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It seems like a long, long time since the uproar over ‘Last Temptation of Christ’ which had the self appointed censors of Glasgow and Westminster Councils (I think) banning any screenings on their patch. What with the internet and the ease with which you can see just about anything which exists (and it’s unlikely you’d want to see a lot of the extreme Japanese stuff), looking back it can all seem a bit quaint. But, of course, it isn’t. These people still exist - whether they’re calling for Jade Goody to be banned from ever appearing on TV again (and probably hung for good measure) or trying to legislate against the catch all offence of causing offence, there are plenty who want to tell you what you can and cannot see, say, or think. The MPAA (America’s film ratings board) appears to be exactly the sort of private, self appointed body guaranteed to make an arse of their role. Jack Valente, head of the American rating system , comes across as the type of guy who would be happiest banning people from a bowling club for not wearing the right kind of shoes. Remember the head of the federation in ‘Strictly Ballroom’? That’s somewhere near the mark. With an extra dollop of smarm on top. If, like me, you’ve no idea how American film censorship works, this is an enjoyable Michael Moore style expose of the big business secrecy, small town bigotry and pompous self importance with which the whole nonsense is carried out. Filmmaker Kirby Dick hires a couple of Thelma and Louise style private detectives (one’s the star of the piece) to find out exactly how they rate the movies, and the answers seem predictable enough,. There’s a lot of inconsistency, prurience, bizarre moral value judgement, incompetence , ludicrous point scoring and of course, a bias towards the big studios who pay their wages - oh - and they don‘t like lesbians. It’s hugely entertaining in parts and informative in others, but it does stick in the throat that these people can effectively ban people’s work. The NC17 (X) certificate pretty much makes the film unavailable in the States, as Blockbuster and the likes just will not stock them. And predictably, it’s sex and anything a bit arty which seem to take the brunt of it. The genuinely nasty ‘True Lies’ is fine, but John Waters is the enemy. The private detective device which drives the film makes for some entertaining viewing, and there are a lot of slightly racy clips from various, mainly low budget productions, but don’t expect a shock-a-thon of ‘Last House on the Left’ style sickos or ‘Vase de Noces’ weirdness. This is a quite light-hearted but serious look at how sensibilities dictate what the great American public is allowed to watch. How remarkably inoffensive much of the contentious material is shouldn‘t be a surprise, but it‘s dispiriting all the same. A good look at just why we should be very, very wary of anyone who wants to look out for our moral well-being. Worth seeing if just to remind yourself of the mindset of the censor - and worth remembering too that, in the scheme of things, America still seems a lot better than most. Reproduced with permission
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| THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED Dir: Kirby Dick (2006) Reviewed by Stuart Blackwood |
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