Pg-13Rating Tagged Articles at Cinematical

For elderly people like me, in our 30s, it's sobering to realize that on any given Friday night, the majority of people in an average American movie theater do not remember a time when the PG-13 rating did not exist. Yes, it was 25 years ago this summer that the Motion Picture Association of America added PG-13 to its roster of ratings, joining G, PG, R, and X (which in 1990 was replaced by NC-17). Perhaps you already know some of the trivia involved. 'Tis no urban legend: Gremlins and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom really were the catalysts that brought about the new rating, and Steven Spielberg -- who produced one and directed the other -- was the mastermind.

"I created the problem and I also supplied the solution," Spielberg told the Associated Press in 2004. "I invented the rating." Temple of Doom was released May 23, 1984, and horrified parents immediately began complaining that the PG rating was too lax, citing the heart-ripping-out scene in particular. (I'd have cited Kate Capshaw's performance, but I guess that's more "irritating" than "horrifying.") Gremlins, with its microwaved monsters and general bloody mayhem, opened two weeks later, and the uproar grew louder. I remember my aunt, who took my cousin and me to see it (we were 9), saying she thought Stripe's melting at the end was too gross for a PG movie. We just thought it was awesome.

To parents, both films seemed too graphic to be rated PG. Logically, that meant they should have been rated R instead, as that was the only other choice. But they'd be kind of tame compared to other R-rated movies, especially considering the content was aimed at teenagers. Somehow neither rating seemed right.

I just want to get this out there right at the start: whoever is responsible for putting the kibosh on plans for a remake of the 1985 horror Fright Night has my eternal thanks. Shock Till You Drop is reporting that Sony's Screen Gems has halted development on the project and word is that the real reason for Sony's decision was that they were unable to come up with a satisfactory script. The film's original director, Todd Holland, had been involved with the project, but in a previous interview with STYD, Holland had confirmed that the script "...apparently has gone through 3 unusable drafts..."

Screen Gems has been in the horror-remake business for a while. Some of their other attempts included remakes of Prom Night, and the English-language remake of REC, better known as Quarantine. Fright Night might be safe for now, but fans of 80's horror still have plenty to worry about; rumor has it that Sony is still remaking the horror flick Hell Night, about a group of college kids getting knocked off in a variety of gruesome ways at an old mansion.

Now hold on to you hats, kids, because it gets worse from here: Sony has already announced that Hell Night would be a PG-13 film. When pressed for a reason as to why Gems was looking to clean up the original flick, Screen Gems president was quoted as saying, "If you are going to make a movie for a bunch of kids, you have to make it PG-13. You try not to make a movie for an audience that is older than your protagonist." Unfortunately, that argument isn't going to change my opinion about 'gore-free' horror any time soon, how about yours?

So is it just me, or is the goodwill of horror fans slowly running out for these kinds of remakes? Sound off below...

One of the privileges of being an adult is seeing R rated movies. Well, not me -- I was watching them before I was even in kindergarten, and I suspect most of the Cinematical staff was too. But in general, adulthood brings unrestricted viewing access to copious amounts of sex and violence. Of course, that was back before Hollywood decided that R ratings didn't make enough money, and everything vaguely dark should be slashed to allow a 12 year old a ticket.

The latest flick to be marched to the chopping block is the troubled Punisher: War Zone. Latino Review was told by an insider that the latest fight is over cutting it down to a PG-13 rating. I imagine that this is the battle that saw Lexi Alexander canned, and not a disagreement over the film's soundtrack. (It's much easier to sell her as petty and difficult with that story than one over a rating -- but who knows what's true or not at this point.)

Apparently, Lionsgate isn't even listening to their own buzz, since what had everyone talking was the impressive level of violence in the red band trailer. (I've embedded it below since we never got a chance to post it.) They're likely looking at The Dark Knight and how much money its PG-13 rating made and thinking they can copy its success, despite that their protagonist is known for his semi-automatics and bloody tactics, not his "I'll never kill or use guns" ethics.

Do you really want another PG-13 Punisher? I can't imagine you do. I know most of you are pretty lukewarm on the upcoming non-sequel, but if there was one thing that would get you to see it, wouldn't it have been the table leg through the eye? I've been honest about what was drawing me to the film, but if they neuter it, I'm not even sure Ray Stevenson can lure me. It's being released at Christmas, for heaven's sake. How am I supposed to relax from battling Christmas shopping crowds without gratuitous bloodshed? Come on, Lionsgate. Keep the R.