Monday, July 19, 2010

Spazzing out over morons

12:48 PM / Cinema / Comments8 Comments

Cinema

You couldn't make this up. Mere weeks after passing Dario Argento's INFERNO uncut for the first time, the British Board of Film Censors have gone on what can only be described as a political correctness rampage (and I normally hate the phrase "political correctness", particularly when followed with "gone mad"), removing "offensive" words from children's films. The word "moron" was excised from the PG-rated ADVENTURES OF A TEENAGE DRAGONSLAYER, while the U-rated MARMADUKE has had the word "spaz" snipped out. In both cases, the distributor was offered an uncut "12" rating but chose to make the cuts in order to achieve a rating more in tune with the target audience's age.

It's worth pointing out that, under this new policy, the following films would all be censored: HOME ALONE, PROBLEM CHILD 1 and 2, THE IRON GIANT, the live action 101 DALMATIANS (already heavily butchered by the BBFC to remove several instances of the word "bloody"), THE PRINCESS BRIDE, multiple episodes of REN & STIMPY and THE SIMPSONS... I'm sure you can name plenty more.

Of course, "spaz" has always had a different history on either side of the Atlantic, with what is generally seen as a minor insult in the US having far more offensive connotations in the UK. Not that I agree with censorship like this at all, but I'm actually slightly surprised they didn't clamp down on it sooner. "Moron", though... seriously, guys? By requiring a "12" rating, that word has essentially been elevated to the same level of severity as "fuck". Think about that for a moment.

Why not let the BBFC know exactly what you think of their childish behaviour?

 
8 Comments

1. BobaFett said:

I never really understood this obsession with censoring the language of films that exists in English-speaking countries. Of course the German film censorship and child protection laws are quite mad in their very own ways, but at least no one really cares that much about swearing in films. It's not as if kids wouldn't know all those words anyway...

I always find it funny that a film like Rob Reiner's "Stand by Me" has an R rating in the USA and a 15 rating in the UK. A film that is partly based on Stephen King' and Rob Reiner's own childhood memories seems to be unsuitable for kids. ;)

(Posted on Monday, July 19, 2010 at 6:31 PM)

2. FoxyMulder said:

Just wait, the Conservatives are back in power and it may take a year or two but the BBFC will be targetted for some political interference and i suspect censorship will creep in through the back door.

All it takes is a new head at the BBFC who is less lenient and more into censorship and it can happen.

(Posted on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 2:01 AM)

3. Greg said:

Gosh. I'm glad I live in a liberal nation like the US where we don't have to worry about crazy conservatives fucking things up ;-)

(Posted on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 9:21 AM)

4. FoxyMulder said:

I detect a hint of sarcasm there Greg. :o)

(Posted on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 3:41 PM)

5. Kentai said:

Michael, have you ever seen "This Film Is Not Yet Rated"? It might be slightly less relevant to a UK resident like yourself than it was to a Yank like me, but it's still pretty fascinating peek into how the American morality cult that quietly molds Hollywood from behind the scenes actually works.

(Posted on Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 5:34 PM)

6. David Mackenzie said:

It actually makes more sense (albeit not much) than them cutting out words which apparently offend a non-existent sky daddy ("blasphemous" swear words). Words like "spaz" and "moron" (and surely "idiot" as well, but they'd surely not go that far) could be argued as being offensive to people with mental problems.

Of course, it's censorship so makes no sense.

BTW, you didn't mention that the recently classified Toy Story 3 features the word "moron" uncut, and it's rated U. I imagine this is a bit of favouritism on their part, or perhaps because they wanted to avoid a potential uproar over editing such a high profile film.

(Posted on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at 9:17 PM)

7. Christopher D. Jacobson said:

"a non-existent sky daddy"

*rolls eyes*

Pretty bogus, though, this kind of censorship. I'm a conservative (here in the US of A), but I recognize there's such a thing as being TOO conservative. Like, I'm a Christian and quite a hardcore conservative (though my entertainment tastes are quite liberal), but there are plenty of conservatives here that scare the piss out of me, those who take things waaaay, way too far. But actually, I find that most people I've come across who would tweak out over the use of words such as "moron" and "retard" (disparaging toward those with mental disabilities, as David mentioned—so they see such words, anyway, regardless of their usage and whom they're being used for) are very left-leaning, not just politically but in every area of their lifestyles. Political correctness is a thing that is huge over here, and it's a plague; and it's usually the left who push it so relentlessly, going so far as calling one a heartless bastard for being un-PC.

(Posted on Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 6:49 AM)

8. Author Profile Page Michael said:

Bobafett:

English-speaking countries, and this one in particular, do seem to have a particularly strong reaction to words. Personally I'm inclined to believe that it's not words themselves that are the issue (they're just sounds in the air or symbols on a page) but rather the sentiments behind them.


Foxymulder:

I'm inclined to wait and see what happens before jumping to conclusions. We've yet to see much if any indication that this lot of Conservatives have any interesting stamping their jackboots down on the movie world. And if they do, perhaps the current economic problems will serve as a timely distraction for them...


Kentai:

Yes, great film. I go through phases of thinking that the US system is superior to what we have in the UK, but the whole process seems so corrupt and biased in favour of the major studios that I think any strengths it has - such as its voluntary (in theory) nature - are ultimately cancelled out.


David:

Yeah, I wrote this post before I saw TOY STORY 3 - otherwise I would definitely have mentioned that.

I tend to think that the main difference is that fans of a non-existent sky daddy are considerably more likely to petrol bomb your studio or issue death threats than those with mental problems. Put it this way, I'd be considerably more afraid of being set upon by a band of sabre-brandishing Islamofascists than a crowd of people with Down syndrome.

(Posted on Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 8:56 PM)

 
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