Movie News

The Untold Story is a 1993 Hong Kong crime comedy drama by Danny Lee, Herman Yau
Starring Anthony Chau-Sang Wong, Danny Lee and Emily Kwan  

The film was unavailable for many years in the UK with the assumption that the BBFC would never pass it. The BBFC offered a cut release in 2005 but the distributor didn't take this up. The video was finally passed 18 uncut in 2023. Uncut and MPAA Unrated in the US. The film was also cut in Hong Kong.

Summary Review: Unpredictable, daring, extreme

This story concerns a serial killer posing as a restaurant proprietor who goes into violent rages and indulges in sadistic acts.

For those of you looking for something to disturb you, seek this out. It's not an atypical story by any means, but the murder scenes are pretty grisly. It's not quite all out gore, but it's pretty disturbing in that you're just not used to this kind of stuff.

One guy gets chopped up into dim sum. In another sequence, a family gets hacked to pieces...you ever notice in Hollywood where murdered children get killed offscreen? Not here. There's also a graphic rape scene involving chopsticks that ain't exactly feminist-friendly.

It's rare you see a horror film provoking anything more than laughter nowadays. This one is all out, gung-ho savagery. What's even weirder is the moments of slapstick that pop-up whenever the cops are in a scene. A strange way to lighten the darker scenes, but, that's Asian cinema for you...unpredictable, daring, extreme and the polar opposite of Western filmmaking.

Versions

uncut run: 95:52s pal: 92:02s		UK: Passed 18 uncut for sexual violence, strong bloody violence, threat, gore: 2023 88 Films video US: Uncut and MPAA Unrated for: 2020 Unearthed Records (RA) Blu-ray at US Amazon   2020 Unearthed Records R1 DVD at US Amazon #ad
banned	banned	UK: The film was unavailable for many years in the UK with the assumption that the BBFC would never pass it. Thanks to Scott.The BBFC offered a cut release in 2005 but the distributor didn't take this up. The BBFC explained: A work called THE UNTOLD STORY co-directed by Danny Lee and Herman Yau was submitted in 2005 for classification. The film was discussed across the Board, and cuts were requested under the Board's sexual violence policy to a scene of sexual assault. The work was never classified as the distributor - according to our records - did not respond to the request for cuts within the allotted time scale. The work was withdrawn after there was no further response from the distributor to a reminder sent to them.

Joyland is a 2022 Pakistan drama by Saim Sadiq
Starring Rasti Farooq, Sarwat Gilani and Ali Junejo

As the happily patriarchal Rana family craves for the birth of a baby boy, the youngest of the Rana men secretly joins an erotic dance theatre and finds himself falling for a fiercely ambitious trans starlet. Their impossible love story slowly illuminates the entire Rana family's...

Alina Khan, who stars in Joyland, the first major Pakistani film to feature a trans actor in a lead role, said:

I've been very sad. There's nothing against Islam and I don't understand how Islam can get endangered by mere films.

Joyland, which is Pakistan's contender at the Oscars, was set to go on national release, but was banned following pressure from hardline Islamic groups who called the film repugnant.

Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, a senator in the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) party, called Joyland cultural terrorism and criticised the government for the shameless act of allowing its release:

 I condemn it and will use every legal step to stop Joyland's release. Glamourising transgenders in Pakistan, as well as their love affairs, is a direct attack on our beliefs.

Cancelling the film's licence, which puts its Oscars' contention in doubt, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, said:

Written complaints were received that the film contains highly objectionable material which do not conform with the social values and moral standards of our society and is clearly repugnant to the norms of 'decency and morality' as laid down in Section 9 of the Motion Picture Ordinance, 1979.

Joyland has been hailed on the festival circuit. It was the first Pakistani film to be selected as an official entry at Cannes in May, winning two festival awards and receiving a standing ovation in a packed Salle Debussy theatre.

Update: Unbanned after cuts

21st November 2022. See article from easterneye.biz

Pakistani film Joyland has been unbanned by the censor board of Pakistan after making several scenes were cut.

The full censor board has allowed the local screening of Joyland. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif formed a cabinet committee to look into the matter after some schools of thought had objected to the movie.

Update: Re-banned in Punjab

30th November 2022. See article from hrw.org

Less than 24 hours after the national government's decision to unban Joyland, the Punjab government blocked the film's release in the province.

The Punjab Information and Culture Department explained that the Punjab government decided to re-call Joyland in the wake of persistent complaints received from different quarters.

The Sunday Times featured an interview with the new president of the BBFC alongside CEO David Austin. The article ran with the headline:

Natasha Kaplinsky, chief censor: where I'll draw the line on sex and gore The shining star of Noughties news and Strictly talks about her new job

Of course if you want to know where she'll draw the line you'll have to pay up. Thankfully other news sites have reported on BBFC utterances but haven't detailed any actual quotes answering the headline question of where lines will be drawn. MSN reported on the interview:

Kaplinsky told The Sunday Times Magazine that her background as a journalist will make her stronger when watching the tougher stuff she will have to view in her job.

She is an ambassador for Save the Children and president of Barnado's, and sees the BBFC role as a logical extension of her charity work. Shifting societal attitudes

As its president, Kaplinsky will be a member of the board of directors and will chair the Board of Classification, which meets monthly and oversees all matters relating to classification, including the most complex and controversial of cases.

Kaplinsky also told the magazine that being a child at the moment is very tricky due to the nature of online activity:

I definitely wouldn't want to grow up again. I'm fully aware of the influences that our children are under -- they're bombarded by this content constantly -- and yet we're able to provide a safe space for them. We've always relied on the classification system to do that.

She cautioned how online is largely unpoliced, and that's a worrying situation as a parent: you see how it influences their behaviour.

When she took on the role in September she said it was crucial that children's welfare is at the forefront of policy decision-making and this is central to the BBFC's efforts in the online safety space. She added:

The challenges that young people face now in the UK are greater than ever before -- and I am committed to giving voice to their needs.