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This topic comprises 6 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6
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Topic: Why is there such a stupid hub-bub over "Bully?"
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Mike Blakesley
Film God
Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 03-14-2012 10:34 PM
quote: Martin McCaffery
You don't see the do-gooders passing laws against what's on cable TV which has zero external "enforcement."
That's because TV has its own rating system, which also does not have any force of law.
Anybody who thinks the ratings are "laws" can simply talk to any responsible theater owner, who will likely say "No, it's not a law, but we choose to abide by it because we prefer to have a voluntary system."
If the ratings were codified, it could put a huge burden of legal expense onto the back of exhibition. Just think about this scenario, Martin: Up to now, you haven't enforced the ratings, but thanks to a new law, you're now REQUIRED to enforce them. Some kid manages somehow to get into one of your R-rated movies and then goes out and kills people. His parents, being idiots, are looking to blame someone and they find out: Holy crap, somebody in the movie killed people too! The kid MUST have been inspired by the movie! So they go out and hire a lawyer. Now you and I know that the movie DID NOT inspire the kid -- it was his own sick twisted mind that caused him to kill people. But now you're on the hook for fighting this lawsuit that's been filed against you, and you are blamed for the deaths because you negligently allowed this kid to get into an R-rated movie. At the very least, you'll have to hire more help to police your auditorium doors more carefully.
Don't think this is possible? Just ask any bar owner who has served a "tipsy" patron, who then went out and crashed into another car and killed a bunch of kids, and the widow sues the bar for serving the guy. And now the bar has a big fight on its hands. You want that to happen to the movie industry? Don't we have enough troubles already?
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Mike Blakesley
Film God
Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 03-16-2012 11:08 AM
quote: Martin McCaffery
yes, they have their own rating system, the point is they don't "enforce" it. It truly is advisory.
Right, it's advisory the same way the movies' system is; meaning, the PARENTS are the ones who are supposed to be using it. That's the true intent behind it. The fact that the studios have turned it into a marketing tool can't be blamed on the MPAA.
quote: Robert E. Allen
Very few people I have known used the "f" word, the "S" word or any other foul or vulgar language and the use of such language is not socially acceptable. It also has caused me to believe those who use such language do not know enough about their native tongue to express themselves without being vulgar. As Hollywood has pushed the envelope since the late sixties to get such language and nude sex scenes on the commercial screen it has apparently desensitized to such language and such scenes many who patronize such films and many who have come into our business since then.
I haven't been here quite as long (I'm 55), but I hate to tell you this Bob, it HAS become very common, if not completely socially acceptable (yet). Go visit any junior high school playground if you want proof. Go to any nightclub and listen to the women reel it off. The people in your age group (and mine) might not talk that way, but the people under 40 are using that kind of language with abandon. I am not saying this is a good thing, but it is a fact.
Also, there isn't much in the way of nudity or sex scenes in mainstream movies anymore. Most of that has been relegated to cable TV.
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Justin Hamaker
Film God
Posts: 2253
From: Lakeport, CA USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 03-16-2012 06:57 PM
quote: Martin McCaffery
That's how I first got started on this rant, so many managers I knew said it was the law and told customers it was the law. And the MPAA/NATO do nothing to dissuade them from doing so.
Martin, I disagree with that point. Virtually everything I have ever seen from NATO on the ratings system starts out the standard introduction about how it is a voluntary system. That theatre managers are ignorant of that fact is the fault of the company they work for, not NATO or the MPAA.
I can tell you the NATO training video about the ratings which was made in the late 1990's talks about it being a voluntary ratings system, but doesn't go into much detail about the history of the ratings system.
One other point that I would like to make is that if you argue the MPAA ratings are intended to help parents make informed decisions, then enforcement should not be on the theatre. Cable company do not block content by default; that is left to the discretion of the parents. You could make the argument that the theatre's responsibility ends at providing the ratings information.
Once a child has been allowed to go to the movies, who are we to assume the parent has not given the kid permission to see an R rated movie. And if the kid has not been given permission, is it our responsibility to step in when the parents opt to not supervise their kids?
I used to be a true believer in full enforcement of the ratings - including strict ID checks. However, what I see at the box office is very few parents are concerned about whether their kids see an R rated movie, and in many cases they are more upset with us for causing them the inconvenience of having to come to the theatre or get out of their car. In almost all situations where there is a legitimate parental concern, the decision has been made before they arrive at the theatre. And many of those kids have enough respect for their parents to not go against their wishes.
Once the kid arrives at the theatre to watch an R rated movie, we are normally just going through the motions. Furthermore, I am growing weary of the abuse we take from teens, and some parents, when we stick to our enforcement rules.
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