No film classifications in the UK...

seun · Sep 14, 2009

...at least for the moment.

Have a look at the BBFC's homepage at www.bbfc.co.uk. If I'm reading it right, it seems all our film ratings and the laws that support them no longer matter.

Gee, I wonder why this hasn't made the news in a noticeable way.

ChristineR · Sep 14, 2009

So, if you show a kid a naughty movie, it's not illegal? Surely it's illegal under some statute, and it's not like the ratings have gone away.

I'm not from the UK, would there be more subtle implications to this? Film ratings in the US are a bad joke, by the way, and they have no legal standing anyhow.

seun · Sep 14, 2009

I'm guessing if someone showed a porn film to a child, that would illegal under the laws for child protection, but if someone sold a porn film to a kid, that - at the moment - isn't illegal.

deepprincealain · Sep 14, 2009

ChristineR said:
So, if you show a kid a naughty movie, it's not illegal? Surely it's illegal under some statute, and it's not like the ratings have gone away.

I'm not from the UK, would there be more subtle implications to this? Film ratings in the US are a bad joke, by the way, and they have no legal standing anyhow.

What is and is not an R, PG-13, PG, or G movie has changed considerably in my time. I'm not certain, by any stretch, that this is a good thing. Video game ratings in the US are equally a joke, if not moreso.

It sounds like something is going to need to be done about the original issue of this thread. If I were a UK citizen, I wouldn't be too happy about it.

ChristineR · Sep 14, 2009

The thing is, that in the US there's no legal meaning to any of the ratings. They are trademarked and can't be used without permission, but there's no law of any kind that says you can't show a child an R movie. X isn't even trademarked--you can put it on anything you like, just as you could rate it 'W' for "Wonderful!"

There are laws that say you can't sell or show smut to a child, but it doesn't matter what the smut is rated.

AdamH · Sep 14, 2009

Yeah. The ratings system is only in place for the sake of the parent (or other indescriminate viewers) to know what to expect from the movie before going in.

Like the ratings for TV shows and video games.

Some theatres enforce it for the sake of avoiding bad publicity but it's not a steadfast rule. If you are over 18 and want to bring in a kid to an R rated movie, you could without legal implecation but most theatres won't sell you that ticket. You could put up a huff but really...odds are that unless you can pull some strings, you're not going to get the kid in.

clockwork · Sep 14, 2009

It's different in the UK. The ratings are law; a cinema can be fined or shut down for allowing a 14 year old into a 15, for example, and must refuse entry to anyone they doubt (or who cannot prove themselves) to be that age. But cinemas, like most businesses, reserve the right to refuse service for anything so I'm sure they'll just continue enforcing the age limits. The only difference is they won't be held legally accountable for enforcing the law while this extraordinary cock-up is ongoing.

Kurtz · Sep 14, 2009

The bbfc confuses me a little, does this mean that unreleasable films (those without a bbfc certificate) could be given releases during this period? If so awesome because there are some I want.

clockwork · Sep 14, 2009

It would seem so, yes. But, as the website states, once this problem's been sorted, any unclassified film released during the down time would become a restricted item and wouldn't be allowed to be sold in stores or screened in theatres.

seun · Sep 15, 2009

Kurtz said:
The bbfc confuses me a little, does this mean that unreleasable films (those without a bbfc certificate) could be given releases during this period? If so awesome because there are some I want.

Don't hold your breath on unrelased on banned films suddenly filling the shelves. The Government is working on getting this sorted within the next three months. Plus no retailer would buy in a load of films which would be illegal to sell in such a short time.

Nice idea, though.

No film classifications in the UK...

seun

Horror Man

ChristineR

What happened?

seun

Horror Man

deepprincealain

ChristineR

What happened?

AdamH

Pumped Up Kicks

clockwork

In the zone...

Kurtz

Fix up, look sharp.

clockwork

In the zone...

seun

Horror Man