The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) rejects movie posters that aren’t suitable for children to view. As the MPAA recently explained, as they rejected a movie’s poster:
Ads will be seen by all audiences, including children. If the advertising is not suitable for all audiences it will not be approved by the advertising administration.
So that’s why they rejected this poster:
Oh, wait, no, they approved that poster. I guess the image of a woman bound and hanging upsidedown, apparently about to be tortured for the audience’s entertainment, is suitable for “all audiences, including children.”
Here’s the poster they rejected:
Oh, my mistake, they found that one suitable for all audiences too.
Okay, here’s the poster they really rejected:
That time I didn’t even fool you, did I? You’re right, the MPAA found that image acceptable for all audiences. There’s no way any kid would be traumatized by something as mundane as a man’s severed head in a grocery scale.
So what was the image that the MPAA rejected as not “suitable” for “all audiences, including children”? Here it is:
This poster for “Taxi To The Dark Side,” a documentary about the U.S. government’s use of torture, is what the MPAA is protecting our children’s tender eyes from.
Because of the hood.
But — the MPAA assures us — their standard is reasonable, because if that “Saw IV” poster had had a hood over the severed head, they would have rejected it too.
Gosh, no double standard there.
Oh, well, at least this is some sort of aberration. It’s not like the MPAA has a history of right-wing double-standards.
(Hat tips to ldragoon and Pop Stalin Designs.)
Not to be completely irrelevant, but that’s an amazing poster. Also, clearly I’m going to have to watch this movie, although it will almost certainly disturb me beyond measure.
They should be thinking of disturbing their children when they approve torture in the first place.
Yeah, but think of the poor right wing parents whose children are exposed to this:
“Daddy, why are those soldiers going to torture that man”
“Well, it’s not really torture. Waterboarding is like a frat prank. Besides that man is probably some sort of Muslim and therefore deserves to be tortured and if anything is being treated too well.”
And now the child is horribly traumatized by the fact that her parents are exposed as inhuman monsters.
Thanks for the hat tip and I loved the tongue and cheek way you handled this issue. I really wanted to get more ‘political’ on my blog but of course, since it’s for my business, I have to tow a very careful line.
Apparently this isn’t the first time the MPAA has banned a poster that had an anti-war sentiment. They banned the original ‘Road to Guantanamo’ poster too. You can read more about that here. The poster for that one is gruesome in comparison to the ‘Taxi To The Dark Side’ poster but still not as disturbing as some of the torture porn movie posters they allow. Gotta love those kind of standards.
I must admit, I found the last poster the most disturbing. But only because I knew the context and therefore knew that Saw, etc, is fiction whereas what the US military is doing to people is very real. A child would almost certainly be more traumatized by any of the first three. (I’m a little traumatized by the idea that people find these things entertaining, but that’s not exactly anything new.)
Well done.
I don’t think I ever saw those posters before, but JESUS H., I’m not surprised. Remember, deplorable violence is fine as long as it’s perpetrated by Bad People, and Our Good White Christian Soldiers can never be Bad People until someone forces accountability. Then they’re scapegoats.
And unique cases. A few bad apples, &c. And no, we’re not allowed to question what’s wrong with the institution as a whole that “a few bad apples” could get in, get power, and then get away with what they do. Nope, we’re all supposed to just accept this fact, that the military institution is completely set up assuming that each and every member of the military is angelic and that no bad apples could ever get in (or get made in training or in war), and so it’s entirely the fault of the lower-ranking soldiers who get caught and thrown to the press if they do things we know people do in war and to prisoners.
But the truth is something that’s inappropriate for children, teenagers, and adults without parental/media guidance. So movies glorifying war can get G or PG ratings (what was the rating of that WWII pigeon one?), while movies exposing the horrors in war are, of course, NC-17.
“Science fiction action” and “intense depictions of weather” are pretty weird rating-bumpers, but “tells the truth about war” definitely takes the cake.
And now the child is horribly traumatized by the fact that her parents are exposed as inhuman monsters.
Better to know early, I suppose.
And now the child is horribly traumatized by the fact that her parents are exposed as inhuman monsters.
Perhaps we should torture them.
It never ceases to amaze that people who object to evil, dehumanizing behavior then turn around and use dehumanizing language about other people.
Either we’re all people and have worth, or we’re not. It’s defensible, perhaps, to decide that we’re not, but then we can’t really criticize others for reaching the same conclusion.
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Either we’re all people and have worth, or we’re not.
Out of curiosity, why? I can think of several, consistent ways to decide that some people have worth and others don’t. I don’t see where that can’t be logical. For example, torture and torture advocates are inhuman monsters while those who oppose torture have worth.
Your statement doesn’t allow for anything outside the classic this or that dichotomy and I don’t understand why it has to be only one or the other.
Essentially the last poster is dragging the American flag and its’ politics in the mud, exposing the ugly truth of American policies and that it not fitting for its’ younger generaion to be exposed to , conceal the truth from the poor kids and stand before the flag, take the oath, America the brave, the Greatest, the Bravest and the most God fearing fantastic country in the World.
Sorry it’s not true, a recent poll conducted by Lonely planet and Rough guide (possible the best travel guide books in the World) reported that more than 80% of 20 -35 year olds are not and would not consider taking a holiday in the Grand old US of A, less than 20% would consider going to begin a career.
Personally I’m looking forward to Americas return to an isolationist policy so the rest of the World can get on with its thing without you f**kers interfering and making shit worse than it already is.
*expecting flame war now*
First time reader. Stumbled upon this blog with, you know. stumbleupon. Absolutely fantastic exposure of the double standard. No surprise, of course, because the MPAA has a long history of hypocrisy and small-mindedness, but you did a superb job twisting the metaphorical knife of irony.
So to speak.
Then you’re picking the second part of the dichotomy, and saying that some people don’t have worth. I’m not dichotomizing between “all have worth” and “nobody does”, but between “all have worth” and “some do”. Nobody is just a particularly strong case of some. Your position is represented in the choices.
Ah. I see what you meant. Thanks.
I’m not flaming or anything so please don’t take this as a war or I don’t agree with what you are saying above but If you don’t like the images or content don’t take your kid to it or around it, It’s not someone else’s job to sensor stuff for you it up to you the parent! it becomes wrong when parents and people rely on other people to do it for them same thing in school it is not the teachers job to teach your kid morals or values it is your job. To many people now days pass it off on other people to do their job for them because they are too lazy to do it, However on the same note I do agree that content that is offensive should not be placed out around “times” when parents would be normally taking their kids to see a movie or out and about. But again everyone’s Different that why it is sol up to the parent to deiced what is bad and good.
Thats it. I have had enough. I am calling my congressman. Seriously, who do these MPAA bastards think they are? They should be dismantled, taken apart piece by piece, brick by brick. No more shall they gag Lady Liberty, undermine our freedoms, and practice hypocrisy.
I call for an end to the MPAA, and congressional control over its duties.
…Chode, you don’t appear to be responding to the post at all. I don’t think you’ve understood Ampersand’s argument. You might try rereading the post.
You have a good point. And that’s coming from someone, who’s always annoyed with the “baby-safeing” of our society.
i don’t find your argument to be that compelling for the Saw posters. Thr first was really pretty tame compared to the others. The last one was a mystery though…
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I don’t see any reason to ban the last poster. And I can see some excellent reasons to ban the 2nd and 3rd posters. However:
I guess the image of a woman bound and hanging upsidedown, apparently about to be tortured for the audience’s entertainment,
Maybe it’s the reproduction, but I don’t see any bindings. I do see a woman holding her hands together like she was praying, but I don’t see anything that is binding them in that position. Nor does anything in that picture say to me “She’s about to be tortured.”
Ron, look right behind her neck.
Dear Milander:
Thank you for associating the actions of some (the MPAA, Bush, and, um, all those crazy-ass conservatives) with every single American. Last I checked, there were about 380 million of us; it would seem clear that there are nearly that many views, ethics, and opinions here as well.
So, I may be a “f**cker,” but at least I’m not an elitist bigoted jackass.
Sincerely,
zz
Ron, are you really contending that there is nothing violent about the Hostel II poster??
Perhaps it’s just that we (I assume) know the context — the first movie was about people paying to torture & kill unsuspecting tourists. But I kind of think that even NOT knowing the context, it’s a very violent image. She’s clearly not happy to be in that position. I’ve never seen someone pray upside down. The way her hair is fanned out behind her implies that she is moving around, probably trying to break free from whatever is holding her upside down. It looks like there may be tape over her mouth, but even if there isn’t, the title serves as a silencer…and “Quentin Tarantino presents” (I always thought that guy was a douche, but now there is no doubt) is looking like it’s about to decapitate her. Don’t think that text placement is random.
I had never seen those particular posters for Saw, and am pretty grossed out.
As far as the ‘Taxi’ poster, I think it’s beautiful. Every time I see it (and this is the third or fourth blog post I’ve seen on this topic), I notice something else that is “just right” about it.
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After this article, I asked myself the following question:
If a child viewed these posters, casually as they tend to, which contains the imagery that will leave an impression on their forming minds?
A] A few men walking away into the distance with the American Flag on the ground and, if you look really closely (and they won’t), a man with a sack on his head.
B] A decapitated head in a grocery scale, a dismembered hand or a woman naked, upside down and screaming.
While I agree that [A] shows real life “bad things” and [B] shows fictional “bad things”, I was under the impression that children have difficulty distinguishing the two. I even thought that this was the point of the MPAA censoring them in the first place.
Surely what the decision should be based upon is the content from a -child’s- point of view and not an adult (and politically biased) one..?
And surely the last image is only emotive if you have prior knowledge about the events that you expect the poster to represent?
Robert – nobody said inhuman monsters have no worth. I’m perfectly capable of thinking that some of my relatives are inhuman monsters, and yet still feel they have worth, not least because they just might be redeemable into human monsters (and aren’t we all at least a little bit monstrous?)
And no, I wouldn’t advocate torturing them, or somehow treating them as unthinking or unfeeling simply because they see others that way. Lousy way to redeem anybody anyway.
Bjartmarr, I don’t see anything behind her neck except a few wisps of hair and “Quentin Tarratino presents”. I don’t see a rope or a knife or marks on her neck or anything. I’m not trying to be a pain here – what do you see?
Ron, are you really contending that there is nothing violent about the Hostel II poster??
Are you really contending that “not about to be tortured” = “nothing violent”?
Perhaps it’s just that we (I assume) know the context — the first movie was about people paying to torture & kill unsuspecting tourists.
I propose that’s an unsupportable assumption. I have never until this thread heard of “Hostel II” and until your post heard of “Hostel” – in fact, my understanding that a) there was a predecessor to “Hostel II” and b) that it’s name would be “Hostel” is speculation on my part fueled only by your post.
How many people actually sent to see the movie? If you stopped 20 people at random and asked them, “Tell me something you know about the movie Hostel“, how many of them would have a clue regarding the violence of the content?
But I kind of think that even NOT knowing the context, it’s a very violent image. She’s clearly not happy to be in that position. I’ve never seen someone pray upside down.
Granted.
The way her hair is fanned out behind her implies that she is moving around, probably trying to break free from whatever is holding her upside down.
The way her hair is fanned out behind her looks just like my daughter’s ponytail looked when she hung upside down from the swing set cross bar. Something she did a nubmer of times; I was not a “Stay inside and play with your dolls” father. It appears to be hanging straight down (given the constraints of someone with non-limp hair and being bent from the elastic band holding it in a ponytail). I never even considered that she was moving – there’s no diagonal aspect to the hair where it’s swung out to one side or another. I still don’t see her moving. She looks quite passive (from a physical viewpoint) to me, except that she’s obviously going to some effort to hold her arms up.
It looks like there may be tape over her mouth,
Where? Maybe your monitor is better than mine, but I don’t see a hint of tape.
but even if there isn’t, the title serves as a silencer
Granted. Which is interesting, since Greylocke says she’s screaming.
and “Quentin Tarantino presents” (I always thought that guy was a douche, but now there is no doubt) is looking like it’s about to decapitate her. Don’t think that text placement is random.
You have a rather more vivid imagination than I, then. I hadn’t even thought about it, but now that you mention it my impression is that it’s a) above the title so as to read “Quentin Tarratino presents Hostel II” in normal order, and b) in a clear spot where black text can be read. Now, your interpretation of Mr. Tarratino’s intent may well be correct. But it didn’t jump out to me like that. I won’t say that he didn’t mean that, but I would challenge that it’s established that this would be the impression of the average viewer.
zombie z, I’ve never seen nor heard of either “Hostel” or “Hostel II”, so the context means nothing to me. Now, she does look pretty unhappy, but it’s a long way from there to presuming that this presents an image of someone who’s about to be tortured (which was the original assertion).
BTW, the population of the US as given by the 2000 census is 281.4 million. It’s doubtless larger now, but not by 100 million.
Greylocke:
a woman naked, upside down and screaming.
Upside down? Yes. Naked? It didn’t occur to me she was naked – you can’t see the vast majority of her body. Bare shoulders = naked? I’ve seen plenty of women fully dressed with bare shoulders, haven’t you? Screaming? Her mouth is quite dark, her jaw does not appear to be wide open, the movie title further obscures the picture and I don’t pick up any other clues. I actually thought she was silent, and so did zombie z. What says “screaming” to you?
RonF “Now, she does look pretty unhappy, but it’s a long way from there to presuming that this presents an image of someone who’s about to be tortured (which was the original assertion).”
But why else would apparently displeased people be suspended from ceilings in dank concrete rooms? Personally, I’ve never seen either of the two films, but the trailers for Hostel made me pretty aware that the film was about tourists being tortured. As far as the screaming, her mouth looks partly open, but the lighting and the title do successfully obscure her mouth. Would a child be able to successfuly discern her impending doom from the visual context? It depends on the age, worldliness, and attention span of said child. I probably could’ve done it at about 7, but I was a weird kid.
Apparantly you are unfamiliar with the work of Quentin Tarantino. Torture is pretty much a given.
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“It’s not someone else’s job to sensor stuff for you it up to you the parent!”
Indeed! I’m tired of having censorship imposed on me because parents can’t be bothered to do their damn job and watch what their kids are exposed to. I’m not you kids’ babysitter. I shouldn’t have to watch what I write, draw, view or say (and I won’t- not even in public) because you can’t be bothered to watch them.
Reminds me of one time at a grocery store. I was talking to my fiance (then boyfriend) and used the word ‘fuck’. Well, some bitch dressed like one of those conservative women (plain dress to the ankles, long sleeves and the ridiculous hairdo) with her 5 kids has the gall to turn to me and orders me to watch my language because her kids might hear it. I promptly told her to fuck off, that it’s a free(?) country. She just left. Too bad for her, because I’m not going to walk on eggshells just because I might happen to offend someone.
The kids will probably hear it from TV and school anyway. I heard it from my parents at least 4 dozen times a day as a kid, and I’m not some raging psychopath or violent criminal. But I do swear like a drunken sailor, and there’s nothing wrong with that, as far as I’m concerned. People tell me that I must be lacking intelligence for it, but I kindly inform them that I scored a 127 IQ in highschool. Most of the population of the US has an IQ under 100.
A great quote I once heard:
“Censorship is telling a man he can’t have a steak because a baby can’t chew it.”
First off, great work in exposing another corruption to the Not So Secret Order of Bush Cronies.
Not sure what standards there are in other countries, but I don’t think any of the posters would have been cleared here in the UK; except the last one*. There is nothing overt or in your face that tells you that the last poster concerns the Nazi style concentration camp at Guantanamo Bay. As someone else mentioned, you would need a prior knowledge of several things to understand. First that the man hooded as a political prisoner of the United States of Anarchy, second that there has long been critisism of the US treatment of human beings (yes real life people) at G. Bay; lastly that under the Bush reign of terror there has been no accountability or investigations carried out into this matter.
*I could be wrong on the severed hand poster, I am not into these violence for violence sake films. Give me a good honest horror film like Evil Dead.
Do tell, how the hell is that a right-wing agenda? Way to be an idiot.
– a very moderate reader who is extremely pissed at the bullshit partisanship that is destroying this country
I’d call the homophobia in particular very right-wing. Although the left has some problems with homophobia, it’s the right who has taken up homophobia as a political cause.
Ah, now I see the problem… People are getting “right wing” confused with “Republican”. The GOP is not conservative anymore. They have their own agenda that they are pushing now that is no longer conservative, though they would like to convince the public otherwise. As true conservatism holds individual liberties as the utmost important facet of politics, homophobia is most certainly a Christian Republican point of view, not a conservative one.
Why are they (MPAA) worried so much about banning the poster?
The movies are going to make it to the big screen regardless, and children will go see it, and in most cases WITH their parents. It is FICTION. The real events is what they should be worried about.
How about kidnappings, rapes, murders, or robberies that happen around this country EVERY day.
I am positive that children will be just as tramatized if they watched the news and learned what devastating events are happening overseas.
Not to mention the relentless coverage of 9/11 and Katrina or any other major event that has happened to Americans recently. That wont effect our children at all.
Why would the MPAA have problems with those SAW posters when it exists in a society that thinks the crucifix, an image of a man being tortured on a cross, with nails through his hands and ankles, with the gash of a sword in his side, the look of anguish and pain on his face and blood matting his hair and soaking his face, is acceptable for children of any age to view.
Seriously I never understand it. Torture is torture, and a childs mind should not be exposed to the sight of it, regardless of it’s significance to a religious group.
Ain’t this a miserable mess of crap. What is wrong with the MPAA? I think we should fire them!!! No wonder children have nightmares. They got it all backward! I find the MPAA beyond reproach. Damn knuckleheads!!!
This makes me furious!!!
it really seems like violence/gore is an acceptable thing in today’s society, had any of these been of a sexual nature they would immediately be banned, but for some reason the violent images get a free pass – and while the subject of the last image is definately not suitable for children, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the poster, especially when you compare it to the ones right above it, doesn’t make any sense really
Well, if you don’t like torturing terrorists, perhaps we can just hack his head off slowly like they did to Daniel Pearl. Would that make you happier? Then we could put it on the Internet and tell Americans they are infidels…
Can’t have it both way children. If it weren’t for strong leaders we would all be speaking some tyrants language and bowing to whatever god they ordered us too, even you people who don’t believe in one.
Well, if you don’t like torturing terrorists, perhaps we can just hack his head off slowly like they did to Daniel Pearl. Would that make you happier? Then we could put it on the Internet and tell Americans they are infidels…
Yes, and then we could rip out our very souls while we’re at it.
Because the fact is that if we stoop to the level of our enemies, then wherefore do we bother to call them enemies?
If we torture in the name of freedom, then we surrender the right to the term. And if we lower ourselves to the level of the worst of the worst, then let the worst of the worst win; indeed, they already will have.
Just wanted to say if anyone here is interested in this type of thing then i reccomend the film “this film is not yet rated”. Its a really illuminating view of the american film industry, and how that money can get you everywhere in hollywood no matter how poor your story is, whereas the independants with real stories to be told are pushed to the sidelines.
And if your a reader too then i reccomend the book “the history of censorship” which again is another cheeky look into the industry (the brittish one admittedly, but where else do you americans get your ideas . . . )
Why is the fact that they are allowing all these posters a bad thing? It seems to me like this is encouraging censorship. There’s already enough of that in this country as it is.
“If it weren’t for strong leaders we would all be speaking some tyrants language and bowing to whatever god they ordered us too, even you people who don’t believe in one.”
Troy, your comment scares the hell out of me. You honestly think we’re justified in torturing people because it might, in some way, help us? There’s another famous person who felt exactly the same way that you do. His name was Stalin.
Troy: “If it weren’t for strong leaders we would all be speaking some tyrants language and bowing to whatever god they ordered us too, even you people who don’t believe in one.”
Ever wonder why a majority of the world speaks English?
1. You don’t have to submit your picture through the MPAA. You can go independent. If you go through the MPAA (which most big-budget films do), you must follow its guidelines, simple as that. That is not censorship, that is good business practice.
2. There isn’t enough censorship in this country. Some people need to just shut their mouths. The right to free speech isn’t a right to act like an idiot. It is the right to speak out against the government. We all need to go back and look at the reason that we were given certain rights. We take a law and apply it in ways that it was never supposed to be applied.
3. I think that the founding fathers would be appalled to see what we have become today.
I appreciate this Groups intentions but agree to a point. I personally HATE violent images and movies and I do not support them… but I don’t support censorship.
As the parent of 2 girls, when they were babies/toddlers… strolling through the movie isles, etc. I REALLY used to get ticked that the violent movies weren’t at least placed higher out of sight of little eyes. I’d distract their attention elsewhere and rush them by the images I didn’t wish for them to see. But it was still aggravating.
I still wish ALL movie stores/and department stores would take that into consideration and place these movies higher up for their innocent little eyes to avoid altogether. I definatly believe it’s equally the store’s responsibility to guard their younger patrons reguarding more adult material.
Thank you! :D