Australia Ban
In note of recent censorship issues with Australian regulators, I believe that this ban is notable (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Park#Australia ) and it would be good if there was a place to discuss it.
shareSo what does the ban mean? I understand it was banned from screening. Say you want to order it from overseas, will the Customs confiscate it? Why did they ban it in the first place? What a backward culture, quasi-puritan Australia. Why would the government tell you what you can watch? And they think they are better than Iran.
shareLet's face it this movie is *beep* disgusting and not everyone's cup of tea. It show's graphic sex involving teens, which is illegal in australia, so that's why it's banned. Not sure where you are from but a lot of countries, most infact, have banned or censored films at some stage including the 'land of the free' americans. Scarface was banned in 5 states for *beep* sake. God i hate the hypocratic americans.
shareum the actors involved in the sex scenes were over age, which is not illegal. Weather its disgusting and not everyones cup o tea is besides the point. I am an adult and should have the right to decide weather or not i want to watch something! Grow up!!!!! oh and whats "hypocratic"?
share"Hypocratic" ? LOL
The movie Scarface was banned in the United States but it was the 1932 version. Not the Al Pacino version from the 80's
And I dare you to find a single country that has never banned a film in the 100+ history of film. But the USA has banned far less than most countries. So go ahead and hate us (jealousy) for being so freaking awesome.
But we are definitely not "hypocratic"
(which by the way is an oath taken by physicians promising professional and ethical behavior)
Dumbass
You should probably know that the ban was not a unanimous decision of the classification board, as some members thought it would fit in an R rating.
As for the accusation that Australia is a "backward culture, quasi-puritan". I'll respond to that un-educated, un-informed comment in a really basic way...
Henry & June (1990)
USA = NC-17
Australia = M (equivalent to a PG-13).
I could list heaps more but I've got more important things to do with my time...
Yes, but you still don't have the option to see this movie, do you? I know some video games have been banned also, I remember reading about it. As an adult I want to have options what I'll watch and what I'll put in my computer. Banning products result of creative work to me sounds very backward, medieval almost.
shareAnd they think they are better than Iran.
LOL. I think it's mainly Americans who like to think of themselves as 'better' than Iranians. Simplistic demonization of whole nations is not always so prevalent elsewhere.
It's true that Australian censors have made dubious decisions, banning stuff from time to time, etc, but your comments are over-the-top. Most Australians find such outcomes as puzzling as you do and see them as embarrassing quirks of the system rather than as some crucial mechanism protecting widespread "puritan" values. If they even notice, that is. It's not a particularly frequent occurrence. People are not daily heard to exclaim "Damn, I really wanted to see another indie film with graphic depictions of rape or underage sex this week, but I'm going to miss out on this one AS WELL!" etc.
That was the crux of the matter: the allegation (true or false) that it portrayed minors, rather than merely being explicit per se. After all, there was no question of something like 9 Songs actually being banned (although they did initially propose an X certificate).
It means little these days anyway. It could easily be imported or downloaded. I have KP here somewhere but have never bothered to watch it. [EDIT: finally watched it, leaving me wondering why this was considered more problematic than Kids which screened in AUS but not, for instance, the UK.] It'd be very hard to find someone who actually cares that I have a copy. Similar situation with Salo and Baise Moi, those other two prominent cases of films having their cinema releases truncated, etc.
Basically, I agree with you on censorship in principle, but there is a limit to how much you can safely infer from a one sentence description of a censorship ruling. In some ways the video game classification system you mention is a far greater problem. Almost everyone seems to agree that an R classification for games is required (anything above an M currently has to be "refused classification"), but correcting this bizarre oversight has been remarkably slow. Change to the legislation is actually being negotiated right now, thankfully, with 98% of submissions in favour.
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I suppose on a clear day you can see the class struggle from here.
Since idiots are allowed to make movies (and can get idiots to play in them), it's a good thing that there's an authority to put a stop to it.
99% of new films are garbage.
I agree with this. I would say the main problem with the American rating system is within the ratings system, ie. PG-13 to R to NC-17. As i'm sure, most of you will know, NC-17 spells death for a lot of Hollywood films, and hence they are cut to meet the R-requirements. An R18+ australian rating (NC-17 equivalent) does not spell death and i believe 2-3 Saw films, Hostel, Eyes Wide Shut, Wolf Creek and Kill Bill Vol 1 recieved R18+ ratings but still did well.
The main problem with the Australian rating system is what gets banned. Rarely do we see complaints or outcry over a film rating in Australia, but there are always news reports when something gets banned.
It should be noted that the Australian/UK classification systems are mandatory. whereas the US has self-regulation and legally a film does not have to be rated.
I know this discussion was started over a year ago, but recently,
The King's Speech: (rating problem - coarse language)
US: R rating (reviewed and R rating upheld)
UK: 15 rating (R equivalent, but revieved and downgraded to 12 (PG-13 equiv.)
Aus: M rating (R equivalent, no other rating problems)
EDIT: the australian classification review board prepares reports of the films that seek review (so at least some disclosure unlike MPAA). Below is report for Ken Park. http://www.classification.gov.au/www/cob/rwpattach.nsf/VAP/(084A3429FD 57AC0744737F8EA134BACB)~230+-+Classificatoin+Review+Board+6+June+2003. pdf/$file/230+-+Classificatoin+Review+Board+6+June+2003.pdf
um yeh,so the other day i was watching a Chaplin film with the subtitles on...
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Yes, customs would not allow it in. Just as well as Australians have banned ANY pornogprahic content that has "small tits" because it could be though of as teen pornographic content. somone relly needs to shake that boat up because it is getting out of hand. what happened to freedom of choice? i guess it fell with france. going from one of the most freedom supporting countries to almsot autoritarian regime on internet pretty much overnight really set a precedent for all sorts of ridiculous banning.
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All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for enough good men to do nothing.
funny. i lived in perth for 3 years and the amount of repressed underage teen sex in that town is... just wow. i would have thought the catholic church had taught us by now that any censorship can only ever achieve the opposite intended effect.
if there's one thing about australia that is true it's that the girls are incredibly easy. especially the young ones.
No such ban on small breasts ever came into existence. It was merely suggested by a lobby group that given the classification board has to take into account the overall intention to depict someone as underaged, this might have been an unintended side effect during the consideration of some material. It was a fairly vague accusation (though not one without merit) that seems have solidified into a urban myth.
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I suppose on a clear day you can see the class struggle from here.
Its disgusting and has child pornography, but is a good movie with a great message. i agree that it should be banned though.. i'm not sure why they let me rent it alone when i was 14 at the video store.. but hey
shareWhat are you talking about?
IT is disgusting
IT has child pornography
IT has a good message
What is "IT" ??
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