This may stand as one of the more important documentaries released lately, in an era where people have finally come to accept that documentaries can be important. While not picking up on Big Issues (tm) like global warming, fat rich white people, and multiple takes on the ongoing war in the Middle East, it does take a very pointed and serious look at an institution that most Americans not only have come to accept, but barely think twice about: The MPAA.
Basically, anybody who's inquired at any rental store about why one movie is rated R while another one is rated PG-13, or worse, NC-17, will get an explanation along the lines of "Well, the MPAA is kind of arbitrary." What they won't get is a long and secretive history of a self-censorship organization that is curiously strongly guarded and anonymous--one interviewee in the film even notes that the only other American institution with that level of secrecy that he can think of is the CIA.
The documentary itself is pretty decently crafted, with some amusing animations, a revealing scene-next-to-scene comparison, and some decent interviews. Honestly it does, I think, need just a bit more of "the other side" as there are still some aspects of the MPAA which seem to me, even after viewing this film, kind of important, though the key theme of accountability still holds.
Also, since this film was finally released without a rating, it's a little difficult to find... the reasons which are explained within its own dialog with the MPAA. However, this film is pretty much mandatory viewing for any aspiring filmmakers, important viewing for critics, interesting viewing for cinema enthusiasts, and won't be seen or cared about by the mainstream. That's the way the MPAA likes it, and that's the way the economy behind film-making works.
--PolarisDiB
Basically, anybody who's inquired at any rental store about why one movie is rated R while another one is rated PG-13, or worse, NC-17, will get an explanation along the lines of "Well, the MPAA is kind of arbitrary." What they won't get is a long and secretive history of a self-censorship organization that is curiously strongly guarded and anonymous--one interviewee in the film even notes that the only other American institution with that level of secrecy that he can think of is the CIA.
The documentary itself is pretty decently crafted, with some amusing animations, a revealing scene-next-to-scene comparison, and some decent interviews. Honestly it does, I think, need just a bit more of "the other side" as there are still some aspects of the MPAA which seem to me, even after viewing this film, kind of important, though the key theme of accountability still holds.
Also, since this film was finally released without a rating, it's a little difficult to find... the reasons which are explained within its own dialog with the MPAA. However, this film is pretty much mandatory viewing for any aspiring filmmakers, important viewing for critics, interesting viewing for cinema enthusiasts, and won't be seen or cared about by the mainstream. That's the way the MPAA likes it, and that's the way the economy behind film-making works.
--PolarisDiB