By Conor Window

About the organization

The British Board of Film Classification, or BBFC, is
a non profit organization that possess the legal
right and power to provide ratings for movies in
the UK, as well as classifying and censoring them.
The organization was founded in 1912 by
members of the film industry, as they wanted the
ability to rate their own films, rather than the
government doing this. They also provide an
educational service for children, called the CBBFC,
in order to teach them how age ratings work.

Controversial Decisions
These following examples are from CCBFs website

Saving Private Ryan (1998) This film was given a 15 rating despite its mature
themes and violent scenes. However this was justified as the BBFC believed the
film should be readily available for teenagers due to its educational purposes,
therefore preventing any conflict.

Jurassic Park: The Lost World (1997) Many test screenings were shown to primary
school children before its release. This was in order to test the films PG rating.

Baise-moi(2000) This French film had a scene cut a year after its release.
Irreversible (2002) This movie, also French, came under much negative publicity
after being shown in cinemas under an 18 rating, despite an explicit rape scene
being included.

The Dark Knight The BBFC came under a lot of criticism when awarding this
Batman movie with a 12A rating, as many people believed that the film contained
mature themes, such as violence

Age Ratings

My films BBFC rating

I believe that my film would be given
an 18 rating. This is due to the
mature themes involved, such as
extreme violence, foul language and
adult material. If London Boy
received a rating any lower than an
18, I believe this would cause a lot of
controversy and uproar amongst the
public and the media, as the content
may be seen as too intense for
teenagers and children to see and
understand. As a result of this, 18 is
the safest and most appropriate
rating for my movie.