This documentary was mentioned in the Censored segment of Indie Sex but it's been in my queue since 2009. I've always been interested in the reasons people have for censorship, mostly because I think all those reasons are crap. No one should tell you what you can't see or what you should be offended by, you should be able to decide that for yourself. Like most of the documentaries I watch, this one is marginally depressing. It shows how a giant monopoly (the MPAA's rating of movies) is skewed towards the studios and is inherently corrupt. It also shows that state of affairs is very unlikely to change given that the review process is shrouded in secrecy for the "protection" of its members.
Kirby Dick, the documentarian, hires a private investigator to find out who the raters are at the MPAA. After almost a month of checking license plates and rifling through trashcans and taking surveillance photos, they finally discover the identities of 8 of the 9 raters. Jack Valenti, who started the MPAA in the 70s, stated that raters would be average American parents with kids aged 5-17 who would serve on the board for 3-5 years. In theory, that sounds great, like a committee of the Everyman looking out for the children. However, most of these people are older, white, and with kids who are almost in their 30s. They're Morality Police, slapping restricted ratings on things that make them uncomfortable like any sort of gay relationship, female orgasms, and any sexual position that isn't missionary. That's a sad commentary on our societal norms.
You know, just thinking about it again while I'm typing this is making me depressed. I'm going to go watch something happy.
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