The BBFC uses the following Classifications:
Uc: Universal and suitable for children.
U: Suitable for a Universal audience.
PG: Parental Guidance, suitable for most children.
12A: In cinemas, people under 12 can see with an adult.
12: Over 12 years old only. May contain violence and swearing.
15: Over 15s only. May contain violence, drug use, sexual content, swearing.
18: Over 18s only. Will probably contain the above but in extreme amounts.
R18: Can only be sold by licensed sex shop or shown in Adult cinemas.
Thrillers are most likely to be rated either 15 or 18 because a common way to move the story on would be using violence and horror to create a sense of threat and a tense atmosphere. The fact that the movie is backed by these themes, pushes it into a more selective audience, mainly people from 15 onwards.
Many thrillers are certified as 15s or 18s however some are rated as 12s because of their setting. The film Inception is a thriller regarding a man who enters dreams to steal or place information. The film contains moderate violence, with gunfights and blood when people get shot, fast paced and brutal fight scenes and scenes of suicide (which include people being laid on train tracks, and jumping off buildings) yet these things do not warrant the certification of a 15, as the action is distanced by the fact that it takes place in a dream world. It is allowed to be rated as a 12 as the injuries in the film are not dwelled upon and there are no scenes of graphic injury. The film has mild swearing as well.
A thriller film classified as a 15 would be Shutter Island. It is a psychological thriller with horror elements centred around a US Marshall investigating a mental asylum on Shutter Island. The film was said to have over 20 uses of strong language and moderate language throughout requiring it to be a 15 rating. Dark, brutal and bloody images are seen through flashbacks which involve the execution of surrendering German Soldiers, a Nazi Commandant with a fatal wound on his face, bleeding to death and a scene with 3 dead children floating in the lake. Along with this unsettling images of dead bodies piled up at a Nazi death camp, this film has some dark tones to it, however because it does not dwell on the injuries, it can be accepted as a 15.
For our thriller "film" we would aim for a 15 certificate for a few reasons:
- Opens up to a wider audience
- Is not distasteful or has too much "gore for the sake of gore" etc.
- Can work on a deeper level then what you see. (On a psychological level for example).
- Opens up to a wider audience
- Is not distasteful or has too much "gore for the sake of gore" etc.
- Can work on a deeper level then what you see. (On a psychological level for example).
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