MPAA: Deciders Of What We Watch At The Movies.

Earlier this week, I read on Mania.com that the upcoming Sylvester Stallone action epic "The Expendables" will have two versions: its original R rated version and a teenybopper friendly PG 13 version. Both will be tested on audences as soon as its good to go, and whichever works best will be unleashed into theaters. This is one of the most stupid things I have ever read.

Studios are pressuring screenwriters and producers to appease the Motion Picture Association of America and aim for PG 13 ratings or less. The MPAA, has successfully brainwashed major studios with the premise that PG 13 rated films and family oriented films are more lucrative than R films, since they draw the most diverse audiences. In my opinion, it is an untrue statement in America, and it is a device for moralizers to control what Americans see at the theaters and /or on DVD.

The fact that Rated R films draw less audiences than kiddie films is a false statement. Kids, may go see a Rated R film as long as he/she is accompanied by an adult. When I went to see "Watchmen", there were a great number of teens at the theater under 15, who enjoyed the film without a doubt. I doubt they left the theater traumatized after seing nudity and bone crunching violence. Most seemed to have loved the film, or hated it because they did not understand it.

There are rated R films that teens could and probably should see. If I had a teenage kid, I would have taken him/her to see "Slumdog Millionaire". This film shows children in these parts of the world how blessed they are. When I went to see this film, it was as packed as when I went to see Wall E.

I hope a screenwriter, film director, or studio exceutive reads this one paragraph. Do not fear the R or NC 17 Rating for films distributed in America. In other parts of the world, film rating systems are much more strict and can actually really hurt a film's profitability. In my home country of Venezuela, the rating system actually prevents children and even teens from gaining admission to films with adult content deemed unappropriate for minors. In Venezuela, kids under 12 were not admitted to see "The Dark Knight" at movie theaters, those under 16 were not admitted to "Watchmen". I lived there during my teens. I was 16 when "Pulp Fiction" came out, and I could not see it in Venezuelan movie theaters because it was rated for 18 and over. England and many other countries adopt such rigid ratings for films. The irony is that despite those ratings, films geared toward adults are still as profitable as a Disney film would be in those countries. I guess the entertainment attitudes are different in other parts of the world, where if adults want a night out, they will leave the children with their nanny, or close relatives, and head for the theaters. When kiddie films arrive in theaters, they will take the kids to the movies. Also, adults will go to the movie for its artistic value, as well as, for the entertainment value.

Here in America, most families are used to taking their kids wherever they go, and spending as much time possible with them. Parents are hesitant to leave kids with a nanny for nights out, and also, not many parents have close relatives living close, with whom they can leave their kids to go see a movie. This is probably the reason parents choose to go see family oriented films, so they can go with their children to the movies, as they seek to merge their entertainment desires with those of their kids. That is completely fine, and that is the prime market for PG and PG 13 films. But then again, there are two factors screenwriters, and film excecutives must consider:

-Not everyone in America is has small children.
-Single adults also like to go to the movies.

Those are the people who will go watch rated R films.

I encourage every movie fan to watch the documentary "This Film is Not Yet Rated", which shows the MPAA as the moralizing force in American culture. The MPAA, according to the film and also in my opinion seeks to establish the idea that films with non conservative themes, like sexuality, protagonists who are gay, or who do not want to form families, characters who smoke, anti war views, etc, are deemed disruptive to american family values. Under these views, they punish film makers for expressing their own view of life into film, thus killing the artistic value of our most beloved medium.

I strongly encourage you to watch the 2006 documentary "This Film is Not Yet Rated" by Kirby Dick. This documentary asserts the true moralizing nature of the MPAA and its exteremely conservative board, which includes a number of people who think just like Bill O'Reilly and Anne Coulter.

Filmmakers must fight back and realize that the R and NC 17 ratings are not an obstacle to profitability. If the film is great, word of mouth will prevail over critics and media marketing, and ultimatly people will see the film and make it profitable in the long run. Please realize that the American population is not comprised only of parents with children...and not all parents have small kids. Teens, with the proper guidance and advice by their parent/guardian, can watch an R rated movie, and come to terms with its content.

Ultimately, parents should decide what kids watch at the movies. We should decide what we watch at the movies. Not the MPAA.