Mock Exam Answer

“Film censorship is motivated by fears about audiences and technologies.” Discuss this statement in reference to the concerns expressed about uncensored and unregulated video content in Britain in the early 1980s. [30 marks]

I feel that film censorship is strongly motivated by fears about audiences and technologies however there are some other factors that motivate film censorship which do not fall into either of the above categories. Through improvements in technologies such as VHS players which were now present in many British homes the public could easily get easy access to unregulated and uncensored films known as video nasties, these led to fears that the quality of society in Britain could fall if they were allowed to remain being easily obtainable to the public. These video nasties were a sort of scapegoat for any troubles within the country possibly arguing that film censorship could be motivated by personal ideals but i will explore this later in the essay. These VHS tapes and video nasties also presented a great threat to the multiplexes as the viewers could now view previously unobtainable footage from the comfort of their homes, leading to fears of an even greater economic decline.

Through the technological improvements that took place throughout the 1970s the public now had the option of both Betamax and VHS on which to watch films at home. Despite its better quality betamax was soon defeated as VHS not only allowed for a longer recording but had also become a social trend throughout Britain as visiting the multiplexes had been in the past. It did however have a darker side which played a large role in its triumph over betamax which was that VHS tapes were easier to copy and therefore pirate. It was this piracy that led to unregulated tapes being produced in mass numbers and therefore widely distributed across the country. This piracy of tapes allowed prices to fall therefore making it a much more appealing option for the public than to visit their nearest multiplex creating a fall in cinema attendance.

The main fears of what audiences of watching came with the introduction of the video nasties.These tapes allowed the viewers to see content that had been deemed either to horrific or obscene for the screens of the cinemas. The films focused on the genres of horror and pornography. Through being uncensored they were able to explore much darker concepts than anything before them had been, such as the idea of rape or extremely gory deaths. Through these new themes came a certain sense of intrigue which appealed in the main to teenage audiences as it was new and captured their attention and curiosity. This led to great levels of fear in parents as they no longer had any control over what their children were watching and no guarantee that the film was appropriate as it was unregulated. This created a great sense of moral panic as many adults felt that what their children were watching was wrong and should be banned altogether.

Amidst this moral panic the government saw a window for them to take advantage and use this for their gain. This argues that film censorship was not motivated by fears about audiences and technologies but rather as a tool to defeat the scapegoat which took the blame for a broken Britain. Under Margaret Thatcher the conservative government claimed that it was the fault of these video nasties for the state of some of the problems in Britain, Her government held very traditional views and felt that these tapes were not appropriate for viewing by anybody and should be gotten rid of. Through the media the government pushed the idea and created a larger sense of fear that it was these films damaging youth and the morals of the country, therefore rallying greater support for their disposal or censorship and also taking more blame away from Margaret Thatcher for the violence and poorness of the country. This gives the idea that it was not fear of how the audiences react but rather through the use of power to create a fear that had previously not been there in force for a governments own gains.

Eventually in the year of 1985 the regulation of home video came to be through an organisation called the BBFC meaning the British Board of Film Censorship. After being given permission by the conservative government the BBFC was allowed to apply age ratings to home video allowing the videos with the worst content to be flagged warning any potential viewers of what they would be watching. This shows that film censorship was done for the benefit of the audiences as they now knew what they were viewing and the country could have proper control over what was being distributed.

In conclusion i agree with my original point that film censorship is strongly motivated by fears about audience and technologies. It is the fear of the kind of content audiences are exposed to and through improved technologies the ease they can obtain it which pushed censorship forward as a major issue and led to home video being censored so strongly. Although other factors like the governments traditional conservative views affected censorship i still feel that fears for the audience and the advancements of technologies were more significant. The same issues of piracy causing film censorship to be difficult are still around today but in the form of internet movie piracy rather than VHS piracy, the audience however are now 30 years on a lot more desensitized to what they see it is almost as if films need to be extremely horrific just to capture our attention and become popular. An example of this is the human centipede a film viewed by many teenagers despite almost all of them being disgusted and horrified. All viewing however knew what they were about to watch which leads me to the conclusion that films should  have age ratings and content warnings but that films should never be censored as it is the viewers choice if they are sufficiently warned to undertake the viewing of the film.

Martin Stewart.

Economic:
- Jaws was the first film ever to gross over 100million dollars at the box office
- FIlm was released at different times in different places making it an event release allowing more money to be made
- Product tie-ins and merchandising became prominent
- People became attracted to blockbusters for these event films so that they could appreciate the big budget special effects films in a cinema with good lines of sight but also the quality of sound and projection that they had now come to expect and could no longer be achieved in small independent cinemas


Technology:
- Mechanical shark
- Star Wars kick starts go-motion animation, lead to character morphing, led to real time compositing which led to high tech camera systems and digital smoke + pyrotechnics



Social:
- Jaws appeals to peoples fear of the unknown
- Became attracted to the large blockbusters in the multiplex' as they were event films
- Event films became a social event

Comprehension Homework Questions

8.) Describe the rise of Cineplex and the resulting changes to film distribution

- The rise of the Cineplex came when types of films such as slashers, slapticks comedies and youth films started to take over from the past favourite films such as ‘the disaster film,’ and ‘the vigilante film’/ The trends of films started to closely follow the trends of shows on television making the films more heavy action and superhero based. With this change in genre of films more effects and ‘bigger’ sounds were needed. The average independent cinema could no longer handle this type of production which caused this raise in Cineplex’s as they were able not only to play more films at once but they were also able to cope with the greater needs that the type of film requires. This greater influx in the genre of film also led to the need for multiplex’ so that they could show multiple films at once satisfying a greater audience. This rose it over independent theatres as they now had a too wide audience to satisfy.

9.) Discuss the phenomenon as a contributing factor in the rise of the blockbuster 

- The cineplex were a major contributing factor in the rise of the blockbuster as the new multiscreen system and the new quality of these cinemas allowed people to go to the cinema and appreciate these blockbusters with all their new sound and special effects etc in the highest quality.

- This aided the blockbuster to rise because it allowed people to appreciate them in a special way that was more attractive and of better quality than any home videos or little independent cinemas

- The cineplex' allowed the more mainstream films to be shown and also allowed higher prices to be charged meaning that the blockbusters could afford to advertise more and therefor attract more people to the blockbusters

- The system of multiple screens meant that people had more opportunity to see the films and therefore the blockbusters became more popular and widely viewed

Blockbuster Preparation

Film: Men in Black 3
Production Budget: $215,000000
Director: Barry Sonenfield
Starring:
- Will Smith (I Am Legend, iRobot, Independence Day)
Box Office: $624,026,776
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 70%

Film: Avengers Assemble
Production Budget: $220,000000
Director: Joss Whedon
Starring:
- Robert Downey Jr (Iron Man, Sherlock Holmes, Due Date)
- Chris Hemsworth (Thor, The Cabin in The Woods, Snow White and The Huntsman)
- Scarlet Johannson (Lost in Translation, The Prestige, Iron Man 2)
- Jeremy Renner (The Bourne Legacy, 28 Weeks Later, Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters)
- Samuel L Jackson (Django Unchained, Pulp Fiction, Snakes on a Plane)
Box Office: $1,511,757,910
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 92%

Film: The Bourne Legacy
Production Budget: $125,000000
Director: Tony Gilroy
Starring:
- Jeremy Renner (Avengers Assemble, 28 Weeks Later, Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters)
Box Office: $276,144,750
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 56%

Film: The Amazing Spider-Man
Production Budget: $230,000000
Director: Marc Webb
Starring:
- Andrew Garfield (The Social Network, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Never Let Me Go)
- Emma Stone (Easy-A, Superbad, Zombieland)
Box Office: $752,216,557
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 73%

Film: The Dark Knight Rises
Production Budget: $250,000000
Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring:
- Christian Bale (Public Enemies, American Psycho, The Prestige)
- Tom Hardy (Inception, Warrior, Lawless)
- Michael Caine (Thunderbirds, Children of Men, Harry Brown)
- Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables, The Devil Wears Prada, Rachel Getting Married)
- Morgan Freeman (Wanted, The Shawshank Redemption, Se7en)
Box Office: $1,081,041,287
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 87%

Film: The Expendables 2
Production Budget: $100,000000
Director: Simon West
Starring:
- Sylvester Stallone (Rocky, Bullet to The Head, Rambo)
- Jason Statham (The Mechanic, Snatch, The Bank Job)
- Chuck Norris (The Delta Force, The Way of The Dragon, Lone Wolf McQuade)
- Bruce Willis (Looper, Die Hard, Pulp Fiction)
- Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator, Predator, Total Recall)
Box Office: $312,500,000
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 65%

Film: Total Recall
Production Budget: $125,000000
Director: Len Wiseman
Starring:
- Colin Ferrell (Fright Night, Phonebooth, Seven Psychopaths)
- Kate Beckinsale (Underworld, The Aviator, Pearl Harbor)
Box Office: $198,467,168
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 31%

Film: Looper
Production Budget: $30,000000
Director: Rian Johnson
Starring:
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt (The Dark Knight Rises, 500 Days of Summer, Mysterious Skin)
- Bruce Willis (The Expendables 2, Die Hard, Pulp Fiction)
Box Office: $166,521,588
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 93%

First Draft of Script

Evaluation of Screen Reading of my 'Scribble Script'

- The dialogue in my sequel scene does not move the story on as fluently as it could, it is more of a conversation. Only a few of the lines of dialogue are effective to moving the story forward

- My dialogue conveys the relationship between the two characters well because it shows Kevin's submissive nature towards the guard and how the guard no longer has any fear for Kevin

- My dialogue does not communicate the Macro from my textual analysis very well as the both of the two characters in my scene are now adults, however through the stage directions we see that Kevin is resorting back to his old childlike ways supporting the conclusion i made in my textual analysis essay that some people are born evil and will always revert back to it whatever situation they are placed in

- I need to improve the amount of dialogue in my script. i will do this by adding more in to link it to my macro study better and to convey more of the story rather than some of the seemingly pointless time filling conversation my scene has at the moment

- I felt that the dialogue i did use however suited my characters well in the ways in which they would speak, the guard as an everyday male and Kevin as a submissive teenager

To what extent do V for Vendetta & Children of Men conform to film stereotypes and what messages are behind these representations?

To what extent do V for Vendetta & Children of Men conform to film stereotypes and what messages are behind these representations?

The two films that I am studying both do conform to film stereotypes to an extent however they both have aspects that go against these traditional stereotypes which I will be exploring throughout the essay. However the film V for Vendetta appears to conform to these stereotypes to a greater extent than that which Children of Men does.

Both films follow the typical ‘horror’ characteristic of having a ‘final girl’ despite both being hybrid genre sci-fi thriller films. In V for Vendetta the final girl is the character of Evie, although she does fit many of the guidelines of a final girl she does differ in some ways. Evie reaches the end of the film and achieves her goal due to being smart, and through masculating herself. This is a common characteristic of how final girls reach the end of films and how we know that they are the stereotype of a final girl. Evie however achieves her objective through well planned out efforts and a strategy which does not conform to the stereotype which is that final girls normally defeat the final obstacle they face by accident or by some streak of luck. This shows that much like the genre of the film Evie is a hybrid of the final girl stereotype, she has lost her girlish characteristics and achieves her goals through planning but does survive to the end as the last significant female making her fit into the stereotype nonetheless. The film Children of Men however does not have this stereotype of a final girl, despite Kee surviving to the end of the film she does not do it through any of her own actions, the only reason she reaches her destination and survives the problems she faces throughout the film is through the actions of a male (Theo) and sacrifices others have made for her. She survives through to the end but does not meet any of the physical or mental stereotypes of a final girl so I do not feel that she should be placed into this category showing that the film Children of Men does not follow the common stereotype of genre of a final girl, and does so to convey the message that although women are necessary to keep the world going they need men to help them reach this goal and outcome.

The next stereotype i will focus on is that of a hypermasculine protagonist. The film V for Vendetta immediately meets this stereotype through the character of V. The character possesses super human speed and strength which immediately shows him as a hypermasculine alpha male. And scene which displays this to the greatest extent is in the conclusion of the film where V fights multiple soldiers in the underground and kills them all whilst being repeatedly shot at. This demonstration of his power shows his hypermasculine characteristics and representation perfectly meeting the traditional stereotype of a hypermasculine protagonist. You can also read into this in a psychosexual way as V uses large knives to repeatedly penetrate his enemies to show his dominance over them, this again supports the idea of him being hypermasculine as i shows his superiority as an alpha male. V for vendetta also turns the stereotypical female character of Evie into a hypermasculinised heroine who completes Vs Vendetta. When she becomes masculinised Evie loses her fear and also her hair, masculinising her personality and physical appearance. The way that both protagonists fit the hypermasculine stereotype conveys the message that only males can complete the important actions in the world, and gives the idea that women almost need to change and become like males to make an impact on the world. This message can be interpretated differently but that is how i personally read into the film. Children of Men however has no predominant hypermasculinised characters to fit into the stereotype, the only characters that i felt portrayed these characteristics were the revolutionary group ‘The Fishes’ during the scene in which they chase Theo and Kee as they try to escape. The fishes however are robbed of this hypermasculinity when they display feminine traits during the scene in which Kee is wandering through the battle ground with her baby and all fighting hold a ceasefire. This stop in fighting and consideration is a feminine trait of weakness which would not be portrayed by a hypermasculinised character. This leads me to the conclusion that V for Vendetta conforms to the stereotypes of a Hypermasculine protagonist whilst Children of Men does not conform to any extent.

The next main stereotype is that of a positive British National Identity. As a Hollywood film it is to be expected that even though it is dystopian V for Vendetta will still present Britain in a more tourist appealing attractive way than the film Children of Men will. V for Vendetta shows all the iconic locations of Britain such as the houses of parliament and the old Bailey, despite being a dystopian film we see very little evidence of this in the physicality’s of the buildings and locations in which the film is set. The majority of characters in the film are very well spoken in a typical British accent showing that the film follows these stereotypes of the British national identity. However the film has a totalitarian government with strong Nazi symbolism which goes against any stereotypes and traditional representations of the British. This is put in the film to show the dystopian theme of the film and means that the film cannot fully conform to the typical Representation of the British national identity so only meets the stereotype to a certain extent. The film Children of Men again goes against stereotypes and does not follow any stereotypes of British National Identity other than the accents which all of the English characters throughout the film possess. These are none of Britain’s typical tourist attractions shown and the country is presented in a negative light so would cause no desire for potential tourists watching the film to visit. I feel that the film goes against these stereotypes because it is a British made film rather than a Hollywood made film so it has no influences or pressures from outside sources to include a positive presentation of any aspects or buildings of the British.

In conclusion V for Vendetta conforms to the stereotypes of Characters and British National Identity to a much higher extent than children of men does. I feel that it does this because it is a Hollywood film so follows more typical conventions to attract a wider audience unlike the film children of men which was a British film and therefore aimed to give a truer representation of Britain and what the future holds rather than to simply create as much money as possible for those involved.