Hello
This is a very odd experience to be writing to (at the time) no one. Hopefully in the future, someday, someone will come across my blog and find it just barely interesting enough to read. I can only dream. In any case...
This blog mainly will concern topics in the entertainment industry, the film industry mostly. I occasionally may comment on music but I don't feel like enough of an expert to have a blog about that subject. I am a movie critic for my school's newspaper and have seen too many films to admit to. Just a little bio there, so let's get down to it. Here's a quandary...what to write about.
I'll post my reviews on this blog, so you can check those out, but I suppose this will be more of an arena for me to talk about issues related to film making, the industry, etc.
One thing that has interested me recently is the issue of censorship. I should be clear that inherently, or fundamentally, I don't think there's anything wrong with the MPAA (the organization that appointed itself the standards board for movie ratings). An organization that tries to tell parents what movies to watch out for is an idea that cannot be debated. It's absolutely necessary when you think of the implications that could come with a 4 year old seeing the movie Eraser or American Psycho. The MPAA however is a bunch of self-righteous and arrogant know nothings who are ruining everything that is good about the art of film.
Sound like an exaggeration?
The MPAA is the only accepted organization for rating films. A movie theater chain won't play a film that is unrated. Not to get into it too much but this monopoly position means movies literally live and die by their ratings. For example, a movie rated R that was intended for large audiences will now do terribly in comparison to projected earnings. Why? Because every 16 year old (and below) that doesn't want to go to the movies with their parents is basically SOL. Similar logic applies to PG-13 movies...albeit to less an extent. Basically what I am trying to underscore here is that because money drives...everything, and movies can't make money without ticket sales, and movie theaters won't show movies that aren't rated, the MPAA has complete control over you and your movie.
But why does this matter?
Well let me ask you this. What if there was a board who decided on what paintings were allowed to be shown at museums. What if the last supper came up and the board was comprised of Atheists who didn't want anything to do with religion. Most likely, they'd ban the painting. In many ways this example simply underscores the issue of art censorship in general, but more importantly it shows the arbitrariness of it. A group of people (the MPAA professes that it is made up of everyday individuals) that decide what an age group can and can't see.
To sum up, my main issues boil down to these. First that there is a private group of individuals that decide, for the whole country, what movies should be allowed to contain and who can see them. Second, that these people are absolutely secretive for their entire lives. We will never know who they are or what their criteria are.
Sounds like an organization run by Karl Rove..not one that should decide on art.