Studios Sue to Stop Family-friendly DVD Film Cuts... Again.

[malvado78]

Actually, I was thinking about that the other day and my example would have been: Can you imagine a clean Full Metal Jacket?

That might actually be fun to watch. Well just the language clean up I mean...

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

It is almost part of the normal language these days, however children do not need to be exposed to it via movies.
Having said that, if they tone it down to kid level, then it likely won't really appeal to the vast majority of their target audience demographic - 18-35, IMO.

So you’re one of those guys who leave a theater saying, “Great flick, but it needed more cussing?” Would Gone With the Wind be a better movie if it had more profanity?

I am not saying that the language should be there or that it somehow makes a film or even a song any better, but if the artist made it that way, that is their choice. If I don't like what is said in a song or a movie, then I don't have to continue watching/listening and that is my choice. If it is bad for my kids, then my KIDS don't need to watch it...until they are old enough.

I'm with them there - plus that's just really lame. If you don't think the movie is appropriate for your children, then don't let them watch it...

Easier said than done, I’m afraid. That was good tact back in the day when movies could only be seen in theaters. These days, you let you kids visit a friend and you don’t have any idea what DVDs they have on the shelf. You really aren’t going to stop your kid from watching an R-rated movie if his buddy decides to pop it in the player if he has parents who don't give a flip about what their kids watch. So unless you live on an island, or intend to sift through the video collection of every friend your kid makes before they turn 18, you aren't going to keep them away from that stuff. Been there.

My point is this: why on earth do people think "bad" lanugage is worse for children than violence? It's okay for your kids to see people getting shot/blown up/etc, but hearing somebody drop the f bomb isn't?

That’s an easy one. Assuming that we’re talking about kids old enough to know (i.e., not 4-year-olds): Kids know the violence is fake. However, the foul language isn’t fake. I mean, c'mon on: Everyone knows that kids will pick up on bad language and repeat it. Anyone had problems with their kid trying to stab their playmates in the chest after seeing a violent movie?

I am ok with having a VERSION that's edited, as long as I can buy the normal version of movies/CDs. But making the edited version the ONLY version available is just ****ed up.

I agree. It would be nice to have a choice.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[j_garcia]

The Mask (Jim Carrey) comes to mind. There is a LOT of inuendo in that movie, and though the kids seem to love it because of the cartoonish, over the top antics, I don't consider that a kids movie at all. Not something I would let my kids watch when they were young.

I kept violence and sex in film to a minimum with them when they were young, but I also kept Barney out of the picture, because it is just as bad for them in my book. It tries to be a benefit, but it really just makes them TV-zombies.

So you’re one of those guys who leave a theater saying, “Great flick, but it needed more cussing?” Would Gone With the Wind be a better movie if it had more profanity?

Frankly Scarlet, I don't give a ^%#*&@ WOULD have made me chuckle, yes

Just make sure the kids are brough up with morals and a sense of right, wrong and respect, and the movies are not an issue at all. TEACH them and the whole problem with the movies is a moot point.

 

[Patrick_Wolf]

What the hell is the point of family friendly cuts? You'd have to be a pretty stupid parent to sit through a dumbed-down version of movies so your kids can see them when they probably aren't interested in the core content anyway.

There's a reason why they make G and PG movies. I'm with you Garcia. If you've done your job and your 12-year old or younger wants to see a PG-13 or even a mild R film then it shouldn't affect them in a negative manner. Teach them stuff about the world and they won't get ****ed up by media or peers. The more your kid knows the faster he/she will mature and adult content won't be an issue.

 

[Pyrrho]

Actually, I was thinking about that the other day and my example would have been: Can you imagine a clean Full Metal Jacket?

How about a cleaned up version of A Clockwork Orange?

I am with the studios on this one. When they make a movie, it is intended to be seen a certain way. Someone else editing the film may ruin its affect, and consequently make some people think the movie is bad when it is really good.

If you don't want to see it, fine, don't see it. You can easily find out about the sort of content if you are concerned about what your children see (look at the links others have already provided in this thread).

Just because there is a market for butchered films does not mean that the studios have any obligation to fill it.

 

[Pyrrho]

No one has even suggested that it would be the only version available...

Hurt Lock and Dexter can easily be filed under not for kids...

Transformers and other could easily be edited to remove the extra language and give a choice in which soundtrack to use. Seems like the studios would gain a wider audience.

There are many many movies I do not watch anymore due to having my 3 year old around. She is a sponge. I am not at all saying that it is ok for her to watch violence, sex, etc. I avoid those as well. But there are PG movies that suggestively swear. Ice Age 2 when the wall of ice is breaking off the one animal say DAMN! or DAM! It doesn't matter that it was supposed to be a play on words. I felt it was totally unacceptable.

I am not trying to nerf it for anyone else. If the choice was there I would choose it. It currently is not therefore there are many less movies I choose to rent/buy.

If I had a 3 year old, only films rated G (or the equivalent) would be shown while the child was present. PG means that it might not be suitable for children. You can see what the ratings of films all mean:

http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/what-each-rating-means

If you can't be bothered to find out what the ratings mean, that is not the studio's fault.

 

[Pyrrho]

...


Easier said than done, I’m afraid. That was good tact back in the day when movies could only be seen in theaters. These days, you let you kids visit a friend and you don’t have any idea what DVDs they have on the shelf. You really aren’t going to stop your kid from watching an R-rated movie if his buddy decides to pop it in the player if he has parents who don't give a flip about what their kids watch. So unless you live on an island, or intend to sift through the video collection of every friend your kid makes before they turn 18, you aren't going to keep them away from that stuff. Been there.

...

Having censored versions available would not change that at all. You would have to go over and see if the neighbors had the censored versions or the regular versions before your child saw them. My advice is to not let your child go alone to other's houses unless you know that they will provide the kind of environment of which you approve. If you don't take such a precaution, you have no one to blame but yourself when they allow some content to be viewed which you find objectionable.

 

[gliz]

What the hell is the point of family friendly cuts? You'd have to be a pretty stupid parent to sit through a dumbed-down version of movies so your kids can see them when they probably aren't interested in the core content anyway.

That is a broad and general statement, we aren’t talking cleaning up The Shawshank Redemption here. I.e. Mrs. Doubtfire, where the little girl say "we are his GD kids too". Or "Cat in the Hat where Cat steps on a hoe and says "dirty hoe". That stuff is over the top! Cat in the Hat was not geared for adults. I am not a stupid parent

 

[Pyrrho]

What the hell is the point of family friendly cuts? You'd have to be a pretty stupid parent to sit through a dumbed-down version of movies so your kids can see them when they probably aren't interested in the core content anyway.

That is a broad and general statement, we aren’t talking cleaning up The Shawshank Redemption here. I.e. Mrs. Doubtfire, where the little girl say "we are his GD kids too". Or "Cat in the Hat where Cat steps on a hoe and says "dirty hoe". That stuff is over the top! Cat in the Hat was not geared for adults. I am not a stupid parent

Let's see now, Mrs. Doubtfire is rated PG-13:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107614/

PG-13 means:

PG-13 — Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some Material May Be Inappropriate For Children Under 13. A PG-13 rating is a sterner warning by the Rating Board to parents to determine whether their children under age 13 should view the motion picture, as some material might not be suited for them. A PG-13 motion picture may go beyond the PG rating in theme, violence, nudity, sensuality, language, adult activities or other elements, but does not reach the restricted R category. The theme of the motion picture by itself will not result in a rating greater than PG-13, although depictions of activities related to a mature theme may result in a restricted rating for the motion picture. Any drug use will initially require at least a PG-13 rating. More than brief nudity will require at least a PG-13 rating, but such nudity in a PG-13 rated motion picture generally will not be sexually oriented. There may be depictions of violence in a PG-13 movie, but generally not both realistic and extreme or persistent violence. A motion picture’s single use of one of the harsher sexually-derived words, though only as an expletive, initially requires at least a PG-13 rating. More than one such expletive requires an R rating, as must even one of those words used in a sexual context. The Rating Board nevertheless may rate such a motion picture PG-13 if, based on a special vote by a two-thirds majority, the Raters feel that most American parents would believe that a PG-13 rating is appropriate because of the context or manner in which the words are used or because the use of those words in the motion picture is inconspicuous.​

http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/what-each-rating-means

And The Cat in the Hat is rated PG:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0312528/

PG means:

PG — Parental Guidance Suggested. Some Material May Not Be Suitable For Children. A PG-rated motion picture should be investigated by parents before they let their younger children attend. The PG rating indicates, in the view of the Rating Board, that parents may consider some material unsuitable for their children, and parents should make that decision. The more mature themes in some PG-rated motion pictures may call for parental guidance. There may be some profanity and some depictions of violence or brief nudity. But these elements are not deemed so intense as to require that parents be strongly cautioned beyond the suggestion of parental guidance. There is no drug use content in a PG-rated motion picture.​

http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/what-each-rating-means


Now, are you saying that either film had something in it that is not consistent with those ratings? If not, then you have nothing to complain about with those films. You should know what the ratings mean, and if you can't be bothered with finding out such easily available information, you have no one to blame but yourself.

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

Frankly Scarlet, I don't give a ^%#*&@ WOULD have made me chuckle, yes

Just make sure the kids are brough up with morals and a sense of right, wrong and respect, and the movies are not an issue at all. TEACH them and the whole problem with the movies is a moot point.

It’s foolish to think TVs, movies, and other media don’t have an affect on people, especially kids. Advertisers spend billions counting on that fact.

What the hell is the point of family friendly cuts? You'd have to be a pretty stupid parent to sit through a dumbed-down version of movies so your kids can see them when they probably aren't interested in the core content anyway.

It’s not just about “family friendly.” A substantial percentage of adults would like to be able to enjoy a movie with having to be subjected to all that stuff.

My advice is to not let your child go alone to other's houses unless you know that they will provide the kind of environment of which you approve. If you don't take such a precaution, you have no one to blame but yourself when they allow some content to be viewed which you find objectionable.

Okay – well if you’re able to follow your teenagers everywhere they go and make them wait outside their friends' houses while you sift through their video collections, you’re a better man than me.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Pyrrho]

...

If you don't take such a precaution, you have no one to blame but yourself when they allow some content to be viewed which you find objectionable.

Okay – well if you’re able to follow your teenagers everywhere they go and make them wait outside their friends' houses while you sift through their video collections, you’re a better man than me.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

You should have paid more attention to the first sentence of the post you partially quoted:

...
Easier said than done, I’m afraid. That was good tact back in the day when movies could only be seen in theaters. These days, you let you kids visit a friend and you don’t have any idea what DVDs they have on the shelf. You really aren’t going to stop your kid from watching an R-rated movie if his buddy decides to pop it in the player if he has parents who don't give a flip about what their kids watch. So unless you live on an island, or intend to sift through the video collection of every friend your kid makes before they turn 18, you aren't going to keep them away from that stuff. Been there.
...

Having censored versions available would not change that at all. You would have to go over and see if the neighbors had the censored versions or the regular versions before your child saw them. My advice is to not let your child go alone to other's houses unless you know that they will provide the kind of environment of which you approve. If you don't take such a precaution, you have no one to blame but yourself when they allow some content to be viewed which you find objectionable.

If you are not paying attention to what they are seeing at other houses, it does not make a damn bit of difference whether censored versions are available or not. You only control whether it is a censored version that is seen in your own house, not what version is seen elsewhere if you let your children go wherever they want, seeing whatever is there.

Again, the availability of censored versions changes ABSOLUTELY NOTHING with regard to what they might see in a neighbor's house.

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

I understood the post, Pyrro – no need to repeat it.


Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Pyrrho]

I understood the post, Pyrro – no need to repeat it.


Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

So you intentionally responded in a manner that makes no sense given what I stated? Very curious.

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

I intentionally responded to the part of your post that I wanted to comment on. If I’d had anything to say about the rest of it, I would have.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Alex2507]

I grew up watching whatever I wanted and seeing all that I could ... look how I turned out!
Your kids will be fine.

 

[3db]

I do believe that the movie industry as a whole has been insensitive to those that would like to see a cleaned up version of a film. I think there is room for both versions. I don't believe in sensorship but I do believe in choice.

 

[Pyrrho]

I do believe that the movie industry as a whole has been insensitive to those that would like to see a cleaned up version of a film. I think there is room for both versions. I don't believe in sensorship but I do believe in choice.

People do have a choice. You can either watch a film or not. No one is making you show films to your children.

Just because there is a market for butchered films does not mean that the studios have any obligation to fill it.

 

[mtrycrafts]

No one has even suggested that it would be the only version available...

Hurt Lock and Dexter can easily be filed under not for kids...

Transformers and other could easily be edited to remove the extra language and give a choice in which soundtrack to use. Seems like the studios would gain a wider audience.

There are many many movies I do not watch anymore due to having my 3 year old around. She is a sponge. I am not at all saying that it is ok for her to watch violence, sex, etc. I avoid those as well. But there are PG movies that suggestively swear. Ice Age 2 when the wall of ice is breaking off the one animal say DAMN! or DAM! It doesn't matter that it was supposed to be a play on words. I felt it was totally unacceptable.

I am not trying to nerf it for anyone else. If the choice was there I would choose it. It currently is not therefore there are many less movies I choose to rent/buy.

Yes, all these could be versions could be. But, it is up to the makers, the authors, the license holders to choose, not the public. The public chooses from what is available, period.
Kids do not have to see anything the parents deem appropriate. And no, they don't have rights to see a cleaned up version of anything.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I grew up watching whatever I wanted and seeing all that I could ... look how I turned out!
Your kids will be fine.

You mean you turned out OK? I don't know that.

 

[gmichael]

I grew up watching whatever I wanted and seeing all that I could ... look how I turned out!
Your kids will be fine.

You're right. I never got to see anything beyond a G rating and I ended up dumb as a stump.