The British Board of Film Classification is a non-governmental organisation that was founded in 1912 and is responsible for the classification and certification of age requirements of films across the United Kingdom.
2) Read this BBFC guide to how films are rated. Summarise the process in 50 words.
One person examines and watches the film submitted, and with each film the examiner will log the details of the general context of the film, its use of bad language/sex/drug references and the times of the scenes where these are presented. The examiner will then create a report with a brief synopsis, details of the certificate and why it was issued based on the guidelines.
3) Read this BBFC outline of the issues faced when classifying a film. Summarise the debate in 50 words.
The issues that the BBFC sometimes faces can greatly affect the overall decision to award a certain certificate, one reason could be the overall theme of a plot line and it's underlying intentions could ultimately have an effect on the certificate whether or not it might include the things needed for that certificate. Another factor could be whether the material is in conflict with the law or has been created through a criminal offence.
4) Read this BBFC section on controversial decisions. Why did The Dark Knight generate a large amount of media coverage regarding its certificate? Do you agree with the 12A certificate The Dark Knight was awarded?
The Dark Knight's certificate resulted in a lot of controversy because it was awarded a 12A certificate, and many people complained that the brutal fight scenes and violence was too strong for the certificate that was awarded. Especially considering that one of the antagonist has his entire half face burnt and is scarred for the remainder of the movie, many people complained that these violent and brutal imagery wasn't suitable for younger audiences and the movie should have had a higher minimum age requirement. I personally think that this rating was fine for the movie, because Batman is a super hero that many young people look up to, and the violence or dark imagery was necessary to portray the overall theme of a much more gritty, realistic Batman set in a modern age.
5) What are the guidelines for a 15 certificate?
In a 15 rated film you can expect to see the following:
- Strong violence
- Frequent use of strong language
- Portrayals of sexual activity
- Strong verbal references to sex
- Nudity
- Brief scene of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence
- Discriminatory language or behaviour
- Drug use
6) The BBFC website offers an explanation of every classification it makes and detailed case studies on selected titles. Choose one 15-rated film from the BBFC case studies section and summarise the classification the film was given and why.
The film that I chose from the case studies section of the BBFC is Hot Fuzz which was given the rating of 15 because of the several use of strong language and only two uses of very strong language. It also had a lot uses of violent and horror imagery especially considering that the finale of the film had a massive shoot-out in a town. The violence was considered and treated in a different manner than most 18 rated horror films because the film made use of an overall comedic theme for the plot-line and as such did not dwell on the pain or injuries of the violence. The strong language was considered okay for a 15 rated film as there were many uses of the F word, but the two cases of very strong language were the C word which normally indicate an 18 rated film however in both those cases those words were used in a non-aggressive manner. Finally there were only a few sexual references but were moderate in tone and did not present a problem for a 15 rated film.
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