Horror Channel has three thrilling primetime Saturday night channel premieres in February including the UK TV premiere of Chee Keong Cheung's REDCON-1 , a British zombie action epic, starring Mark Strange as a Special Forces operative battling
a virus outbreak, Plus, there are Channel premieres for Eat Locals in which actor Jason Flemying makes his directorial debut with a bloodsucking comedy chiller featuring Mackenzie Crook, Dexter Fletcher and Annette Crosbie, and The One ,
James Wong's flashy superhero martial arts drama, starring Jet Li and Jason Stratham.
Other highlights for February include the John Carpenter remake of Village Of The Damned - which stars Christopher Reeves in his last
publicly released film before his career-ending injury, I Spit On Your Grave (2010) - Steven R. Monroe's remake of arguably the most notorious title in horror history and the darkly gripping sci-fi thriller Splice . There's also the
critically-acclaimed Maggie , a take on the Zombie genre starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Julian Gilbey's harrowing British survival shocker, A Lonely Place To Die , starring Melissa George and Ed Speelers.
The British board of film censors bans the video nasty re-release of The Gestapo's Last Orgy
27th
January 2021
26th January 2021
The Gestapo's Last Orgy is a 1977 Italian prison film by Cesare Canevari. With Adriano Micantoni, Daniela Poggi and Maristella Greco.
In the tradition of THE NIGHT PORTER, SALON KITTY and
SALO only far more depraved comes perhaps the most notorious Nazisploitation epic of them all: Daniela Levy stars as a beautiful young death camp prisoner forced into a nightmare of brutality, torment and sexual degradation. But will a Commandant's
vilest urge trigger her ultimate vengeance? Marc Loud co-stars in this fetid slice of filth-strudel
The BBFC has just banned a Blu-ray re-release of the notable Video Nasty The Gestapo's Last Orgy. The video was banned as a video
nasty in 1984 and has never been released in the UK since. The video is available uncut in the US though.
The BBFC seems to be embracing more politically correct language in its rating explanations and consumer advice lately, so it is getting hard
to distinguish the reasoned explanation form exaggeration and propaganda. Anyway the BBFC explained the ban as follows:
THE GESTAPO'S LAST ORGY is an Italian exploitation film, from 1977, in which a Jewish
woman revisits the site of a concentration camp in which she was formerly imprisoned and subjected to torture, terrorisation, humiliation and sexual violence.
BBFC Guidelines state that: As a last resort, the BBFC may refuse to
classify a work --.where a central concept of the work is unacceptable, such as a sustained focus on rape, other non-consensual sexually violent behaviour or sadistic violence.
THE GESTAPO'S LAST ORGY is largely composed of scenes
of strong sadistic violence, humiliation, degradation and non-consensual sexual activity, including rape, all of which occurs within a clearly anti-Semitic context. Its central concept is therefore unacceptable, and the sadistic and sexually abusive
material it contains is too pervasive to be effectively addressed by cuts.
Accordingly, the BBFC has refused classification to this work.
Offsite Comment: Still Too
Outrageous For Britain's Censors
The very idea that a
work of fiction -- a very clear work of fiction -- can somehow deprave and corrupt an otherwise normal person (and make no mistake, the idea of corruption is one of unbalancing the normal individual, not tipping an already morally disturbed individual
over the edge) is one that belongs in a past that we have long left behind. There's no scientific evidence to back it up, and the whole idea belongs more to the enforcement of morality -- the prevention of bad ideas entering the public sphere -- than
stopping actual harm to anyone.
Gav Crimson details the overblown press coverage of the seizure and legal actions against a horror film featuring child actors at the time of the Video Nasties moral panic
Suffer Little Children is a 1983 UK video horror by Alan Briggs. Starring Colin Chamberlain, Ginny Rose and Jon Hollanz.
The film was cut for an unofficial BBFC 18 rating issued prior to the implementation of the VRA. The film was seized by the police anyway and the film got caught up in the tabloid hysteria around the video nasty era. The film was
passed 18 uncut for UK DVD release in 2017.
The DVD version has a significant number of variations from the VHS. version.
This amateur video production, (not
particularly well regarded), is claimed to be a reconstruction of events involving child demonic possession which took place at 45 Kingston Road, New Malden, Surrey, England in August 1984. None of these events were reported to the press though, not the
to mention the fact that the film was conceived and shot in 1983, well before the supposed baseline event.
The video was submitted to the BBFC for a pre-VRA unofficial rating in December 1984. The BBFC asked for about 2 minutes of cuts. However the
distributors suffered a police raid on the day after the submission and the police seized the film. The police seemed to think that the uncut version was illegal and would not give the distributors the opportunity to implement the cuts
that would make it legal. The DPP considered the film for 3 months before deciding that no further action would be taken as long as the film was only distributed in the BBFC approved version. The film was caught up in press frenzy at this time, with the
inevitable calls for a ban and worse.
Lawmakers from the Canadian province of Ontario are debating a bill to put an end to provincial film censorship.
Presumably the move is intended to save money as the bill is titled: Bill 229, Protect, Support and Recover from COVID-19 Act (Budget
Measures), 2020. This includes Schedule 12: Film Content Information Act, 2020.
In fact local film censorship has already being largely wound down, The Ontario Film Review Board ceased operation as of October 1, 2019, with
responsibility for film classification being transferred from the Ontario Film Authority. This body largely adopted provincial film classifications from the British Columbia Film Classification Office.
Now is seems that formal state age ratings
will be no longer required, assuming that content information is provided by the distributor. The role of film censors will then be restricted to investigating complaints. Adult films will still require ratings in Ontario but it seems these will be
provided by a national film censorship scheme.
Parliamentary information about the bill reads:
Schedule 12 Film Content Information Act, 2020
The Schedule enacts the Film Content Information
Act, 2020 and repeals the Film Classification Act, 2005.
The new Film Content Information Act, 2020 regulates the exhibition of films, selling or renting physical copies of video games and selling, renting or otherwise making
available physical copies of adult sex films.
Part I of the Act sets out the application and interpretation provisions.
Part II of the Act provides for the appointment of a Director and Deputy Directors for
the purposes of the Act.
Part III of the Act provides that films cannot be exhibited for a person's direct gain unless information respecting the film and its contents is displayed to the public. This requirement does not apply in
certain circumstances, such as exhibition of a film under the sponsorship of a public library or public art gallery.
Adult sex films cannot be exhibited, and physical copies cannot be sold, rented or otherwise made available,
unless the film has been reviewed and approved by an entity that is authorized to approve adult sex films under the laws of a province of Canada. In addition, they cannot be exhibited to persons under the age of 18. Physical copies cannot be sold, rented
or otherwise made available to persons under the age of 18.
The sale or rental of physical copies of video games is restricted based on the rating assigned to the video game by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. Physical
copies of unrated video games may not be rented or sold to persons under the age of 18.
Part IV of the Act provides a procedure for the appointment of investigators and the investigation of offences under the Act. Things that are
seized by the investigator may be forfeited to the Crown in certain circumstances. A procedure for applying to the Director for the return of the seized thing is set out.
Part V of the Act sets out offences, penalties and
evidentiary provisions for proceedings under the Act.
Part VI of the Act provides regulation-making powers to the Lieutenant Governor in Council. These powers include the ability to modify the age restrictions that apply to the
sale or rental of physical copies of video games.
Part VII sets out transitional provisions. The Ontario Film Review Board is dissolved. Licences that were issued under the Film Classification Act, 2005 are no longer needed under
this new Act and expire.
Part VIII provides for the repeal of the Film Classification Act, 2005 and the revocation of the regulation made under that Act. It also makes several consequential amendments.