film ratings poster regulation aob6

distrobution podcast aob5

aob4 poster

hills have eyes censorship

this film is the 2006 remake of the 1977 horror. both directed by wes craven. the story is that a family traveling across the country is send off road by false directions of a strange man at the gas station. they crash the car in the desert and are attacked by mutants that were previously miners before the 1950's atomic bomb tests.
just like the saw movie this film had cuts to get an R rating in US cinemas. then the uncut version was release on DVD as unrated. it is common for uncut DVD's to be called unrated in USA.
this film had a very high amount of cut scenes compared to most American films, this is due to censorship that is required by law unlike saw which was edited for rating purposes. almost every other scene of violence has a cut and all together there are 31 altered scenes.

example:
the scene which shows a man being burnt to death on a tree had 5 seconds of footage removed. a close up of the arm which shows burning flesh has been removed. and a close up of his face which is shown melting and his eyes going blind from the heat.

saw censorship

This horror film is one of many new films that are known to be very violent and contain scenes of explicit gore. these films are called Gorno or torcher porn. there is a lot of discussion about these films like there was with the exorcist. there are reports of audience fainting or throwing up during the movie and there are mixed reviews.

the plot: a photographer and a doctor awaken in a bathroom chained to some pipes at opposite ends of the room. there is a corpse in the middle of the room. an audio tape instructs the doctor to kill the photographer to save his family and the photographer has until 6PM to escape. they both have hacksaws that can only be used to cut through their feet and not the chains.

according to http://movie-censorship.com the film was cut to get an R rating instead of NC17 in the US (people under 17 can see R rated films with adults but NC17 is strictly 17+) the film makers did this because the target audience is around 15 - 30 (so teenagers and young adults) and this is the case for most modern horror movies. so this shows how a films rating can effect its gross profit.
Because the BBFC uses a different rating system the uncut version was shown in UK cinemas. in the UK there is no rating that says that under 18's can see a film if with an adult but instead the rating system specifies age groups.

the R rated version had 14 cuts which is equal to 24.2 seconds.

example:
this shot of a corpse was removed but was shown in the uncut version.

censorship

in britain the BBFC is in charge of giving films classifications and censoring scenes that are to explicit for the audience. it is required by law that all films, games, videos, etc are censored before released to the public.

BBFC History

the company was founded in 1912 and used the certificates of U and A (public) this gave films the impression of its intended audience. U would be for children and A would be for adults but at this time no film contained any content unsuitable for young audiences so the ratings depended on the overall theme of the film instead.
in 1920 the Middlesex County Council made cinemas only show BBFC-rated films. then the london council did the same but only allowed children into A rated films if they were with an adult. soon all counties did the same. when the horror genre came about people got concerned of the content of the films so the H rating was introduced in 1932 and only people aged 16+ could see the films. only a few films had this rating. the rating was changed to X in the 1950's as not all films were horror but included violence and sexual referance.
the 1970's had a more broaded variety of certificates as there were a large range of films being made.
U - universal
A - children age 5+ but parents are advised that content unsuitable for children under 14 may be shown.
AA - people 14+
X - 18+

the ratings were revised in 1982 with
U
PG
15
18
r18 (only special licensed cinemas could show these films)

the development of technology has made an impact on the BBFC as they have to be aware of these changes to how people get hold of content. in 1984 they decided to bring in the video recordings act. The VHS had been out for a while and more and more people were able to have one so the BBFC needed to give ratings to these videos because children can get these videos easier than they can get into a cinema so it is a bigger problem for the BBFC who aim to keep harmful content away from children. also this separate form of calcification would need to be stricter because of its ease of access so films are censored more and maybe given a higher rating than it had in the cinema.
the ratings were the same as the cinema ratings but with the aditional Uc for children and R18 could only be sold in sex shops
in 1989 12A was added to the cinema ratings and 12 was given to video ratings.

Legal and ethical constraints:
violence - most films will have violence in them but the films rating will depend on how the film adresses the violence. a cartoon like the looney toons will have comic violence that does not harm children so it would be given a U or PG rating but it would not be suitable for very young children so it would not get a Uc rating. a horror film will have lots of gore but the way the film treats this violence will depend on its rating. if it has lots of close ups and prolonged cuts then it would be given an 18 or would be required to be censored as it could harm audiences. slow motion techniques used to show the graphic detail will also have the same effect.
the context of the violence is also an issue. the character who is being violent can effect the rating, the hero usually defeats or kills the villain and that is exceptable as he saves the world but on some occations a film like seven is made where the villain wins and this can effect the audiences attitude towards the film and many would be emotional harmed and upset by the outcome.
the form of violence is an obvious issue as well because fist fighting can get a low rating and gun violence can as well but more brutal forms of violence will get high ratings such as decapetation, stabbing and other forms of graphic violence.

language - modern films can have frequent use of language and this must be taken into concideration by the BBFC. a U rating can have infrequent mild language, a PG can have more frequent mild language, 12 can have frequent mild language and infrequent use of strong language, a 15 will be able to use most language but if it is too frequent and agressive it will be given an 18 which has no constictions at all.


sex - a U/PG rating can have romantic references such as kissing. a 12 can have sexual references as long as they are not graphic for example a Bond film usually has a sex scene but it is censored with the use of darkness and silhouettes (die another day) or the use of camera angles which pan away from the subjects and fades out to the next scene. the use of 'real sex' can only be used in films sold in sex shops with the rating of R18 but one film was an exception, '9 songs' is a British film which is classed as the most sexual explicit film released in cinemas and has scenes of 'real sex' which did not get cut or censored in any way.

drugs - pg films can have drug references as long as they carry out an anti drug message. a 12 rating cannot inform the audience about how to use drugs but it does not have to have an anti drug message but must not encourage it. 15's also cannot encourage drug taking. 18's can have any content but if it can harm the audience then it must be cut.

"The Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937" states that no films can have any scenes that show animal cruelty

"the protection of children act 1978" states that it is illegal to show indecent images of children under the age of 18
"the obscene publications act 1959" says that no film can be obscene meaning no explicit sex scenes can be shown. (films that do will be given an R18 rating and can only be sold in a sex shop as it would be classed as porn unless the scene is cut)

"the licensing act 2003" requires all cinemas to have a license to show films and they must obey the laws put in place to prevent underage people from seeing a film with a high rating. plus preventing crime, harm to children and public safety.

public order act 1986 - "hatred against a group of persons in Great Britain defined by reference to colour, race, nationality or ethnic origins" cannot be shown in film or TV unless it includes anti racial messages.

the exorcist (with aditional censorship work) aob6

in 1971 william peter blattey wrote the book and in 1973 it was adapted to film but its content caused it to be banned on VHS until 1986, children could get hold of a video very easily so this was why they did not release it as the content could traumatize a child. The story is about a young girl who is by possessed by the devil. it was based on a true story from 1949 in which an exorcism was conducted on a 14 yr old boy. it was one of a series of films about daemon children, other films include the omen and rosemary's baby. it was the most profitable films of all time with $402, 500, 000 the reason for this is that there was news of people fainting and being sick during the movie so was all over the news and created interest for millions who would wait outside the cinema just to see it. the film was so popular there were 2 sequels and one prequel

there was talk of the production of the film being cursed as some press reported. all the hype of the film made everyone want to see it and therefore people queued outside the cinemas including in bad weather such as blizzards. the press focused on reporting about the effect of the film on some audience members that fainted or were carried out of the cinema and it was put across that it was common for people to do that when seeing the film.

the film had mixed reviews when it was released। such quotes included 'classic' and 'claptrap'
When the film was released in cinemas the BBFC gave it the certificate of 'X' which was given to the most explicit of films. the first film to be given this rating was 'revenge of the zombies' in 1951 but its video release in 1990 had a U rating. this is a good example of the changes of attitudes to films. When the exorcist was released onto video it had an 18 rating. Now the special edition DVD has a 15 rating.


the American censorship board gave the film an R rating meaning that minors could see the film if they were with an adult. it was given the rating because the board felt there was no explicit sex or violence in the film but Catholics felt it should of had the A-IV rating, which is an adult rating, because the film is moral but may offend some viewers.

The Shining aob3 / aob2

The shining is a book written by 'the master of horror' Steven King, it was made in 1980 and directed by Stanley Kubrick.
Jack Nicholson stars and tormented writer Jack Torrance who accepts the job of the winter caretaker at a hotel at the top of a mountain, which always gets snowed in during the winter, when the hotel is closed. While his family looks around the hotel, the psychic hotel chef discovers the psychic abilities of Jack's son Danny, who can detect ghostly presences in the hotel, this ability is called "the shining". When the hotel becomes snowbound, Jack Torrance is driven mad by the ghosts in the hotel, and he tries to murder his wife and son.
the structure of th film is liner like most films. this means that the film has a begining, middle and end or to be more technical it has an exhibition, complication, climax and resolution.
exhibition
the scene where the cook introduces the family to the house gives the chance for us to understand the setting and who the characters are. we learn about how the previous caretaker got cabin fever and killed his family and himself during the long winter in which the hotel is entirely isolated. we also learn that the child has 'the shining'
complication

one of the first complication appears in the start of the film where we discover that the child has an imaginary friend called Tony who lives in his finger.
climax

the climax is the highest point in the film and features near the end before the situation is resolved so the axe scene with the famous heres johnny quote would be this and soon the family will escape to the maze where we have the resolution.

resolution

the story is resolved when the family gets away from the house and jack freezes in the maze. this can be seen as open ended as it is not clear that jack is dead and the family may have got away but they could face another deadly encounter in a sequel. there was not sequel to this film but the ending gave the producers a chance to make another
at the time of making, the steadicam had recently been invented, therefore the directer used it a lot which created a distinctive style. The steadicam is a tool used to make a camera steady when in motion so if there was an uneven surface then the camera would remain still and there would be no wobbling. the fact that the camera is constantly moving creates suspense and discomfort. a dolley track could have been used in the film but it would not work because of the setting. a dolley track is used for such things as car chases and if it was used in a house you would see the track on the floor.

there is a interesting form of film making used in this film

most films do not happen in real time but they cut down the time line so you only see the important parts of the story. in the shining several months are summed up in 2 hours and you are shown this through breaks in the film were you are told the day and you see a long shot of the hotel, you see that every time there is more snow surrounding the hotel each time and when we get the the finally there is a struggle to get through the snow to escape. the use of titles tells us the story before it happens so this can be seen that jacks future has already been determined. stanley kuberics style of direction was influanced by german film maker Max Ophüls who died in 1957

deux ex machina is a plot device in which a surprising or unexpected event occurs in a story's plot and this film is full of these events, one example would be the famous scene where jacks wife sees that all the work that jack has been writing has in fact been the same line over and over "all work and no play makes jack a dull boy" then later the wife has to fend jack off with a baseball bat.

macguffins motivate the characters or advances the story so an example of that is when we see a photograph of jack from 1921 and creates a mystery of if he has always been the caretaker of the hotel the character gets worried and starts to think the same thoughts of the audience, they could believe that jack is a reincarnation of the previous caretaker so the murderous events will just repeat themselves.

the reason why jack nichoson was casted in the film is because the main character has a similar story as his role in the 1975 film one flew over the cookoo's nest and this is because both characters both become made slowly thoughout the film. The casting of jack means that audiences from his other work will be attracted to this film espesially after they hear of the characters connections. Also an audience will be attracted from the fans of steven king and his book that the film is based on. plus fans of the directer will also be attracted.

i have chosen to look chosly at the iconic scene where jack chops through a door with an axe and shoots 'heres jonny!'. his wife has locked herself in the bathoom to get away from the murderous man. once he has made a hole in the door he tries toopen it with the handle but his wife cuts him with a knife, he continues to break down the door so his wife tries to escape through the window. this scene is made with a lot of suspence as the door features as an obsticle for the scene to be longer and keep the audience on the edge of there seat. but the audience would get bored if nothing happened besides the repetitive swinging of the axe so we see the wife trying to escape with her son and transitions to jacks actions. Also jack quotes the nursury ryme of the 3 little pigs and it is showing the scale of madness the situation has escalated to.

there is an interesting use of film making in this scene as there are good camera angled used. instead of getting the action in the shot the director has used good angles to show the fear on the wife's face as the axe comes through the door. also the camera pans as jack swings his axe and this adds to the force and power of the swinging. the camerawork can also be seen as thrashing. I like the shot from outside in which we see a long shot of the house, a large pile of snow, and danny as he escapes through the window. the contrast between the light and darkness looks good and given an interesting atmosphere, which is cold and dark.

the use of sound is good because there is no backing track besides the faint low hum that adds atmosphere. the diegetic sound of screaming and the crackling of wood along with the impact of the axe is the main sound that create sound and it does is so well there is no need for music.

the axe itself is an iconic feature of a horror movie. it is a deadly weapon that has a sinister effect which is shown by jack as he chops down the door.

when watching the scene i see that the wife locks herself in the bathroom which has the word redrum on the door which is murder spelt backwards. the bathroom is small and clostrophobic which can be seen as an iconic micro feature put there by the director. viewer who look closely and notice this would expect the wife to be killed in this room as she is trapped in the small environment.

The wicker man aob1

This is a British cult classic made in 1973. It was filmed in Scotland and stars Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee plus others. The story follows a Scottish police officer, Sergeant Neil Howie, as he visits the island of Summerisle. He searches for a missing girl called Rowan. He finds that inhabitants of the island follow a form of Celtic paganism, which appalls Christian Sergeant. Film magazine Cinefantastique described it as "The Citizen Kane of Horror Movies" and others say that it is the best British horror ever made.
the film is classed as a horror as it contains scenes of fear and terror especially in the ending where the main character is burnt alive as a sacrifice to the gods. This sinister ending has ensured this film a place in the annals of horror despite its divergence from the tropes of most horror films of the 1970s. The film has no vampires or monsters and no sinister music; its ending is all the more shocking, in fact, for the charm of the villagers and the folk-music score, which lead the audience into a false state of complacency that mirrors Howie’s own vulnerability and in a further departure from other examples of the genre, the antagonists are in no way demonized.
the film can also be classed as a mystery thriller as it revolves around Howie's search for the missing girl and his gradual uncovering of the religious practices of the islanders. As the film progresses, the viewer becomes increasingly aware that something is amiss and that the mystery Howie is investigating is, perhaps, both different from what he believes it to be and far more sinister than he suspects. This growing awareness gives the movie a potently sinister quality which engenders an ever increasing sense of apprehension. Such feelings of tension effectively engage the viewer with the film and make watching it an enthralling experience.
Another genre the film could be classed as is a musical as the traditions and culture of the island allows for many enjoyable songs to be sung by the locals. This draws the viewers into the world of Summerisle.
Paul Giovanni was the man who composed the music and can be seen performing a song in a scene set in the village pub. His songs are inspired by the sounds and themes of British folk music and lend not only an authenticity to the world of Summerisle but manifest the vibrancy and joyfulness of its inhabitants.
Out of all the films we have watched so far this has to be my favorite due to the fact that it has a good mystery plot and it keeps your attension thoughout, also the whole film builds up to the epic ending that was very powerfull and effective.

witch-finder general aob1

this film was made in 1968 and is loosely based on a poem by edger allen poe. it was directed by Michael Reeves, Produced by Tigon films(UK) and it stared vincent price. This is because the actor is popular and the films based on poe books make large profits. The actor was going to be donald pleasance but because of his popularity with horror fans, vincent price was hiredThe director did not make any more films because he died a year later at the age of 25. The film was originally called 'the conqueror worm' because it is the name of the poem. The film has references to the culture of the UK because at the time the swinging 60's was coming to an end and hippies started to disappear because the public was accepting the violent reality, for example there was news of 4 people being killed at a rolling stones concert. The film has scenes of violence as it follows the culture of the middle ages as they found killing people on the streets was an acceptation. This can be compared to the time of release where people were protesting about street violence and the audience can think that our times are not as bad as what it used to be.

The film was such a violent film that horror on that level was not seen before so the BBFC was concerned about it. BBFC stood for british board of film censorship, so their job was to make the film safe for the public and they did this by making the screams shorter and quieter because they were to long for the audience to stand. The BBFC has changed its name now because the law does not state that films must be censored but now they must be classified so they use a range of symbols to identify what the minimum age of viewers must be. this means that films can be as horific as they want but the rating will be higher.

fall of the house of usher aob1

This film is again an adaptation of a gothic novel, it follows the story of a man who travels to see his fiancee who lives in a creepy old mansion. His presents is not welcome by her bother who insists he leaves. Soon odd things start to happen but the man insists he leaves the house with his fiancee.

The book was written by edger allen poe who is famous for his horror novels.

The setting of this story is a classic for horror movies and was copied many times afterwards. A creepy old mansion surrounded by fog and dead trees. "the house seems to have absorbed an evil and diseased atmosphere from the decaying trees and murky ponds around it. The camera angles used in this scene were long shots to show the suroundings plus it seems as if he is being watched.

"The film was made with a low budget so used cheap sets, and got footage of anything they could without paying to much, for example they used shots from other movies and one time a building down the street from the set had burnt down so the crew made sure they filmed it in order to get a realistic explosive ending for the film without any money being spent.

the movie has a central villain who takes control. the butler knows everything so is a sinister character. The victim is Malden as she is the vulnerable female who wheres a low cut top, this is a stereo-type as the female in frankenstein is also a good looking female named Elizabeth who wheres a low cut top. there is another female stereo-type which is an ugly hag. the producers of american international pictures. the director, Roger Corman was successful with this film so if they make money they use the same director, actor, plot until the audience gets bored of it and they don't make profit. Also the actor vincent price knows how to act for horror films so he will do the job well each time.

This an old film so the different featured used would not of been cliched but other films have used the ideas to create atmosphere due to the iconography. This film uses Gothic styles to create its horror setting: a haunted house, dreary landscape, mysterious sickness, and doubled personality. The house is an old, large Gothic mansion location in Victorian new england and all the characters where period costumes. The dialogue used throughout the film is posh and literal so gives the film a more period feel, plus it creates more tension and atmosphere to what is being described by the characters, for example a scene when 'Mr. Winthrop' meets Vincent Prices character there is a description of how he could hear Mr. Winthrop approaching the house and he uses a series of metaphors to show his pain.
The use of sound effects are used well as there are scenes where you can hear ghostly howling to scare you.

the audience of the time would have been scared in the film because of the tension and suspense throughout the film plus they would be thinking about what is going on because it is not clear what is wrong with the house. in my opinion i thought that everyone was dead and they could not leave the house because they were ghosts and other people would have heir theories but in the end it turns out that the the house was built on unsteady grounds and the spookiness is a creation of the villain.

mary shellys frank aob1

How has the Frankenstein franchise changed from Whale’s until Branagh’s version?

This film was made 1994 which was a time where period dramas were very popular so there were loads being made. This is because they were low budget and easy to make, plus they attracted large audiences so grossed big prophets. The costumes in the original movie did not reflect the Victorian fashion as much as the remake so this newer movie approaches the story differently with its style and visual representation.

The way horror films are made today we find it harder to class this film as part of the genre as modern horror films have lots more blood and shocking visuals so it is easier to class Mary Shelly's Frankenstein as a period drama than a horror. Some particular scenes in the film make it part of the horror genre such as the scene were the monster rips out the heart of his creators wife.

The difference between the two movies is that the one from the 1930's is a sequal so starts have way through the story. This makes it a shorter film than the remake. The length of the remake allows it to focus on more emotional issues than the first. There are issues of loss as frankenstein looses his wife and we see him go though a period of madness as he isolates himself and obsesses with the creation of a monster. The oridginal focused on the creation of the moster as the movie showed the idea of what science could do b in the remake we have gone past the point of scientific wonder so if it focused on that it would seem outdated and would not apeal to the modern audience. the scenes in which the monster is created has changed a lot in comparison with the original. back then the thought of bringing the dead back to life was enough for the audiences expectations so the scene did not need great visuals to make an impact but now we know that a monster will be created and the science is no longer new to us so for the new scenes to make an impact it needs to be visually stunning and have a complicated explanation of how it is done.

Audience with the advance in technology films have become more visual and the audience has come to expect that a film will have lots of visual effects and if it does not it would be seen as boring. For example 'Bride of Frankenstein' ended with the creation of the woman but the remake had the woman kill herself with an oil lamp so lots of pyrotechnics were used to appeal to the audience. The film tries to appeal to a large audience as it covers a number of genres besides horror, fans of period dramas would like this and so would people who like love stories and emotional dramas, The reason why it resembles a period drama is that it was directed by Kenneth Branagh who is known for making various period dramas. There is also a sense of action in some scenes like the explosive ending. Some people watch movies because of the actors in it, Robert de Nero played the monster and is a popular A list celebrity so attracts a bigger audience. Some people would see the movie because of John Cleese's part, he is known for comedy movies such as 'a fish called wanda' so some people maybe mislead to think that the movie was a comedy.

With Frankenstein being made such a well known franchise everyone knows of monster and most would know the story so the audience would possibly know what the expect and therefore they would not enjoy it as much as audiences of the originals.

One thing that has degraded the film is that the director abandoned the iconography of the monster which was created by Boris Karloff, when we hear the word Frankenstein we think of the square forehead and the bolts in the neck but in the remake the monster has no resemblance to that, instead the monster is bald, has a deformed face and lots of stitches.

bride of frank aob1

what about the film makes it fit within the horror genre? could we argue for it to fit into another genre? Each genre has its conventions and horror films usually have a central villain, fear, violence, blood, supernatural events, and sexual references. This film has a villain as it is Frankenstein's monster and the village people are scared of him and the audience would experience the same emotions as the village people as the monster terrorizes the people. As this is an old movie it is based on a book like other horror movies of its time and these books usually fit into the Gothic horror genre which is often set in Victorian times which is the time the books were writen and have religious themes and iconic settings.
The film has some light humorous jokes in some of the less scarier scenes for example the scene with the blind man the monster discovers smoking and learns how to use a cigar replying to the blind man "goooood"

Also the film deals with science and uses the idea that you can revive a dead body so can be seen as a SI-FI movie.
who produced the film and what were the circumstances in which it was made?

The studio had considered the idea of making a sequel to the original Frankenstein as early as the preview screenings of the film, the changing of the original ending to allow for Henry Frankenstein's survival. The screenwriter wrote a treatment called The New Adventures of Frankenstein – The Monster Lives! but it was rejected in early1932. Another writer called Tom Reed wrote a treatment titled The Return of Frankenstein. It was accepted in 1933, so Tom Reed wrote a full script. The script passed review but James Whale, the director, did not like it so in 1934, Whale had John Balderston write another.

from a modern day viewpoint how do you feel about the film?
with the advance in technology the film seems laughable to an audience of today as we see that the effects are unrealistic compared to a film of today. this makes the film seem like its part of the comedy horror sub-genre there are a lot of modern horrors that are purposely made with humor. These films are sometimes spoofs to older films such Frankenstein or Dracula, an example would be Shaun of the dead which is a spoof of George A Romero's dawn of the dead and takes the plot and creates a similar story with comical references to the original.

what are the links to the social / technological environment are there?
the film was made when predictions of technical advances of science was in the news so the plot refers with the thought that it was possible to revive a dead body. Also the director was openly gay so gave the film homosexual references.
how would the audience of the 1930's enjoyed the film?
back then they did not have television so regular visits to the cinema was seen as a popular social event that everyone took part in.
what is the benefit of genre to the audiences? genre allows audiences to pick out the film they like by understanding the themes of a genre so if a peoson likes gun fights and explosions they will look for an action film. by this the audience knows what to expect and if a film does not meet the expectations of the audience then the film will not be popular.
what is the benefit of genre to producers? with genre, producers can make a number of successful films that have a similar narrative and style. This makes it easier for producers as they don't need to think of a unique story for every film they make. Also the audience will see one film and others like that film so the producers will attract more audience with the themes that come with genres. This means that film makers can use the same story over and over in a form of sequal or remake and therefore the success of the first film will be repeated.