Film Certification - 18

18 rated films are the highest rated films on general theatrical release. There is also 18R, but these films are not shown as widely, and are reserved for sex shops and specialised theatres. 18 rated films can go extremely far in regard to violence, sex, language etc, and the boundaries are continually being stretched. Twenty years ago, what is now rated an 18 would have been banned, showing the development of the film industry and the acceptance of some topics being shown on film. 18 rated films are not always pointless sex, violence and swearing, but a lot of 18's have actually won Best Picture Awards, such as American Beauty in 1999. Due to it being the highest film rating, there is a very wide range of what is shown in an 18 film. Some are reasonably mild and only show the odd bit of violence, but others are completely crazy, and go all out in every aspect. Films such as 'Saw' turn film away from an art form, and simply turn it into what is known as 'torture porn', and I personally do not think that these films are needed, as they degrade the art form. For our film 18 may be a little extreme, however if we feel that we'd need to delve into 18 territory to tell the story better, than we shall. The trouble with 18's is that it reduces the audience, and stops the teenage audience going to see the film. Teenagers make up a big part of the film's earnings and without them, the film would lose out on a lot of money. Seeming as our target audience is 16-25, we would lose one fifth of our audience by making it an 18, so I think that it may be inappropriate.