MPAA & "Hard R" Rating

[Darkness]

I was reading an interesting article this morning on Bloody Disgusting about the MPAA creating a new rating called “Hard R”. I guess for us non-Americans, the idea is to re-create the NC17 rating but without the negative impact on marketing. i.e. NC17 has a bad rep with cinemas and video stores like Blockbuster refuse to stock them.

“The goal is to find a category for some films that are now informally called “hard R’s” — i.e., content so graphic that no one under the age of 17 should be allowed to see it at all in theaters. The new generation of horror pics, namely, the “Saw” and “Hostel” franchises, are pushing the limits of the “hard R” category.”

How does this relate to AvP2, you’re wondering? Well, Fox chairman, Tom Rothman, continuously refers to AvP2 as being “Hard R”. Maybe a coincidence, maybe not but I must say it would be interesting if the gore factor in AvP2 can be compared to that seen in the Saw/Hostel series’.

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[topman]

well it is there movie and they are trying to sell to you remember???

[The Ultimate Predator]

It would be good if it is Hard R.

[Danger Close]

I agree, the more I think about all the comments from the directors and from FOX, the more possible the new Hard R could be used for AVP2, as 300 showed this weekend, that an R rated film can still bring in the big bucks... if it is done right.

[Mr. Weyland]

Finally an ALIEN V PREDATOR thats as sick and gory as SAW       "oh yeah"

[JaredK21]

Hmm...maybe they are making it hard R to make up for the PG-13 rating of the first movie haha.

[frankaster]

my cousings will be sad... they will not going to see this i theater... they loved the firts one...  BUT THIS MOVIE ROCKS! EVEN WE HAVE SEEN NOTHING!!!

[aliendream]

Alien vs predator will be R rated an it is compared to saw?

[RidgeTop]

The MPAA is stupid, the system is fine the way it is.

[Con-jawlock]

You don't seriously think It's going to be as gory as 'Saw'. You're getting your hopes up a bit too much again. It'll be better than AVP1, but not that better.

[RIJOENPIAL]

I think it was Jim Cameron who said that gore doesn't make a horror movie, it makes a merely disgusting  movie. I saw 'SAW' (eheh), and Alien Resurrection had a lot of gore in it, and it didn't make it any better, merely more disgusting...Ergo, this R and 'Hard R' ratings don't mean anything to me, only the quality of the script, how it respects what precedes it, and the quality of filmmaking...

[RIJOENPIAL]

...and the R or 'Hard R' ratings will work against the movie, actually, narrowing its audience to an older one, preventing a bigger boxoffice revenue...That was, IMO, why they changed at the last minute , the rating for AVP...they wanted it to have a more widespread audience, including kids and all...to Paul Anderson's dismay, of course...changing a rating 3 months before its premiere is a recipe to disaster...the feeling of the movie, the violence, the story, all suffer with a change from an R rating to a PG-13... And who's fault is that, I ask again...?

[SuicideDoors]

AvP was PG-13 from the very start. Tom Hammel said they would be aiming for that rating about 7 months before the film came out. As well as all the 'PG-13 spurts of blood' placed all over the script.  At least we know Fox isn't in it purely to cash in, the R-Rating among other positive things, seems to me like they're out for some sort of redemption...

[RIJOENPIAL]

Then there are two conflicting sources amidst Fox: one that says the 'three-months change' and the ' ohm we had that planned way in advance'...Of course Fox will not say they made controversial decisions that affected how AVP got received by the public...Remember the Predator DVD? Fox censured the more gorish scenes (Dillon's arm firing the MP5, Mac's head going splurt) so don't try to convince me and yourself that the PG-13 wasn't a last minute decision because Fox already has a history doing it...

[RIJOENPIAL]

Anderson Answers Alien vs. Predator Questions Source: Bloody-Disgusting Thursday, August 19, 2004   (...) Anderson was obviously very annoyed at the way the film was released. However, this was not purely because of the PG-13 limitation, which incidentally, the studio enforced THREE WEEKS before the release date! It was always going to be R until then. Part of the reason for the cutting was that some of the effects were not ready by the time the release date came around. The effects team had very little time to do anything.(...)"  Although this may seem PW is only excusing himself, the fact remains that his script contained a LOT of deleted scenes (probably enforced by FOX), and others that never saw daylight, especially my fave: Scar trying to commit suicide when he realised he had a xeno inside him! And the last dialogue between him and Lex is very heartfelt, and they never saw the light of day, even in the uncut version, where all they did was computer-generating blood and add a lot of useless footage!! IMO the only ones to blame are FOX and the Alien triumvirate (Brandywine) who already managed to ridicule the Alien mythos and now the Predator one!