In fact, central government has no direct involvement in film censorship beyond passing legislation affecting the BBFC’s activities. Local authorities have considerably more power, including the final say in whether or not certain films can be shown, though in the vast majority of cases they are happy to accept the BBFC’s verdict. Indeed, this is why the BBFC was created by the film industry in the first place. The history of British film censorship is as much social as cultural: the reasons films were banned in the 1920s (revolutionary politics) and 1950s (nudity) say as much about the society of the time as anything in the films. It is also revealing that in an era of far greater equality the BBFC is noticeably tougher on sexual violence today than it was thirty years ago, though correspondingly much more relaxed about most other issues. As technology develops, the BBFC’s role may well become less and less significant.
† AN EXCERPT BY THE BFI SCREENONLINE
A side-effect of its stated commitment to greater openness is that it is now easy to find out if films have been cut in their British versions and current technology makes it equally simple to order uncut and unclassified videos and DVDs from elsewhere (such material cannot be legally sold within the UK, but there are no barriers to importation). If this practice becomes widespread enough to affect the British film industry economically, it is likely that pressure will be applied on the BBFC to reflect this.
91
FINALISEDVERSIONFML.indd 91
21/03/2014 02:10