If you thought that a film with a title like Zack And Miri Make A Porno would sail through the MPAA’s rating process with no troubles, then you probably aren’t up on the long list of ridiculous and often contradictory decisions the board has made when it comes to assigning ratings to films.
Porno star Seth Rogen, now there’s a phrase I’m sure he’s proud to be a part of, has let slip to MTV Movies Blog that writer/director Kevin Smith’s latest film may be facing some rough waters in terms of getting an R rating from the board.
The MPAA is gunning for us, I think… It’s a really filthy movie. I hear they are having some problems getting an R rating from an NC-17 rating, which is never good.
Smith is no stranger to problems with the MPAA’s rating system. His first film Clerks initially received an NC-17 rating based simply on the number of F-bombs dropped in it. The rating was changed on appeal. More recently, Smith’s Clerks 2 featured a bachelor party scene with implied bestiality that reportedly passed the board’s review with no problems. The ratings board’s mindset on these matters is something that Rogen can’t fathom.
A guy f—ing a donkey, they ain’t got no problem with. But a man and a woman having sex they seem to have real issues with, for some weird reason. It’s insane. It’s completely insane… They [fight against] sex stuff. Isn’t that weird? It’s really crazy to me that Hostel is fine, with people gouging their eyes out and sh– like that. But you can’t show two people having sex — that’s too much.
Smith has already had one run-in with the MPAA over Zack And Miri, when he posted an internet-only teaser trailer for the film. Although the teaser contained no actual footage from the movie, he was asked to take it down by the MPAA as they had not approved it for release.
Smith has not commented directly on any further trouble he may be having with the film and the ratings board, though last night in a brief online Q & A he did mention that he has “been too busy dealing with the MPAA on other matters.”
As most people who have watched the MPAA’s decisions over the years, succinctly summed up in Kirby Dick’s documentary This Film Is Not Yet Rated, know that consistency and common sense are two words that are not often associated with the MPAA or their film ratings process.
Zack And Miri Make A Porno will be released at the end of October.
