Feldman (FGCU): Movie Ratings

I’ve always wondered why movie ratings are so important.  Who decides who can watch a movie and how do they qualify some for a certain movie and no one for another.  So, I decided to look it up on mpaa.org which is the Motion Picture Association of America. “The ratings are decided by a full-time Rating Board located in Los Angeles. There are 10-13 members of the Board who serve for periods of varying length. They work for the Classification and Rating Administration, which is funded by fees charged to producers/distributors for the rating of their films. The MPAA Chairman chooses the Chairman of the Rating Board, thereby insulating the Board from industry or other group pressure. No one in the movie industry has the authority or power to push the Board in any direction or otherwise influence it. There are no special qualifications for Board membership, except that the members must have a shared parenthood experience, must be possessed of an intelligent maturity, and most of all, have the capacity to put themselves in the role of most American parents so they can view a film and apply a rating that most parents would find suitable and helpful in aiding their decisions about their children and what movies they see.”

So what do the ratings really mean?

G- General Audiences (All Ages Admitted)  “Contains nothing in theme, language, nudity, sex, violence or other matters that, in the view of the Rating Board, would offend parents whose younger children view the motion picture. The G rating is not a “certificate of approval,” nor does it signify a “children’s” motion picture.”

PG-Parental Guidance Suggested (Some material may not be suitable for children) “Should be investigated by parents before they let their younger children attend. There may be some profanity and some depictions of violence or brief nudity. There is no drug use content in a PG-rated motion picture.”

PG-13- Parents Strongly Cautioned (Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13) “A PG-13 rating is a sterner warning by the Rating Board to parents to determine whether their children under age 13 should view the motion picture, as some material might not be suited for them. A PG-13 motion picture may go beyond the PG rating in theme, violence, nudity, sensuality, language, adult activities or other elements, but does not reach the restricted R category.  The Rating Board nevertheless may rate such a motion picture PG-13 if, based on a special vote by a two-thirds majority, the Raters feel that most American parents would believe that a PG-13 rating is appropriate because of the context or manner in which the words are used or because the use of those words in the motion picture is inconspicuous.”

R- Restricted (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian) “An R-rated motion picture, in the view of the Rating Board, contains some adult material. An R-rated motion picture may include adult themes, adult activity, hard language, intense or persistent violence, sexually-oriented nudity, drug abuse or other elements, so that parents are counseled to take this rating very seriously. Children under 17 are not allowed to attend R-rated motion pictures unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian.”

NC-17- No one 17 and under admitted “The rating simply signals that the content is appropriate only for an adult audience. An NC-17 rating can be based on violence, sex, aberrational behavior, drug abuse or any other element that most parents would consider too strong and therefore off-limits for viewing by their children.”

I believe that these ratings are very helpful for myself and parents around the world as well.  Though, most of the time they are not followed completely, I feel that they are a useful guide to teaching others of what is acceptable to watch for certain age groups.

This entry was posted on 9. March 2010 at 01:42 and is filed under Introduction to Sociology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.