Censorship Essay examples

This paper was prepared for Introduction to Film History, Module 1 Homework Assignment, taught by Professor Stephanie Sandifer.

The movie was banned in Italy for fourteen years until 1987, when a judge allowed it to be publicly viewed because it was no longer considered obscene.

By the 1960s the studio system was all but over. Many cinemas were closed down and several of the production back lots sold. Society had changed dramatically particularly with the rise of youth and the youth market, and the old Hollywood product seemed stale to the rising youth audience. Times were changing and the industry had to change with it. The studio system had declined rapidly in the 1950s and by the late 1960s was all but over. The audience had segmented into different social groups with increased leisure options rather than the mass habit audience of the golden age. Many of the films the studios produced to compete with television seemed to many people old fashioned and part of a different world which led to a significant drop in

The Motion Picture Production Code, commonly known as the Hays Code, was adopted in March 1930, though it was not truly enforced until four years later in 1934. This set of rules had tremendously influenced the way Hollywood movies were made for a number of years. This code was based on the ethics and norms if that time. There were three main principals of the Hays Code. The first was no picture shall be produced that will lower the moral standard of those who see it. What was meant by this was that sympathy should not be portrayed towards crimes, wrongdoings, evil or sins. The second stated that only a correct standard of living could be presented that are only subject to the requirements of drama and

From the The Godfather to The Last Airbender, classic and forgettable movies alike all had to go through the MPAA to receive the glory or infamy they are remembered for today. During Jack Valenti’s 38 year reign over the MPAA, he set the standards of how movies would be rated for years to come. The MPAA’s rating system has become outdated when compared to America’s constantly changing societal standards which has allowed filmmakers to push the boundaries with their films while still getting the ratings they want.

To understand why the fall of the production code was so prolific to the film industry one must first understand the production code and how it worked. This was a code that regulated what filmmakers could say, what kind of content their films could contain, and introduced an early version of the rating system that we know today. This kind of censorship was as detrimental to this art form as censorship can be. With a media as widespread as film, so many people see it on average that it can largely change a perception of a population or keep

In 1930, the Hay's Production Code was introduced into the film industry to regulate films that were produced. It regulated several different aspects of movie scenes containing crimes against the law, vulgarity, sex, obscenity, profanity, costume, dances, religion, locations, national feelings, titles and repellent subjects. (History of the Motion Picture Rating System) When scenes in films dealt with crimes committed against the law, the Hays Production Code stated that the crimes could never be presented in such a way to throw sympathy with the crime as against law and justice or to inspire others with a desire for imitation. The code goes into specific detail on several different crimes and how they shouldn't be shown in the films.

Censorship on television in the United States has been an issue ever since the television was invented. The public holds a variety of stances on the topic, and no matter what law is ever passed regarding censorship, it will never suit the needs of everyone. Some believe that censorship violates individual rights in the law, and others believe that censorship should be available through members in the family, not the government. On the other hand, some people strive to maintain government regulation of censorship. Television censorship is significant because it holds the future of our country. If channels continue to be censored, our rights will be violated. If not, then the future generations may change

The censorship conflicts in the 1900s were extremely intriguing and intense. Around the end of the 1920s, individuals possessed immense moral shifts powered by religious groups during the Great Depression, which resulted in decisions that created a new revolution that dealt particularly with the regulation of content of films. Consequently, in 1934, at the same time that the “Golden Age of Hollywood” began, the Hollywood Production code was formally implemented. The film

Based on Filmsite.org, a website that interprets and explains the history of cinemas, mentions that cinemas in the 1960s had more daring films with darker themes, horror, violence, rock ‘n’ roll and crime. There were also an influx of foreign movies and british movies. This decade in film history, was a period struggling to stay afloat as there was a decline in movies. There was a spike in reinvention of cinemas - change of styles to keep up with television and social changes.

During the early years of Hollywood, films had very few regulations on how they can be made. From 1922 till 1930, people were outraged at Hollywood that they have no rules on how they should make films. In response, religious groups were editing movies for their local communities to make them save for their standards. Eventually the government started to talk about enforcing rules that would censor Hollywood movies for the public. To stop that from happening, Hollywood enforced their own rules called the Motion Picture Production Code or the Hays Code.

How did the Paramount decision of 1948 change the U.S. film industry? To what degree did the decision alter the way the industry did business?

Censorship may be protection from inappropriate materials, but it also limits free speech. For the limitation of free speech, it is reasonable why people are emphatically against censorship. It is understood that there is a need to filter some of the materials released in today’s society, but too much is being done by people who have no right meddling with everyone’s rights. Civilization has always been plagued by a never ending battle being fought over what is deemed right and wrong. In today’s culture, censorship oppresses everything in the media. From movies and music to television and even news stories, most of the content viewed today has been filtered one way or another. Restrictions have been in place since early societies have been

After the end of World War II in 1945 and an armistice in Korea in 1953, patriotism was high in America. As a result, anti-communist and war films were very popular (American Movie Classics Company LLC, 2017). The one thing most people wanted after so long in war was stability, and most thought the best way to reach this was conformity. Movie Production Code, started in 1930, placed strict limits on the topics films could cover, supporting the decade’s conformist attitude. It banned interracial relationships, nudity, profanity, sexual perversion (including homosexuality), and positive depictions of crime, and sexually suggestive scenes were limited (Hayes, 2009). However, in the 50s, teenagers started to be viewed as viable consumers. The popularity

In order to establish a group that censors televisions and movies, the Motion Picture Producers Association (MPAA) was created. Each rating category has a description of the appropriate age at which to view the film and whether or not a parent’s accompaniment is necessary. The Motion Picture Producers Association assesses a film and gives it a rating of G (general audiences), PG (parental guidance suggested), PG-13 (parents strongly cautioned), R (restricted), or NC-17 (no one under seventeen admitted). As the film industry has been changing over time, so have the ratings. More and more parents are having issues with the ratings that some films are issued. “The man behind the ratings, Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), says the system works just fine. ‘Parents use it and trust it, and that's why it's lasted for almost 35 years,’ Valenti says. ‘It warns parents in advance about what's in a particular movie, but ultimately, parents are responsible for the behavior and conduct of their children — not the ratings system’ (Hansen 273).”