The British Board of Film Classification
3 Soho Square
LONDON
W1V 6HD

T:  020 7440 1570

W: www.bbfc.co.uk

Recent BBFC Classifications

BBFC News


BBFC - NEWS AND REPORTS

Censors Reject 'Sadistic' Horror
A Japanese horror film has been refused an 18 certificate by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) because of its graphic torture scenes. 

According to BBFC director David Cooke, Grotesque presented "little more than an unrelenting and escalating scenario of humiliation, brutality and sadism".   Its "unacceptable content", he added, meant cuts were "not a viable option".  

The BBFC rarely refuses to pass films, having denied only three titles seeking an 18 rating over the last four years.   These include violent sex thriller Murder Set Pieces and Terrorists, Killers And Other Wackos, a film comprising real clips of execution and torture.
BBC News online 19/8/2009
Read more...    BBFC News release    Associated Press

Plans to Impose 18 Certificate for Smoking
Children under 18 will be banned from watching films that depict characters smoking under plans being considered by council 'thought police'.  An 18 certificate  -  usually reserved for movies with violent and sexual content  -  will be slapped on any film featuring smokers that fails to explain cigarettes are bad for you. 

The ban will target new releases, but could affect older films such as 101 Dalmatians and Disney's Peter Pan, the Little Mermaid and Pinnocchio if they are reissued and reclassified.  Casablanca, Titanic and Lord of the Rings would be restricted to adults under the plans proposed for Liverpool. 

One exception to the new rules will be movies which feature major historical characters who are known to be smokers. So any films with Winston Churchill brandishing his trademark cigar would not be affected.
Daily Mail 13/8/2009
Read more...     BBFC - News and Reports     Film is a very subversive thing

How Could Censors Pass the ‘Revolting Sex Film'?
There were growing calls last night to ban a controversial film that shows the mutilation of female and male genitalia, scenes of graphic sex and a toddler falling to his death. 

Antichrist, which stars Willem Dafoe, 54, and French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg, 31, was given an 18 certificate by the British Board of Film Classification and released nationwide on Friday.  Tory MP Anne Widdecombe led the condemnation branding the film, "truly revolting". 

As disbelief grew that the explicit and horrifying film had been deemed fit for our cinemas, campaign group mediawatch-uk called on local councils to view the film and decide if it is suitable for showing in their area.

John Beyer, its director, said: "There are explicit scenes of masturbation, real sexual activity, mutilation and part of it are filmed in black and white to accentuate the theme of darkness.  I would call upon every local authority to watch this film and if they are unhappy with what they see, they should withdraw it from cinemas straightaway."  Ms Widdecombe said the film is "no different to hardcore pornography."
Sunday Express 26/7/2009

New Classification Guidelines published by the BBFC
The views of over 8,700 people across the UK from the age of 16 upwards have formed the basis for the latest set of classification Guidelines published today by the BBFC.  David Cooke, Director of the BBFC said: "The BBFC is committed to consulting the public every four years to ensure that the Guidelines we use to classify all works which are submitted to us not only take account of relevant UK legislation, but accurately reflect public attitudes and concerns.  "You would not expect there to be a massive shift in attitudes since the 2005 Guidelines, and there is sometimes an assumption that public attitudes are becoming more relaxed as time goes on, but that is not always the case.

"A number of specific concerns which emerged from the extensive consultation exercise, involving over 8,700 people, as well as the members of our Advisory Panel on Children's Viewing and other experts, have been incorporated in the Guidelines published today. The BBFC is an open and accountable organisation and in order to bring about even greater transparency we have, in this new version of the Guidelines, gone into greater detail on how, why and when we do what we do."
BBFC News release 23/6/2009
Read more...

Three Men Get Sole Rating Power for Computer Games
by Dan Sabbagh
Three men in Borehamwood will become solely responsible for rating computer games in the UK, after a plan sponsored by Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, to have titles examined by the film censor was abandoned last week. 

Digital Britain, the communications White Paper, concluded last week that game publishers could keep their controversial rating system, which has been criticised by some as weak and lenient when it comes to violent games. Critics of the Pan European Game Information (PEGI) system used by computer games makers had called for the British Board and Film Classification (BBFC) to rate 12, 15 and 18 computer games.

Last week's decision, however, means that the film censor will lose its existing legal power to censor games that feature "gross violence" — such as Grand Theft Auto — and apply an 18 rating. 

Advocates of the PEGI system say that it has been strengthened and its standards match those of the film censor. Against this, the BBFC has said repeatedly that the PEGI system is weak and that it does not have enough staff to handle the number of games being produced.

David Cooke, the BBFC director, said that he believed the film body "satisfies the requirements [of age rating] better" than the PEGI system.
The Times 22/6/2009
Read article     Games/Internet

Sacha Baron Cohen Film given 18 Certificate
A huge chunk of the likely audience for Brüno, Sacha Baron Cohen's new film about a gay Austrian fashion journalist, will not see it on the big screen after a surprise 18 rating was announced yesterday.

The British Board of Film Classification ruled that strong sexual content in three scenes made one of the summer's most widely anticipated films unsuitable for the 15 certificate needed to generate a blockbuster audience.
The Times on line 18/6/09
Read More...

New System of Video Games Classification
An overhaul of video games classification rules will make selling a video game rated 12 or over to an underage person illegal for the first time, Creative Industries Minister Siôn Simon announced today. 

An overhaul of video games classification rules will make selling a video game rated 12 or over to an underage person illegal for the first time, Creative Industries Minister Siôn Simon announced today. 

The PEGI (Pan European Game Information) system, currently used in most European countries, will become the sole method of classifying video games in the UK. It will replace the current hybrid system that has two separate sets of symbols, either of which can appear on video games, and is sufficiently adaptable to work in the rapidly expanding online games market. 

Today's announcement also heralds a new role for the Video Standards Council (VSC), an organisation which is independent from the games industry and will take a statutory role, with a mandate to implement the PEGI classification system for all video games in the UK.
DCMS News release 16/6/2009
Read more...     MediaGuardian

Antichrist to be released uncut in the UK
Could it be a sign that British censors have moved into a new era of tolerance? Antichrist, the psychological horror movie from Denmark's arch provocateur, Lars von Trier, is to be released uncut in the UK.  The film, which caused consternation among many critics when it was screened in competition in Cannes last month, has received an 18 certificate from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), despite scenes featuring erect penises, violent sex and genital mutilation. 

"The film does not contain material which breaches the law or poses a significant harm risk to adults," said BBFC director David Cooke. "The sexual imagery, while strong, is relatively brief, and the board has since 1990 passed a number of works containing such images."  Film censors across the world have come in for criticism in recent years, notably in the US, where the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) was attacked in the 2004 documentary This Film Is Not Yet Rated, which exposed the allegedly secretive nature of its decision-making processes.  Last week, Sweden announced that it will disband its Statens Biografbyra censorship board altogether in 2011, 100 years after it was founded. From then on, there will be no restrictions on films released in the country unless they break laws governing such areas as child pornography, although the current age-related rating system will remain. 

John Beyer of mediawatch-uk, the successor to Mary Whitehouse's National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, suggested the BBFC's increasingly light touch in recent years made it not so very different from the new Swedish organisation.  "The BBFC no longer 'cuts bits out of films' but provides information about films so that members of the public can make up their own minds about what films they want to see or avoid," he said. "The Swedish government evidently want to do just what the BBFC has been doing for some years.  In our opinion the BBFC has become far too lax in what it permits for public exhibition and there has been a gradual shift in what they regard as acceptable so that what would have been regarded as 18 a few years ago is now thought suitable for 15. Their 12A certificate allows very young children, accompanied by an adult, to see some very unsuitable material. The board is pretty much unaccountable and for this reason we supported Julian Brazier's private member's bill last year to make the board accountable to parliament through the select committee system."
MediaGuardian 15/6/2009
Read more...

Uncut Release for Cannes Shocker
Controversial movie Antichrist - one of the main talking points at this year's Cannes Film Festival - will be released in the UK uncut with an 18 certificate.  It has been rated by the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) with a warning it contains "strong real sex, bloody violence and self-mutilation".  

The last of these refers to a graphic scene of genital mutilation involving lead actress Charlotte Gainsbourg.  Gainsbourg won a best actress prize at Cannes for her work in the film. 

Director Lars von Trier faced hostile reporters following Antichrist's first screening at Cannes, with some accusing the Danish filmmaker of misogyny.  Von Trier defended the scene where Gainsbourg's character mutilates herself, saying it "came in naturally".
BBC News online 12/6/2009
Read more...    BBFC - News and Reports

BBFC Passes Lars Von Trier's Anitchrist 18 Uncut
The BBFC has passed Lars Von Trier's latest film, Antichrist, ‘18' uncut.  The film contains images of strong real sex, bloody violence and self mutilation. 

The BBFC Guidelines for ‘18' rated works state that the more explicit images of sexual activity will not be allowed unless they can be exceptionally justified by context and the work is not a ‘sex work' whose primary purpose is sexual arousal.  For these purposes Antichrist is very clearly not a ‘sex work'.   The film also contains some bloody and violent images, including a scene of genital mutilation. 

The Board knows of no research evidence which suggests that the viewing of this scene would raise a significant risk of harm to adult viewers or to society, or which would otherwise justify intervention.  There is, therefore, no basis for an exception to the principle, repeatedly endorsed in public consultations, that adults should normally be free to choose what films to watch or not watch.  The film was seen by the Director, David Cooke, the President, Sir Quentin Thomas and Vice President, Gerard Lemos. 

David Cooke said: "Antichrist deals with what happens to a couple after the death of their child, focussing on the psychological impact on them both.  The film does not contain material which breaches the law or poses a significant harm risk to adults. 

The sexual imagery, while strong, is relatively brief, and the Board has since 1990 passed a number of works containing such images.  This reflects the principle, strongly endorsed in a number of public consultations, that adults should be free to decide for themselves what to watch or what not to watch, provided it is neither illegal nor harmful. 

There is no doubt that some viewers will find the images disturbing and offensive, but the BBFC's Consumer Advice provides a clear warning to enable individuals to make an informed viewing choice.  And this is now backed up by detailed Extended Consumer Advice on our website."
BBFC News release 12/6/2009

Murder 'Inspired' by Movie
Three people who tied up a student, doused him in petrol and set him on fire have been convicted of his murder. During the trial jurors were played a scene from the British horror film Severance in which a character was shown tied to a tree.

In the movie a man is shown throwing petrol over and setting light to his victim. Prosecutors claimed the student, who was originally from Newcastle, suffered a fate inspired by that scene.
BBC News 29/5/2009

UK Cinemas Hope for Bumper Summer
Cinemas in the UK and Ireland are hoping for another lucrative summer period, according to the association representing most of Britain's film distributors. 

To help achieve this, it has commissioned a compilation trailer trumpeting some of the most prominent titles set for release between May and August.  With the world in the grip of a global economic downturn, the malaise might be expected to have a knock-on effect on cinema-going. 

According to official figures, though, the sector is so far proving immune to financial woes pressuring so many other industries.  Box office takings for the first quarter of 2009 show a 16% increase on the same period last year, with the February half-term proving particularly profitable.  And with more than £250m spent on cinema tickets between January and March, distributors and exhibitors can afford to be optimistic about the months ahead.
BBC News online 17/4/2009
Read more...

My Film is Too Horrific to be Only a 15
Film censors have been forced to reclassify a disturbing horror film after a complaint - from the director himself.  The British Board of Film Classification initially gave a 15 rating to Wishbaby, which is billed as a savage fairytale and includes graphic scenes of torture and sexual violence. 

But director Stephen Parsons was so worried that younger teenagers would copy scenes in the film that he demanded an increase in the rating to 18, insisting the film was meant for adults only. 

In one sequence a teenager is shown having his eyeball gouged out with a hat pin while other teens record his misery on mobile phones.  Another shows a mother being suffocated and beaten to death with a hammer.
Daily Mail 14/4/2009
Read more...

BBFC Rejects Sexually Violent DVD
The BBFC has rejected the DVD NF713. This means that it cannot be legally supplied anywhere in the UK.  The decision was taken by the Director, David Cooke and the Presidential Team of Sir Quentin Thomas, Alison Hastings and Gerard Lemos. 

NF713 takes the form of an extended sequence in which a man tortures a woman psychologically, physically and sexually.  The torture is unremitting and takes up the majority of the work's 73 minute running time. 

In the Board's view, the primary purpose of NF713 is to sexually arouse the viewer at the sight of a woman being sexually humiliated, tortured and abused.  As such it constitutes a ‘sex work'.  The focus on the woman's naked, humiliated body together with the conventional BDSM aspects of the later part of the work lead credence to the view that sexual arousal is its primary intent. 
BBFC New release 3/4/2009
Read more...

Aristotle Wins Certification From British Film Board
The prestigious British Board of Film Classification has formally accepted Aristotle International as a provider of approved age verification for digitally-delivered home entertainment. The decision means that movie studios, online distributors, and eventually producers of all forms of digital content will comply with BBFC regulations when using Aristotle's age verification service.

"Content knows no boundaries in a digital world. Movies and games are released instantaneously in different countries, each with different requirements for protecting children. Aristotle's solution also works globally, wherever content is delivered, tailored to the laws in more than 130 nations," said John Aristotle Phillips, CEO of Aristotle. 

"We are pleased to certify Aristotle as an appropriate age verification and gate-keeping mechanism for our Aggregator Members for those digital home entertainment works classified '12', '15', '18', or 'R18' for digital delivery by the British Board of Film Classification," said Andy Cooke, Business Manager of BBFC.online.
IT News 2/4/2009
Read more...      New Safeguards needed

Sex, Violence and Video Games
An increasing number of video games now contain sex as well as violence and swearing, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) said.  Games with sexual elements, like Grand Theft Auto - in which players can buy virtual prostitutes - are on the rise, the regulator said. 

"On the whole sexual activity in games is nowhere near as common as violence, but it is becoming more common," said spokeswoman Sue Clark.  Her comments came as new research revealed that almost three quarters (74%) of parents were concerned about the content of some video games. 

An even greater number of parents (79%) believed video games may affect the behaviour of some children, according to a YouGov poll for the BBFC.  In addition to sex and violence in games, bad language was also an issue, Ms Clark added.
Channel 4 News 27/2/2009
Read more...    BBFC    Regulating Video Games    Games/Internet

BBFC Passes MadWorld With No Cuts
The BBFC has passed the controversial Wii title MadWorld, granting it an 18 certificate and requiring no cuts to content.  Sega's Sin City-style brawler has gained attention for its level of violence, uncharacteristic of a Wii title, which saw the game branded as "the most violent videogame ever" by The Daily Mail, warning the game will "dramatically transform Wii's image". 

However, the tabloid paper radically changed its tone on the game, later naming it as one of this year's "hottest new titles".
gamesindustry.biz 15/1/2009
Read more...    Spong    BBFC Classification     Games/Internet2008    The Sun