (Boxing Helena, and daughter of David Lynch) and distributed by Anchor Bay Entertainment, was given an NC-17 for some explicit violence.

It marks a rare instance of an NC-17 rating being given because of violence alone; usually NC-17 is more associated with sexual content.

It is not yet clear whether the films connections will stick with the NC-17, or else cut the film for an R rating.

Update: Chained, Lynched and Cut

4th May 2012. See article from latimesblogs.latimes.com

Director Jennifer Lynch has told 24 Frames she will recut the offending scene, a graphic depiction of a woman having her throat slit open, that landed the movie the MPAA's NC-17 rating. But she didn't sound like a filmmaker who understood, or was happy about, the censors' decision. She said:

The one thing they [the appeals board] kept citing was context, that violence in a lot of other films doesn't feel as intense, she said. I have a lot of compassion for what [the MPAA] does. And they were all very nice and warm in the room. But it doesn't seem fair to me. I feel like we are being punished because the film was done the way it was set out to be done, which was authentically.

The film's distributor, Anchor Bay Entertainment, said it has yet to decide whether it will also release an unrated version to theaters (presumably after the rated version has finished its run, per MPAA rules) or, possibly, release the unrated version on DVD. The film has not yet been dated for release.

Lynch said she knew that the stigma of the NC-17 was too great to risk a commercial release with that rating. But she hopes film-goers check out her uncut version of Chained, if only for comparison's sake. Horror fans will see it and be stunned at the NC-17, she said: They've seen much worse.

Egypt's Islamist-dominated Religious Affairs Committee is considering a new film censorship law. It will be aimed at repressing local producers, distributors of film content deemed harmful to society.

According to committee head Sayed Askar, the law, if passed, would not differentiate between old and new films, and would be applied to any sexually-explicit content deemed harmful to society. The proposed legislation, he clarified, would penalise the producers and distributors of such content, and not actors.

When asked whether the law would only prohibit nudity or would also extend to hugs and kisses on film, Askar declined to provide details but stressed that the law would have the last word regarding censorship issues.

Article 1 of the bill reportedly calls for the establishment of an independent, 15-member Supreme Council for Audio and Visual Broadcasts. Council members would be appointed by the prime minister and include both Muslim and Christian representatives.

The law's second article, meanwhile, lays down the council's responsibilities and authorities. It also lists proscribed content, including scenes of a sexual nature, both verbal and visual; scenes depicting the use of drugs, alcohol or gambling; and scenes deemed insulting to particular professions, races, genders or religions.

Ridley Scott's highly anticipated Prometheus is set for cinema release in a month or so. The issue of whether it will be PG-13 or R has been providing some goo publicity for the film.

A year ago Ridley Scott said he would be shooting the sci-fi film both in PG-13 and R-rated versions. Then at the end of March, he said that the movie should be rated R.

Fox boss Tom Rothman says, either way it will be Ridley's vision:

I can assure the fans---I'm very aware of their concern---absolutely they can take it that the film will not be compromised either way. So if that means that the film is R, then it'll be an R. If it's PG-13, then it'll be a PG-13, but it will not be compromised.

heyuguys.co.uk asks:

The big question is, will Fox really gamble on an R rating for a genre that typically is a hard sell, with a cast led by a host of names that for most moviegoers are a complete mystery? Or, has Ridley Scott been able to deliver the movie he wants within the constricts of a PG-13 rating?

Genghis Khan is a 1965 UK/West Germany/Yugoslavia/USA historical adventure by Henry Levin. With Stephen Boyd, Omar Sharif and James Mason. See IMDb

The film has just been passed 12 for one scene of sexual assault after 35s of BBFC cuts for:

• UK 2012 Sony video

The BBFC commented that this was the Cut UK Feature and that it was additionally cut:

• Cuts were required to remove sight of animal cruelty, in this case a series of shots of horses being made to fall dangerously.

Presumably the cuts are now:

• 1965 cinema cuts for nudity still apply
• 35s of cuts for horse falls

Previously more cuts for VHS

Previously it was passed PG after an additional 1:03s of BBFC cuts over the cinema cuts for:

• UK 1991 VCI VHS
• UK 1988 RCA/Columbia VHS

From IMDB:

• 1965 cinema cuts for nudity still apply
• additional cuts to a rape scene
• additional cuts for horse falls

Autonomy Pictures has presented the first of four teaser posters for the upcoming US release of Adam Rehmeier's relentless horror film The Bunny Game, along with the trailer and first hi-res imagery.

The film was recently banned in England but will see an Uncut, Uncensored North America limited theatrical (in states that will permit it) and DVD/Blu-ray release in July.

See the trailer from player.vimeo.com

Now is Good is a 2012 UK drama by Ol Parker. With Dakota Fanning, Kaya Scodelario and Jeremy Irvine. See IMDb.

Passed 12A for strong language, drug use, sex references & terminal illness theme after BBFC suggested cuts were implemented for:

• UK 2012 cinema release

The BBFC commented:

The BBFC was given a draft script before the film was produced and advised the company that a film of the script would be likely to receive a 15 classification. In order to achieve the company's preferred 12A classification, the BBFC advised that:

• some visual and verbal sex references should be removed,

• that sight of potentially harmful behaviour should be removed,

• that use of strong language should be reduced, and

• that a scene in which drugs are prepared and taken should be substantially reduced.

When the film was submitted for classification, the changes recommended at the script stage had been made and the film was classified 12A.

Director Steve McQueen has stopped his film on sex addiction Shame being shown in Singapore after a row over censorship.

Singapore censors ordered a threesome between the main character and two women to be shortened, and even then, rated it suitable only for viewers over 21 years old.

However a spokeswoman for distributor Cathay-Keris Films told AFP:

Mr McQueen feels that it is important for his work to be seen in the way it was intended and hence was... not agreeable to have his film be cut in any way. We respect his decision and as such this film will not be able to be released in Singapore theatrically.

Censors of the Media Development Authority told Straits Times newspaper:

We are of the view that the prolonged and explicit threesome sex sequence has exceeded our classification guidelines.

Before the film's formal UK classification, Lionsgate, the UK distributor of The Hunger Games, approached the BBFC for classification advice. Lionsgate made clear that they were looking for a 12A classification which would enable many children who had read and enjoyed the book to see the film. However, it was clear that the film shown to us at this early stage went some way beyond the BBFC's Guidelines at 12A. The level of detail of some of the violence and gore, such as the tending of bloody wounds, required the 15 category.

We also considered at this early stage whether the theme and overall tone of the film were appropriate for 12-year-olds. Although the concept of children and young people being forced to fight and kill one another is potentially disturbing, we concluded that the futuristic and fantastical nature of the setting distanced the sense of threat from reality. The film is also alive to ethical questions and we believed young teenagers were likely to understand that the film, like the novel, is a critique of violence and of media manipulation. Indeed, it vividly invites its viewers to use and develop their media literacy skills.

The story has some similarities to The Lord of the Flies, which is taught in schools to the same age group. If anything, the latter takes a bleaker view of human nature.

Having concluded that the issues of theme and tone were appropriate for 12-year-olds, we suggested how the distributor might be able to secure the desired 12A classification by reducing the level of violence, blood and gore. Lionsgate returned with another version of the film for advice, which took account of some of our suggestions. However it was still some way off the 12A criteria. Scenes with emphasis on injuries and blood remained, going against what the public, through our research and consultations, have told us is acceptable at this relatively junior category. We again offered advice as to what Lionsgate should remove for the film to be contained at the 12A category.

When the film was finally submitted for formal classification we required a further seven seconds of cuts to the most violent and bloody sequence, which takes place as the game begins, as well as the digital removal of some bloody effects.

In all, Lionsgate removed around 20 seconds of the most violent, threatening and gory content and digitally removed other bloody effects. This was their choice. The BBFC did not require Lionsgate to make any cuts at all. We offered a 15 classification without cuts.

...Read the full article

Stormhouse is a 2011 UK horror thriller by Dan Turner. With Grant Masters, Patrick Flynn and Grahame Fox. See IMDb

UK: Passed 15 for strong language and bloody violence after 1s of BBFC cuts for category for:

• UK 2012 High Fliers R2 DVD for release on 9th July 2012

The BBFC commented:

• The company chose to remove a crude and aggressive use of very strong language in order to obtain a 15 classification. An uncut 18 classification was available.

US: Uncut and MPAA R Rated for:

• US 2012 Lions Gate R1 DVD via UK Amazon and at US Amazon

Elfie Hopkins is a 2012 UK horror thriller by Ryan Andrews. With Ray Winstone, Jaime Winstone and Kimberley Nixon. See IMDb

UK: Passed 15 for strong violence, language and soft drug use after 6s of BBFC cuts for category for:

• UK 2012 cinema release

The BBFC commented:

Company chose to make reductions in two scenes of bloody violence in order to achieve a 15 classification:

• A man being stabbed repeatedly with a knife (the number of stabs was significantly reduced)

• In one scene a man is shot in the head, resulting in a brief explosion of blood and gore. (the shot in question is extremely fleeting, having been reduced by cuts)

An uncut 18 classification was available.

Promotional Material:

Elfie Hopkins, a 22 year-old animal-loving slacker, stoner, and wannabe detective, lives in a sleepy hunting village. Haunted by the death of her mother, Elfie seeks solace and inspiration from the old school detectives in The Maltese Falcon and Chinatown. She entertains herself, along with her geeky best friend, Dylan, by investigating the villagers and upsetting everyone with their imaginative allegations. Things get serious however with the arrival of a family of trendy city dwellers, the Gammons, who weave seductive tales of adventure and entice the villagers with offers of exotic hunting holidays around the world. Despite not being immune to the Gammons charms, Elfie soon smells a rat, and snaps into full detective mode. Her mundane existence is about to be blown apart. Blood quickly starts to spill in the village, and it s no longer just the blood of animals. Elfie discovers the villagers are not making those flights and when she finally uncovers the truth, it s darker than she could ever have imagined...

A new Thai film based on William Shakespeare's, Macbeth, has been banned by censors on the grounds that its content may cause disunity among the people.

Shakespeare Tong Tai, or Shakespeare Must Die, is directed by Ing K and Manit Sriwanichpoom.

The film is the first Thai rendition of Macbeth, a bloodstained tragedy in which a Scottish general, with the help of his insidious wife, assassinates a king to pave his way to the throne.

The film includes a contemporary allegory about a fictitious nation where a popular politician rises up the echelons of power.

A document from the Ministry of Culture's Office of Film and Video says that since the film undermines the unity of people in the country, the censorship committee refuses to give permission to screen it in Thailand. The committee that banned the film was chaired by Police Major General Anek Samplang.

The film-makers will appeal against the decision.

Shakespeare Must Die runs for 178 minutes and was partly funded by the Ministry of Culture under the 2010 Thai Khem Khaeng stimulus scheme.

Update: Macbeth not quite historical enough

6th April 2012. See article from dailyrecord.com

Thailand's film censors have banned an adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, claiming it could inflame political passions in the country where it is taboo to criticize the monarchy.

One of the film's main characters is a dictator named Dear Leader, who resembles former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose ouster in a 2006 coup sparked years of political turmoil between his supporters and critics.

Ing K., the film's director, said the censorship committee objected to anti-monarchy overtones in the film as well as politically charged content, including a scene based on an iconic photo from Bangkok's 1976 student uprising showing a demonstrator being lynched.

The committee questioned why we wanted to bring back violent pain from the past to make people angry, Ing K. said in an interview. The censors also disliked the attire of a murderer in the film, who wore a bright red hooded cloak, the same color worn by the pro-Thaksin demonstrators known as the Red Shirts.

The director called the ruling absurd and a reflection of the fear in Thai society. She said the character resembling Thaksin could represent any leader accused of corruption and abuse of power: When Cambodians watch this they'll think it's Hun Sen. When Libyans watch it they would think it's Gadhafi.

Ing K. said she plans to appeal the ban.

Offsite: An interview with the director

18th April 2012. See article from bangkokpost.com

Why do you think the film has been banned?

It's the climate of fear. Most of us are not fanatics, but we're trapped between fanatics of all stripes and we live in fear. That's why we were banned.

...Read the full article

The U.S. rating for Tim Burton's Dark Shadows has been confirmed. The supernatural movie officially secures a PG-13 rating from the MPAA due to comic horror violence, sexual content, some drug use, language and smoking.

Meanwhile the BBFC has similarly passed the film 12A uncut for moderate violence, horror, gore, sex references and soft drug use.

Based on a 1960s' Gothic soap opera, Dark Shadows centers on Barnabas, a wealthy playboy who owns the Collinwood Manor. One day, he made a big mistake of breaking the heart of vengeful witch Angelique, who then turned him into a vampire before burying him alive.

Two centuries later, Barnabas is accidentally freed from his tomb. The vampire returns to his mansion only to find that his once-grand estate has fallen into ruin. He must now struggle to restore his family's glorious era while having some run-ins with various monsters, witches, werewolves and ghosts.

The film is set to open at cinemas on 11th May 2012.