Richard Mowe: Power of American ratings goes a long way

ALTHOUGH censorship is technically forbidden by the US constitution – thanks to the absolute right to freedom of speech – in practice it has been applied in numerous subtle and not so subtle ways in order to keep film-makers in line.

Film regulation became a national issue in 1930, when concern over what was perceived to be increasing immorality in early American sound films led to the creation of the Motion Picture Production Code.

By the mid-1960s, social changes rendered existing guidelines inadequate. Condemnation of distinguished films such as La Dolce Vita and The Pawnbroker was ridiculed. When Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, a film that blatantly breached the code in several respects, garnered 13 Oscar nominations and won five, it was clear that the system had broken down.

The Motion Picture Association of America therefore introduced a ratings system that sought to distinguish between films suitable for children and those clearly made for adults.

Although technically voluntary, in practice mainstream films are generally expected to have a rating no stronger than an R, which admits accompanied children under 17). If they get anything more restrictive, or aren’t rated at all, major studios usually won’t release them, major cinema chains won’t show them, and mainstream publications won’t accept advertising for them. As a result, films are effectively censored by economic pressure.

Although the US ratings system may seem irrelevant in the UK, it has an international influence, as it is often the case that cut US versions are submitted to the British Board of Film Classification, even if the BBFC might have fewer problems with the material that caused difficulties in America.

• Richard Mowe is a film critic and festival organiser.