This Film Is Not Yet Rated
This Film Is Not Yet Rated:
Join the ICA
Belong to the home of new art, culture and ideas. Know first, book first, see first, and pay less.
My ICA: mailing lists and more
Sign up for regular updates about the ICA's programme, special events and offers.
ICA Members: sign in to buy tickets
ICA Members can buy tickets online at discounted Members' prices by signing in.
This Film Is Not Yet Rated
Kirby Dick investigates the censorship secrets of the American movie industry.
US 2006, Dir Kirby Dick
Documentary filmmaker Kirby Dick returns to the ICA with another provocative triumph. For thirty years, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has controlled who gets to see what in US cinema, having established an age-based ratings system presided over by its seemingly immovable chief Jack Valenti. However, a body that began as a lobbying organisation for the industry now wields a disproportionate amount of power over the potential futures of individual films, especially given that decisions are reached behind closed doors and those sitting in judgment remain anonymous and unaccountable. Interviews with the likes of John Waters, Darren Aronofsky, Atom Egoyan, Kevin Smith and South Park creator Matt Stone suggest that independent filmmakers suffer stricter censure than major Hollywood studios and that sex is more of a taboo than violence, giving these sometimes seemingly arbitrary decisions a political and cultural significance. In full, fearless investigative mode, Dick sets out with a pair of private detectives to uncover the secrets of the MPAA. Ultimately, the film is about censorship and freedom of speech, meaning that this Super Size Me for the cinema could have an impact beyond the film industry.