The British board of film classification Daniel Fairman

Who are they, what do they do? The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is the organisation in Britain that rates films and hands them a rating to advise us viewers on what content to expect. The board was created to protect the nation of offensive content that they didn’t want to see when entering a cinema. The board being active since 1912, has certainly developed their understanding of our culture towards film, as our attitudes have changed a great deal from when cinema begun. Post War saw many films appear which were created throughout the second World War; this was when we saw the purpose of the BBFC as the cinema really became a luxury towards our lives.

Their age ratings 1/2 U – Universal: Should be acceptable for years 4+ to view. U movies should have a positive vibe throughout the entirety of the film, they should offer reassuring counterbalances towards any violence, treat or horror. Easy watching for children. PG – Parental Guidance: Common viewing, but some scenes may be inappropriate for children. Unaccompanied children of any ages can watch, but parents should consider the content included in the film before allowing their child to watch the content. 12A/12 – Suitable for 12 years plus: This category often includes content that is not suitable for children under the age of 12. Nobody under the age of 12 can see the film unless accompanied by an adult. Parents should review the content of the film before allowing their child to view it.

Their age ratings 2/2 15 – Suitable only for ages 15+: Nobody younger than 15 is allowed to see the film, even if accompanied by an adult. Features discrimination, drugs (no promotion for it), light imitable behaviour, strong language, light nudity, light sex, strong threat and horror, strong violence but no reflection in the pain faced through action. 18 – Suitable only for ages 18+ (Adults): There are no real limits towards this category of film. However, film creators often attempt to avoid this rating as it will limit the views from younger audiences.

IN Depth – the 12a rating… The 12a rating was introduced in 2012 and was created for cinema only purposes. However, since it was created it has always had issues raised towards itself. The trouble with the rating is that some believe the content was inappropriate for some children (under 12’s when accompanied by adults), and some believe that it ruins films for adults because the content is dumbed down. People believe that the 12a certificate has ruined the need for a 15 certificate; as producers cut away all the adult content in order to achieve a lower rating to appeal to a wider audiences. Many also believe that some of the films rated 12a are in fact too scary for children and should have been rated higher. Overall, we are left with a high percentage of people unhappy with a film, if when remained as first anticipated it would have produced a far better form of entertainment.

A Clockwork orange (1971) ‘A Clockwork Orange’ to this day is one of the most FAQ’s towards the BBFC as to why they removed it from UK general release in 1973. The film by todays standards is not so controversial, in fact it more stands out as an odd film to myself. The film at the time was seen as borderline on whether it could achieve the then X rating; as it featured a homeless man getting beaten to death, rape scenes and also sexual references. The then leader of the BBFC Stephen Murphy said he was not willing to turn the rules “upside down” for one film, this meant the film didn’t even achieve the X rating (18 in today).

Longest banned film? 1953 TO PRESENT (67 YEARS BANNED IN UK) I vinti (English: The Vanquished) is a 1953 drama film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and starring Franco Interlenghi, Anna Maria Ferrero and Eduardo Ciannelli. The film is composed of three stories about youths who commit murders. In the French story set in Paris, a group of high school students kill one of their colleagues for his money. In the Italian story set in Rome, a university student is involved in smuggling cigarettes. In the English story set in London, a lazy poet finds the body of a woman and tries to sell his story to the press. The film was a project of Film Costellation to Suso Cecchi d'Amico, who proposed Antonioni as director. This film was screened out of competition at 1953 Venice Film Festival.

Difficult classifications Saving Private Ryan (1998) – The multiple Oscar winning film was handed a 15 certificate. This was a controversial decision but the BBFC stated that this was due towards its historical circumstances; they believed that the historical value of the true story outweighed the upset it could cause to some viewers. The Dark Knight (2008) – The highly rated film was surprisingly awarded with a 12a certificate, probably not so much for the un-graphical killings in the movie but the terror caused by The Joker and the potential scare he could cause to children, being a clown in all. The Human Centipede 2 (2011) – The film was awarded a 18 certificate after being rejected and told to make 32 cuts towards their submission film. The horror film was described as having “a number of sequences of very strong bloody violence and gore”.

Arguments against film classification Films can inspire people, change attitudes and ignite something inside deep within. This is something that was recognised a long time ago and it has been controlled to some degree ever since. The Russian film ‘Battleship Potemkin’ was banned from view by many countries as the events featured in the film were stated as too powerful; possibly having the ability to spark potential social rebellion acts. In a perfect world, censorship would not be necessary. Children wouldn’t be exposed to films inappropriate for their age and every person would have the mental stability to clearly recognise the boundary between film and reality. But we don’t live in a perfect world - so while we can’t always monitor what our children watch, or predict what could inspire violent behaviour, we can take steps to protect the vulnerable in society through classification and censorship.

Does the BBFC actually work? In one word, yes. I believe that the system provides a safe experience when watching a film, especially for children. There are a great amount of certificates, each of which provides an experience that you should expect under the rating. Regarding the 12a argument, I think that as a child more often than not you want to watch films for older audiences, they’re traditionally more exciting and enticing to watch. The 12a certificate provides this experience. However, I do believe that directors should stick towards a rating while creating the film; otherwise you can end up with films having their character removed by attempting to achieve a lower rating. I do however believe that the BBFC can prevent some screen artists from achieving what they want, which I’m not in favour of. Artists, as weird as some of there creations can be, want to create and share; and the BBFC prevent the public from seeing these works, even if the viewer knows what it includes.