1990s to 2010s American science fiction and fantasy movies that have been censored for more commercially friendly classifications.
Total Recall
Directed by Paul Verhoeven / 1990 / USA / IMDb
On 4 June 1990, TOTAL RECALL received an R (Very frequent violence). It was said to be:
Frequency: Frequent
Explicitness/Intensity: Medium
Purpose: Gratuitous
At 104-minutes, it was around nine minutes shorter than an uncut running time. A PAL VHS was a likely source as the OFLC reported it under ‘Classifications assigned to films for sale/hire’. In addition, it may have been an unfinished print.
A censored 109-minute 35mm print dropped it to M (Frequent violence, Coarse language) on 18 June. The violence and language were:
Frequency: Frequent
Explicitness/Intensity: Medium
Purpose: Gratuitous
Failed review
Despite the lower rating, ‘contractual agreements’ forced Hoyts Fox Columbia Tristar Films to go back and appeal the uncut R-rating.
June 28, 1990
Decision Reviewed
Classify ‘R’ by the Film Censorship BoardDecision
TOTAL RECALL, a futuristic science-fiction adventure starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, was classified ‘R’ by the Film Censorship Board because of its violence. A modified version was submitted by the film’s Australian distributors and classified M’. It was subsequently discovered that contractual agreements between the director and the producers of the film prevented any version being screened with cuts or modifications. The modified version was therefore withdrawn and an appeal lodged against the original ‘R’ classification. This appeal was considered by the Film and Literature Board of Review.
The distributors contended in a submission to the Board that the film’s violence was “tongue-in-cheek” and not to be taken seriously; that the film was pure fantasy in keeping with the comic-strip characters usually portrayed by Schwarzenegger; and that the violence was no more likely to seem real than that of many cartoons.
TOTAL RECALL is an expensive film. The special effects are elaborate. The production values are impressive. It is true that the story has a comic-strip flavour, but its tone is by no means light-hearted. The film depicts a fashionably pessimistic view of the future – a world of greater greed and violence unmitigated by greater technological prowess. The action is menacing rather than escapist, and there is a message of sorts at the end. To say that the film is in no way to be regarded as a serious work seemed to us disingenuous; the director presumably took the film seriously enough to forbid any cuts. But even if TOTAL RECALL were a manifestly frivolous film its violence would still have formidable impact. It is frequent, intense, and calculated.
Members of the Board of Review were in no doubt that it exceeded the limits of an ‘M’ classification. All of it was explicit; much of it was highly detailed, and some of it at least was relished. Both individually and cumulatively the violent sequences contributed to a prevailing tone of ruthlessness and savagery. Some of us felt though such judgements, of course, are ones for the director – that the film would have been no less successful if the violence had been less pronounced. Others of us who enjoyed TOTAL RECALL for its spectacle and technical accomplishment, and might have been tempted to treat such a commercially ambitious and potentially popular film with greater indulgence, were nevertheless mindful of the film’s power to disturb and its possible effects on young audiences.
All of us agreed that TOTAL RECALL, in its uncut version, had been properly classified ‘R’ by the Film Censorship Board, and accordingly we affirmed the ‘R’ classification.
– Films Board of Review report
Censored cinema
In October 1990, a 112-minute 35mm TOTAL RECALL passed as M (Frequent violence, Coarse language).
Paul Verhoeven’s ‘contractual agreement’ against a modified version appears to have changed as it finally opened theatrically in December 1990.
VHS options
In June 1991, Columbia Tristar Hoyts Home Video issued both M and R versions on tape.
The spine of the R listed it as ‘Total Recall (Uncut R Version)’ while a star on the cover advised ‘M rated version also available’.
Sell-through releases on CEL Home Video followed in July 1992.
May 29, 1992
– CEL Home Video
Cinema version (M-rated) and the special-release R-rated version.
Both versions of TOTAL RECALL are available in this release. The original cinema release, the M-rated version, is available at 104 minutes, while the R-rated version runs at 109 minutes and contains spectacular, previously edited scenes.
The remainder of the 1990s saw several other sell-through editions.
What’s cut? M vs. R
Melon Farmers has the Cutting Edge report. The accompanying YouTube video appears to be only available on web.archive.org.
They note the M-rating ‘…removed some footage outright, but in the main utilized alternate footage and camera angles of contentious shots that had been filmed for American television screenings’.
Uncut MA15+
In December 2005 and July 2010, Universal Pictures received MA15+ (Strong Violence) ratings for ‘Special Edition’ DVDs.
An ‘Ultimate Rekall Editionl’ Blu-ray received the same in September 2012.
The classification matrix described,
Strong impact: violence
Moderate impact: language, nudity, sex
None: themes, drug use
The consumer advice changed to MA15+ (Strong violence and sex scenes) for a ‘Classics Remastered’ Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD in October 2020.
The classification matrix increased to,
Strong impact: violence, sex
Moderate impact: themes, language, nudity
Mild impact: drug use
Universal Sony Pictures Home Entertainment submitted both.
MPAA X-rated footage
In the US, the MPAA initially awarded TOTAL RECALL an X, leading it to be cut. The IMDb has details of the modifications.
The footage remains unrestored, possibly lost, so the MPAA R-rated print remains the worldwide default ‘uncut’ version.
Predator 2
Directed by Stephen Hopkins / 1990 / USA / IMDb
In December 1990, an uncut 35mm print of PREDATOR 2 received an R (Some graphic violence, Drug abuse, Assaultive coarse language).
Violence and language
Frequency: Infrequent
Explicitness/Intensity: Medium
Purpose: Gratuitous
Other: Drug abuse
Later that month, a censored version dropped to M (Frequent violence, Assaultive coarse language).
Violence and language
Frequency: Frequent
Explicitness/Intensity: Medium
Purpose: Gratuitous
Sex
Frequency: Infrequent
Explicitness/Intensity: Medium
Purpose: Gratuitous
Hoyts Fox Columbia Tristar Films released the censored version theatrically.
R vs. M – The cuts
It is unknown why the R-rated ran 107-minutes and the M-rated 103. The press sheet lists the longer running time.
Melon Farmers has the Cutting Edge report and accompanying YouTube video. They note the removal of only 00:45 to reduce drug use, language and violence.
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (au) – Blu-ray – 108:00
06:15 – A member of the Colombian Scorpions snorts cocaine before going into battle.
07:30 – El Scorpio (Henry Kingi) snorts cocaine.
17:45 – Mike (Danny Glover) says, ‘This means your cutting of my dick and shoving it up my ass’.
24:15 – Gold Tooth (Michael Mark Edmondson) sacrifices Cory (Ramon Vega) by stabbing him in the stomach.
25:00 – One of the Jamaican Voodoo Posse is repeatedly shot against a wall. A second is stabbed from behind by the Predator and lifted by its claws.
27:15 – Jerry (Bill Paxton) is startled by a skinned hanging body and says, ‘fuck, Oh God’.
Censored VHS
In March, a 105-minute ‘Edited Version’ VHS of PREDATOR 2 again received an M (Frequent violence, Assaultive coarse language). Violence, language and sex were at the same levels as the initial classification.
CBS/Fox Video, the applicant, released the tape in May.
In 1993, Fox Video reissued it on sell-through with the same cover.
A 101-minute VHS received an M (Medium level violence, Horror theme) in June 1995. The running time and rating indicate a censored version. A tape may not exist as Australis Media, the applicant, was a pay-tv provider.
Uncut VHS
A 1997 VHS double-bill, from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, paired the sequel with PREDATOR (1987). The cover labelled it M-rated. Despite this, PREDATOR 2 was uncut for the first time in Australia.
The ‘Bonus Material’ promised on the cover consists of the original theatrical trailers and a ‘behind the scenes’ featurette for the sequel.
Peter F. reports
’10th Anniversary Double Pack Collector’ Edition’ VHS vs. Uncut DVD.
103:28 approx. (PAL) – Fox logo and Credits included – VHS.
103:33 (PAL) – DVD (Special Edition).
Fox Home Entertainment issued a second uncut VHS in 2002. The cover art matched their 2001 DVD.
DVD & Blu-ray
Multiple uncut DVDs and Blu-ray have been issued by Fox, with varying degrees of classification confusion.
The first came in 2001 from Fox Home Entertainment. The DVD carried the 1991 R-rating but omitted any consumer advice. A double-feature DVD, with PREDATOR (1987), was similarly classified.
In March 2005, a ‘Special Edition’ DVD received an MA (High level violence, Drug use, Medium level sex scene, Medium level coarse language). Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment issued the disc.
Uncut DVDs released in 2007, 2008, and 2018 were incorrectly labelled as M-rated.
Peter F. reports
One Disc Edition DVD, 2008, M (Frequent violence, Assaultive coarse language).
103:35 (PAL) – 00:02 longer than the previous MA15+ ‘Special Edition’ DVD.
All Blu-ray and 4K UHD releases carry the correct MA15+.
Independence Day
Directed by Roland Emmerich / 1996 / USA / IMDb
In June 1996, a 136-minute 35mm of INDEPENDENCE DAY received an M (Low level violence, Low level coarse language). It is unknown why the running time was so short compared to the 144:48 of the international ‘Theatrical Version’.
The following month, a 145-minute 35mm received a M (Low level violence). The ‘Low level coarse language’ was dropped from the consumer advice.
In September, a 143-minute 35mm and a 132-minute videotape received PG (Medium level violence, Low level coarse language) ratings.
This censored version was released theatrically.
According to the IMDB, the cuts include ‘…the destruction of the AWAC as it enters the fire cloud and the shot of the helicopter pilots when the alien destroyer shoots them down’.
In all cases, the applicant was Fox Columbia Tristar Films.
VHS releases
In 1997, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment issued the censored PG version on VHS.
A ‘Special Edition’ followed in 2000 of the ‘Extended Version’.
Although it carried the previous PG-rating, it needs to be confirmed if it was still cut.
What was censored for PG?
According to the IMDb, the cuts include ‘…the destruction of the AWAC as it enters the fire cloud and the shot of the helicopter pilots when the alien destroyer shoots them down’.
These brief scenes do not fully account for a 145 to 143-minute time reduction.
DVD, Blu-ray & 4K
The following submissions were presumably uncut.
In September 2000, a DVD received a PG (Medium level violence, Low level coarse language). The cover was identical to the ‘Special Edition’ VHS.
The ‘Extended Version’ was awarded the same rating in March 2004.
A December 2007 Blu-ray modified the consumer advice to PG (Mild action violence, Mild coarse language).
In March 2016, the 434-minute ’20th Anniversary Edition’ Blu-ray changed again to PG (Mild themes, action violence and coarse language.
The classification matrix described,
Mild impact: themes, violence, language
None: drug use, nudity, sex
In June of the same year an 147-minute ‘Special Edition Version’ and a 587-minute ‘Special Edition Version UHD’ both received M (Science fiction themes and violence) ratings.
The classification matrix now described,
Moderate impact: themes, violence
Mild impact: language, sex
Very mild impact: nudity
None” drug use.
In all cases, the applicant was Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.
Men in Black
Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld / 1997 / USA / IMDb
A 98-minute 35mm print of MEN IN BLACK received an M (Low level violence) in June 1998.
The following month, Columbia TriStar Films tried to get the rating dropped to PG.
M to PG – Failed appeal
The Classification Review Board confirmed the M-rating and added ‘Low level coarse language’ to the consumer advice.
July 18, 1997
Applicant:
Columbia TriStar Films Pty LtdBusiness:
To review the decision of the Classification Board to assign the classification ‘M15+’ under the ‘Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995’ to the film MEN IN BLACK with the consumer advice ‘Low Level Violence’.Decision and Reasons for Decision
1. Decision
The Classification Review Board decided to confirm the decision of the Classification Board to classify the film MEN IN BLACK and ‘M15+’, but decided to vary the consumer advice to ‘Low Level Violence, Low Level Coarse Language’.
2. Legislative Provisions
The ‘Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995’ (the Act) governs the classification of films and the review of classification decisions. The Act provides that films be classified in accordance with the National Classification Code and the classification guidelines. Relevantly, the National Classification Code (the Code) in paragraph 5 of the Table under the heading ‘Films’ provides that films (except ‘RC’ films, ‘X’ films, ‘MA’ films) that cannot be recommended for viewing by persons who are under 15 are to be classified ‘M15+’.
3. Procedure
3.1 Three members of the Review Board viewed the film MEN IN BLACK at its meeting on 18 July 1997.
4. Evidence
In reaching its decision the Review Board had regard to the following:
a. the applicant’s Application for Review and attachments
b. the film MEN IN BLACK
c. the relevant provisions in the Act
d. the relevant provisions in the National Classification Code as amended in accordance with section 6 of the Act
e. the current ‘Classification Guidelines for the Classification of Films and Videotapes’ determined under section 12 of the Act.
5. Findings on material questions of fact
The plot
5.1 MEN IN BLACK is a science fiction adventure comedy which follows the efforts of K and J, two employees of a secret government agency charged with keeping the peace between aliens roaming the earth in human form. K and J pursue an alien bug which has murdered humans and several aliens from another galaxy, and has stolen a minute galaxy. The earth is threatened with destruction unless the stolen galaxy is recovered.
Themes and Scenes of Violence
5.2 The Review Board considered the themes and scenes cited by the Classification Board. These included five sequences at 12, 14, 25, 42 and 43 minutes which the Classification Board found had more detail, impact and conceptual strength than is appropriate in a ‘PG’ classification.
The Review Board found that these depictions of violence, as well as a number of other depictions throughout the film, had more detail, impact and conceptual strength than is appropriate in a ‘PG’ classification, notwithstanding that many of the depictions involved aliens who were clearly fantasy figures.
The ‘other depictions’ included scenes at approximately
8 minutes: an ‘illegal immigrant’ is taken into the bush, slit open with a knife to reveal an alien, and his head held up on a stick in a scene containing a considerable sense of threat and menace;
44 minutes: a baby alien sprays mucus over the Man in Black in a manner which is neither mild in impact nor stylised;
72 minutes: victims are held by the throat and menaced with guns (not mild in impact);
84 minutes: a bug emerges from a space ship, pulls its own head off, swallows one man and hits another (not mild in impact).
There is, additionally, frequent and threatening resort to use of guns, e.g. at 20 minutes, 27 minutes, 63 minutes, 72 minutes and 78 minutes.
The Review Board found that the violent depictions were likely to be disturbing to some children under the age of 15 and as such could not be accommodated within the ‘PG’ classification.
The Review Board found that there was frequent use of coarse language (principally the stem words ‘shit’ and ‘arse’ ). Despite their use as a New York street argot, the Review Board considered that these were not ‘mild and infrequent’ as required in the ‘PG’ classification.
6. Reasons for Decision
6.1 The Review Board based its decision to confirm the Classification Board’s decision to classify the film MEN IN BLACK ‘M15’ and to vary the consumer advice from ‘Low Level Violence’ to ‘Low Level Violence, Low Level Course Language’ on the film’s content and language as described in 5.2 above.
6.2 The applicant argued that
> the ‘PG’ classification had been interpreted [by the Classification Board] as being intended to identify films for very young children; and
> the ‘PG’ classification guidelines for violence had been interpreted too rigorously in this instance; and
> the ‘M15’ classification assigned by the Classification Board is inconsistent with other decisions of the Board to classify some major releases ‘PG’.
It argued, further that he incidents cited by the Classification Board were discreet, stylised, lacked impact and/or were presented in a humorous way. The film was claimed to fit into a general ‘fantasy’ category with an appeal to a ten year plus audience.
6.3 The Review Board rejects the applicant’s argument that fantasy violence within a humorous context should be treated in a manner fundamentally different from violence within a realistic context. The Review Board found, as in 5.2 above, that the film contained several incidents in which violence was not discreetly implied or mild in impact or lacking in detail within the meaning of the ‘PG’ classification guidelines, and therefore the film could not be accommodated within that classification. In the Boards opinion that the film failed to meet the requirement that ‘PG’ films not be disturbing or harmful to children under the age of 15.
6.4 As well the Review Board found, as cited in 5.2 above, that the film’s use of coarse language was too frequent and emphatic to be accommodated in a ‘PG’ classification.
6.5 The Classification Board of Review concluded that MEN IN BLACK cannot be recommended for viewing for those under 15 years within the meaning of Para.5 of the National Classification Code for Films. The Board accordingly decided to confirm the ‘M15+’ classification assigned to the film by the Classification Board and, for reasons stated above, to vary the consumer advice from ‘Low Level Violence’ to Low Level Violence, Low Level Coarse Language’.
7. Summary
7.1 The Review Board’s decision is to confirm the decision of the Classification Board to classify the film MEN IN BLACK ‘M15+’ and to assign to its advertising the consumer advice ‘Low Level Violence, Low Level Coarse Language’. The decision was taken after full consideration of the applicant’s submission, and after assessing the film as a whole against legislative criteria, including those contained in the Code, and in the current ‘Classification Guidelines for Films and Videotapes’ determined under Section 12 of the Act.
– Classification Review Board report
Cut for PG-rating
Following the failed appeal, Columbia Tristar Films resubmitted a 98-minute modified print.
In September, they received a PG (Medium level violence, Medium level coarse language) and opened it theatrically later in the month.
Columbia Tristar Home Video’s rental and sell-through VHS were both the censored PG version.
Still too much for some
October 2, 1998
– Classification Board, Annual Report, 1997 to 1998
MEN IN BLACK, four written and one telephone complaints about graphic images and the film being unsuitable for the PG rating.
What was censored?
Matt reports
Columbia Tristar Home Video (au) – VHS – 93:42 (PAL) – Censored
Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment (au) – DVD – 94:01 (PAL) – BBFC audio dubs
Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment (us) – DVD – 97:52 (NTSC) – Uncut
Perp’s fall
12:49 – Perp (Keith Campbell) falls backwards off a building.
PG – Halfway down, his body disappears in sparkles.
Uncut – Instead of sparkles, his body continues falling. Contact with the ground is offscreen and indicated by a ‘thud’ sound.
Before – The bug pulls Edgar (Vincent D’Onofrio) into the crater, followed by him screaming.
Edgar’s skin
Censored at 14:11 – A long shot shows his empty skin thrown out of the crater. A close-up view shows it pulled back in.
After – Edgar crawls out of the crater.
Death of Zap-Em Man
Before – Edgar grabs the face of Zap-Em Man (Ken Thorley).
Censored at 23:06 – Overhead shot of the metal rod shoved down Zap-Em Man’s throat.
After – The PG version repeats a later shot of the van before the body falls forward. The uncut version plays uninterrupted before cutting to the van.
Ivan’s body
Before – Brief shot of the body of Ivan, the waiter, folded into the shelving.
Censored at 42:24 – Longer shot of his body.
After – Edgar walks out to deliver the food.
Death of Rosenburg and Arquillian
Before – Edgar’s swinging the spike towards Gentle Rosenburg’s (Mike Nussbaum) neck.
Censored at 42:46 – The spike going through his neck.
After/Before – Rosenburg falling forward into his plate of food. Edgar looks at Arquillian (Carel Struycken).
Censored at 42:49 – Arquillian looks up as Edgar’s spike begins to pierce his neck.
After – The spike goes further through his neck before being withdrawn. It is illogical this remains as it is more graphic than the previous two trims.
Imported censorship
In the UK, MEN IN BLACK was modified for a BBFC PG-rating. In that case, the violence remained untouched while cuts were made to language.
19:42 – After Agent Kay (Tommy Lee Jones) shoots him in the head, Jeebs (Tony Shalhoub) says ‘You insensitive prick!’. In the BBFC version ‘jerk’ replaces ‘prick’.
66:09 – Agent Kay says to Agent Jay (Will Smith), ‘I just hope the little prick hasn’t skipped town’. In the BBFC version ‘twerp’ replaces ‘prick’.
Both mentions of ‘prick’ were uncut in the Australian PG-rated version.
In May 2000, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment received an M (Low level violence) for a DVD. A ‘Deluxe Collector’s Edition’ and a ‘Limited Edition’ followed. Both discs restored the violence, but now included the BBFC’s language modifications.
Subsequent DVDs, some combined with the sequel, all list an M (Low level violence). It is unknown if they are similarly overdubbed.
In June 2008, a Blu-ray received an M (Frequent action violence. Despite the upgrade, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment again used a censored BBFC master.
It is unknown if the 2012 Blu-ray and 2017 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray are finally uncut.
The latter features an incorrect PG (Frequent action violence) on the cover.
Bumblebee
Disc extra – Burns Meets Bee
Directed by Travis Knight / 2018 / USA / IMDb
On 20 November 2018, a 114-minute DCP of BUMBLEBEE passed with an M (Action violence).
The classification matrix described,
Moderate impact: violence
Mild impact: themes, language
Very mild impact: drug use, sex
None: nudity
A second submission, also 114-minutes, received the same rating and classification matrix on 4 December. Modifications made by Paramount Pictures Australia targeted a PG.
The following day, the Classification Review Board announced they would meet on 11 December to reconsider the decision.
M to PG
The appeal saw the censored M-rated version drop to PG (Mild science fiction violence and mild themes. Some scenes may scare young children).
The violence in the classification matrix went from ‘moderate impact’ to ‘mild impact’, while the drug use and sex dropped from ‘very mild impact’ to ‘none’.
December 11, 2018
Members:
Ms Fiona Jolly [Convenor]
Ms Susan Knowles (Deputy Convenor)
Mr Peter Attard (Member)Applicant:
Paramount Pictures AustraliaInterested parties:
Australian Council on Children and the MediaBusiness:
To review the Classification Board’s decision to classify the film BUMBLEBEE M (Mature) with the consumer advice ‘Action violence’.Decision and reasons for decision
1. Decision The Classification Review Board (the Review Board) unanimously classified the film BUMBLEBEE PG (Parental Guidance) with the consumer advice ‘Mild science fiction violence, mild themes, some scenes may scare young children’.
2. Legislative provisions The Classification (Publications, Film and Computer Games) Act 1995 (Cth) (the Classification Act) governs the classification of films and the review of classification decisions.
The Review Board
Part 5 of the Classification Act outlines the provisions relevant to the Review Board and its procedures. Section 42 of the Classification Act sets out the persons who may apply for review of a decision:
a) the Minister
b) the applicant for classification of the film, or the likely classification of the film under section 33
c) the publisher of the film, or
d) a person aggrieved by the decision.
Section 43 sets out the conditions regarding the manner and form of applications for review, including time limits. Under section 44, the Review Board must deal with an application for review in the same way that the Classification Board deals with an application for classification of a film.
Classification of films under the Classification Act
Section 9, subject to section 9A, provides that films are to be classified in accordance with the National Classification Code (the Code) and the classification guidelines. Section 9A states that a film that advocates the doing of a terrorist act must be classified RC.
Section 11 of the Classification Act requires that the matters to be taken into account in making a decision on the classification of a film include the:
a) standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults;
b) literary, artistic or educational merit (if any) of the film;
c) general character of the film, including whether it is of a medical, legal or scientific character; and
d) persons or class of persons to or amongst whom it is published or is intended or likely to be published.
The National Classification Code
Relevantly, the Films Table of the National Classification Code (the Code) provides that: [Films (except RC films, X 18+ films, R 18+ films, MA 15+ films and M films) that cannot be recommended for viewing by persons who are under 15 without the guidance of their parents or guardians are to be classified PG.
The Code also sets out various principles to which classification decisions should give effect, as far as possible:
a) adults should be able to read, hear, see and play what they want
b) minors should be protected from material likely to harm or disturb them
c) everyone should be protected from exposure to unsolicited material that they find offensive
d) the need to take account of community concerns about:
(i) depictions that condone or incite violence, particularly sexual violence and,
(ii) the portrayal of persons in a demeaning manner.
The Guidelines Three essential principles underlie the use of the Guidelines for the Classification of Films 2012 (the Guidelines), determined under section 12 of the Classification Act, the:
– importance of context
– assessment of impact, and
– six classifiable elements—themes, violence, sex, language, drug use and nudity.
3. Procedure
Three members of the Review Board met on 11 December 2018 in response to the receipt of an application from Paramount Pictures Australia on 4 December 2018 to conduct the review of the film BUMBLEBEE, which had previously been classified M (Mature) by the Classification Board. The Review Board determined that the application was a valid application.
The Review Board was provided a written submission from the Applicant and heard an oral submission from the Applicant.
The Review Board viewed the film.
The Review Board was provided a written submission from the Australian Council on Children and the Media.
The Review Board then considered the matter.
4. Evidence and other material taken into account
In reaching its decision, the Review Board had regard to the following:
(i) Paramount Pictures Australia’s application for review
(ii) Paramount Pictures Australia’s written and oral submissions
(iii) a written submission received from the Australian Council on Children and the Media
(iv) the film, BUMBLEBEE
(v) the relevant provisions in the Classification Act, the Code and the Guidelines, and
(vi) the Classification Board’s report.
5. Synopsis
The film is a science fiction action film set in the late 1980s which relates the tale of the Autobot Bumblebee who has sought refuge in a Californian town. Bumblebee, having assumed the appearance of a yellow VW beetle, is found by Charlie, an 18-year-old girl coming to terms with her father’s death. The film depicts the Decepticons coming to earth to find Bumblebee and their trail of deception as they find and are inevitably disposed of by Bumblebee, his friend Charlie and several other characters.
6. Findings on material questions of fact
The Review Board found that the film contains aspects or scenes of importance under various classifiable elements:
(a) Themes—The film includes the theme of a teenager coming to terms with the death of her father, and two depictions of bullying behaviour toward Charlie by other young people.
The impact of this element is no higher than mild and can be accommodated at the PG level.
(b) Violence—The film contains several instances of battles scenes between Autobots, specifically the Decepticons and various transformers. The battle scenes are animated and only the opening and final scenes are prolonged, with a mild sense of menace and although the Transformers lose limbs, this is depicted as machinery being damaged and there is no detail of injury. The impact of the battle scenes is mild in impact, particularly as these are separated by prolonged and primarily light-hearted scenes of the growing friendships between Charlie and Bumblebee and Charlie and her neighbour.
Scenes of violence against humans are minimal and when they occur there is only very mild detail of injury and no depiction of more than passing pain. For example, there are two instances in the film where humans are ‘liquidated’ by the Decepticons. In each scene the person disappears into a splash of slime like substance—there is no blood detail and the people disappear immediately. Similarly, when Bumblebee arrives on earth he lands upon a group of soldiers. There is reference to soldiers being injured and needing assistance, but there is no detail of any soldiers or depiction of injury. At 11 minutes, Agent Burns is depicted stuck underneath a burning vehicle. He appears concerned but is lying still. There is minimal blood on his face and he does not appear in pain.
The impact of these scenes is mild. The impact of this element is no higher than mild and can be accommodated at the PG level.
(c) Sex—There is no sex in the film.
(d) Language—The film contains the use of ‘shit’, ‘freakin’ and ‘screwed’ on one occasion each. The impact of this element is no higher than mild and can be accommodated at the PG level.
(e) Drug Use—There is no drug use in the film.
(f) Nudity—There is no nudity in the film.
7. Reasons for the decision
In making this decision the Classification Review Board has applied the Classification Act, the Guidelines.
In the Review Board’s opinion, the film warrants a PG classification as it is suitable for viewing by children under the age of 15 with parental guidance.
In the Review Board’s opinion, the film is set in a science fiction environment and is primarily concerned with a friendship between Charlie and the Autobot Bumblebee. Although the film concerns the Decepticons search for Bumblebee, the violence in the film is primarily between the Autobots and lacks detail of injury other than mechanical injury. In the Review Board’s opinion, the violence between Autobots is no more than mild in impact and can be accommodated at the PG level.
The Review Board also considered that there are few scenes which depict violence towards people and on the occasions where there is either fighting between Transformers and humans or ‘liquefaction’ of humans, there is no detail other than mild injury, little blood detail, and no suffering other than fleeting glimpses of humans in pain. In the Review Board’s opinion the impact of these scenes is no more than mild and can be accommodated at the PG level.
The Review Board considered that the scenes of violence in the film are interspersed between the prolonged storyline of the growing friendship between Charlie and Bumblebee and Charlie and her neighbour, and the relationship between Charlie and her family. In the Review Board’s opinion, the overall impact of the violent elements in the film is no more than mild and can be accommodated at the PG level.
The Review Board also noted that the film contained two scenes of bullying behaviour toward Charlie from other children at her school. The Review Board considered that the impact of these scenes is no more than mild.
8. Summary
The Classification Review Board has applied the Classification Act, the Classification Code and the Guidelines in considering the appropriate classification of the film BUMBLEBEE. In the Review Board’s opinion, the film warrants a PG classification as it is suitable for viewing by children under the age of 15 with parental guidance. The Review Board considers that the film should be accompanied by consumer advice indicating that the film contains ‘Mild science fiction violence and mild themes, some scenes may scare young children’.
– Classification Review Board report
Ratings explained
The Board issued a rare media release explaining the situation.
December 14, 2018
The Classification Board has considered and classified two versions of the film, BUMBLEBEE, for Paramount Pictures Australia Pty Ltd.The original version (114 minutes in duration) was classified on 20 November 2018 as M, Action violence; and a modified version of the film (of the same duration) was classified on 4 December 2018, also as M, Action violence.
On 11 December 2018, upon application by Paramount Pictures, the Classification Review Board, which is separate and independent from the Classification Board, reviewed the modified version of the film and classified it PG, Mild science fiction violence and mild themes. Some scenes may scare young children.
Accordingly, there are two versions of the film which have valid classifications: the modified now classified on review as PG, and the original classified M.
The National Classification Database is currently being updated to reflect the two decisions.
It is open to Paramount Pictures to screen theatrically or to release to home entertainment, either version of the classified film.
– There are two versions of the theatrical release film, Bumblebee
– Margaret Anderson, Director, Classification Board
What was cut?
Censored by six seconds, BUMBLEBEE opened in Australia with a PG-rating on 20 December.
The bloody face of Agent Burns (John Cena) underneath a Humvee was the longest trim. The Classification Review Board described him in the cut version as having ‘minimal blood on his face’ and ‘not appear[ing] in pain’.
Movie-Censorship has a comparison between the uncut and the BBFC PG-rated. Missing footage reportedly matches Australian PG.
Censored DVD & Blu-ray
On 11 February 2019, a 194-minute Blu-ray of BUMBLEBEE passed with an M (Action violence and coarse language) rating.
The classification matrix described,
Moderate impact: violence, language
Mild impact: themes
None: drug use, nudity, sex
This was the modified PG-rated version with the rating increase due to extras.
A second Blu-ray, this time running 202-minutes, received an M (Action violence) on 22 February. The language in the classification matrix dropped from ‘moderate impact’ to ‘mild impact’.
Again, this was the PG-rated version with a consumer advice change due to the removal of an extra.
A 140-minute DVD received a PG-rating on 4 March. The consumer advice and classification matrix matched the censored theatrical version.
Universal Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, the applicant, released the censored discs on 3 April.
The DVD and one-disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray were PG-rated.
Although the Blu-ray and two-disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray were M-rated, the rear cover noted, ‘Feature film is rated PG, special feature contains M-rated material’.
What was the missing extra?
The Blu-ray and two-disc Ultra HD Blu-ray drops the 01:24 outtake, BURNS MEETS BEE.
On meeting Bumblebee, Agent Burns says, ‘I think I’m gonna forget that, just cuz you look really [bleep] cool’. The word ‘fucking’ is entirely removed by a bleep.
The deletion of the outtake meant the ‘coarse language’ warning disappeared from the consumer advice.
Still too violent for some
September 2, 2019
– Classification Review Board, Annual Report, 2018-2019
Two complaints were about BUMBLEBEE, with both complainants expressing concern that the violence in the film was too impactful for a PG classification.
Uncut on Netflix screening
With physical media failing, it was down to Netflix to present Australian audiences a complete version. It streamed in December 2020 with the correct M (Action violence).