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Kill Bill And The "r" Rating
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» PoiSoNeD_CaNdY replied on Tue Oct 21, 2003 @ 4:50pm |
 Coolness: 92370 | Studios Killing (but Carefully) for an R Rating
By LAURA M. HOLSON OS ANGELES, Oct. 20 — The color red is making a spectacular showing this fall, at least at the box office. Two violent and blood-soaked films, "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," a remake of the 1974 slasher film, and Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill: Vol. 1," attracted the most moviegoers to theaters last weekend. Both are rated R, and both are illustrations of the lengths to which filmmakers will go to garner that more audience-friendly designation. "Chainsaw Massacre," a relentlessly gory tale replete with twitching limbs and splattered brain matter, earned an estimated $29 million in its first weekend, while "Kill Bill," in its second week of release, earned $12.5 million to tally about $43.3 million so far. And while both R-rated films pour on the violence, critics noted that "Chainsaw Massacre" plays it straight while "Kill Bill" takes a stylized approach. Even Jack Valenti, the chief executive of the Motion Picture Association of America, which rates movies, seemed blasé about the "Kill Bill" deadly fare. Mr. Valenti said that at one point while watching the main character, the Bride, stab, decapitate or cut the limbs off of at least 100 gangsters in a 20-minute sword fight, he said he thought: "Why didn't one of those men take out a gun and just kill her? I think even an impressionable child would go in and say they've seen worse on Wile E. Coyote." That stylized look was instrumental in making sure that what some critics have called the most violent movie ever made would earn an R rating from the movie industry's ratings board rather than NC-17, which could prove costly at the box office. Violence is not the main factor in whether a movie gets an R or an NC-17 rating. "It's bad language and graphic nudity," said Nick Browne, professor of critical studies at the University of California, who studies ratings. In fact, though few films get an NC-17 rating, those that do usually have a strong sexual theme. For example, "Kids," released unrated in 1995, was the story of New York teenagers, H.I.V. and sexuality. It was originally given an NC-17 rating. These days the reason most filmmakers depend on an R, no matter how violent, is that NC-17 movies are severely limited in how they can be marketed. "I don't think any film made by the American film industry can economically tolerate an NC-17," Mr. Browne said. An R rating means a child cannot be admitted to a movie without an adult or guardian. An NC-17 rating means no children are admitted. With such a rating, most mainstream newspapers will not run ads. But more important, video stores like Blockbuster will not offer the DVD's on store shelves. And mass-market retail chains like Walmart, where studios can earn as much as 50 percent of a movie's revenue, will not sell them, either. Russell Schwartz, president of domestic marketing at New Line Cinema, said the studio had to trim "Chainsaw Massacre" twice to get an R rating. In particular, the ratings board was concerned about one graphic scene in Leatherface's lair, where characters die on meat hooks at the hands of the chainsaw-wielding killer. "There was too much impaling," Mr. Schwartz said. Despite that, he said that the movie was equally attended by both men and women and that 75 percent of the audience was under 25. Mr. Tarantino said he used several film techniques to ensure that his movie was rated R and not NC-17, including tempering the bloody red with grainy black-and-white film and sequences hand-drawn in cartoonish Japanese anime. "Black-and-white did make the movie go down easier" with the motion picture association, Mr. Tarantino, who was traveling, said through a spokeswoman when asked about the movie's rating. "Something I've noticed is that when it comes to Americans, it's not so much they have a problem with blood; they have a problem with the color red." Mr. Tarantino said he intentionally gave each scene a different look to break up the long fight scenes, fearing audiences would grow weary of seeing too much violence. In the movie's first scene, filmed in black-and-white, the Bride is shot in the head, her body left bloodied. In a later scene, hand-drawn in Japanese anime, a young girl witnesses her parent's execution, then stabs the killers. And when the Bride battles more than 100 gangsters, blood spurts fountainlike out of sliced necks and shoulder sockets. "I could have taken out the geysers of blood, but that would make the scenes more brutal, make it more violent as opposed to stylized," Mr. Tarantino said. Mr. Valenti, who spoke on behalf of the motion picture association's rating board, said the violence was cartoonish. "I think the whole thing was fantasy violence," he said. "I think the rating was correct. I didn't see anything to avert my eyes." Mr. Tarantino, who fashioned "Kill Bill" on spaghetti westerns and martial arts movies, submitted the movie more than once for review by the rating board because the first cut was unacceptable. "They said to me, `Quentin, it's too much,' " Mr. Tarantino said. " `Half of us think it's an R, the other half thinks it's too tough.' So I worked at it again and I brought it back again." He was not specific about what cuts were made, but Harvey Weinstein, the co-founder of Miramax Films, which financed the film, said in an interview that Mr. Tarantino shaved seconds off certain scenes to get rid of violence deemed to be gratuitous. "As long as it was cartoonish and fun they were fine with it," Mr. Weinstein said. |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» Screwhead replied on Tue Oct 21, 2003 @ 4:58pm |
 Coolness: 686270 | Man, there are a couple of things I have to say that REALLY pissed me off that were cut from Texas Chainsaw Massacre. At the VERY BEGINNING of writing the script, the MPAA specificaly told the writers that if there was any canibalism, the movie wouldn't get put out.
WTF! The movie is suposed to be about a FAMILY of CANIBALS, not a whacko with a chainsaw and a skin disease who happens to live at home with a family of nutjobs. They also didn't put in a "diner" scene like the original had. Must have been deemed "too disturbing" by the MPAA or some such nonsence. |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» El_Presidente replied on Tue Oct 21, 2003 @ 5:07pm |
 Coolness: 300005 | kill bill sucked |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» G__ replied on Thu Oct 23, 2003 @ 10:15am |
 Coolness: 142045 | no you did |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» Lady replied on Thu Oct 23, 2003 @ 12:11pm |
 Coolness: 183210 | i didnt see it but it doesnt look too good so i went to see underworld instead! |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» nonphixion replied on Tue Oct 28, 2003 @ 5:38pm |
| Coolness: 39780 | come on "underworld" is fuckin' gay
kill bill is really artsy and pop but still hit the spot |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» Screwhead replied on Tue Oct 28, 2003 @ 5:41pm |
| Coolness: 686270 | Underworld was great, even though it was a complete and total rip-off of White Wolf's RPGs. Was still a good movie. Haven't seen Kill Bill yet. Gonna download it tonight... |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» nonphixion replied on Tue Oct 28, 2003 @ 5:44pm |
| Coolness: 39780 | that's it! maybe it was good but nothing original
it's so evanessence(fakewannabecyberpostmodernisticgoth) |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» G__ replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 5:09pm |
| Coolness: 142045 | DOOOOOON'T DOWNLOAD IT
see it in theaters, it's much worth it, go on a cheapy night |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» mdc replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 7:09pm |
| Coolness: 149495 | truer words have never been spoken
*looks at my signature (the part about pants... stoopid)* no wait.. i lied |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» neoform replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 8:42pm |
 Coolness: 340345 | i'm gonna download it.
mwaha |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» Screwhead replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 9:02pm |
| Coolness: 686270 | I can't aford to see it in theaters. And besides, I don't download CAM copies, I download the copies of the DVD screeners they send to the people from the award show. Every 15 minutes, I get text at the bottom of the screen that says "This is property of blah blah blah entertainment. Not for sale or rental" but other than that It's pretty much DivX quality of a DVD-rip. |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» mdc replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 10:17pm |
| Coolness: 149495 | i LOVE thsose!!
they rock... i have that for thge latest James Bond movie.. theyre so good wuality! |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» Screwhead replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 10:29pm |
| Coolness: 686270 | Totally!
I just watched Cabin Fever last night! Omg some scenes were sooooo hillarious, and yet the gore and horror was so nicely done that it was a perfect balance! I loved it! *begining of the movie. Conversation between the kids and the old santa-looking redneck store-keeper* "What's this bottle of fox urine for?" "Huntin' foxes durring fox season." "What about that rifle?" "Oh, that's for the niggers" *end of the movie, 3 black people walk towards the store when the redneck is outside* *store keeper walks inside and gets the rifle off the shelf* *black people walk into his store and look at him* Black ppl: "What's up my nigga" Redneck store keeper: "Not much. Pollished and cleaned your gun, it's as good as new!" Black guy: "Damn, thanks brotha!" Storekeeper: "No problem my nigga!" bwahahahahahahahahahaha The whole movie is worth it for that alone. or: "What the fuck is that?" "A BB gun. Gonna go shoot some squirrels." "Why would you kill squirrels" "cause there gay." "Don't be a fucking retard!" "I was kidding. I don't care if they're gay or straight, I'll shoot 'em anyways." jesus the dialog in this movie was gold! |
| Good [+1]Toggle ReplyLink» mdc replied on Wed Oct 29, 2003 @ 11:02pm |
| Coolness: 149495 | those wrre the only good parts of the movie! |
Kill Bill And The "r" Rating
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