The MPAA Ratings System: Film Changed Forever

Paper by Ethan Cohen. Viewed on DVD.

When it comes to death, many people take a one sided view—associating it with fear and angst. But what is not commonly associated with death is that it can be a driving force in evolution and change, inspire creativity and ignite people to achieve all that they can before signing off. On top of this, many are also not aware of the effect death can have on our actions, especially in our attempts to protect our own creations, ideas and beliefs. In other words death, and the never ending run away from it, effects and changes all things at some point. This concept death even applies to our class in that we can see its influence on the film industry during the late 1960’s. At this time, those in the industry were starting to feel death creep in and threaten their livelihood from a wide spread loss of interest in movies thanks to The Production Code—an out dated and archaic film censorship platform—and thanks to TV and foreign film competition. And because the avoidance of death changes all things, the film industry was driven to change their industrial system. This was accomplished this by choosing to abolish The Production Code and install the MPAA ratings system—which encouraged artistic film, lessened restrictions and increased acceptable limits on film content—that helped regain viewership and intrigue in movies. In this paper, we will explore this event and prove—from a close analysis of research, films, historical events, and from an in depth look at the movie “Easy Rider”—that the demise of The Production Code and the creation of the MPAA ratings system is one of the most important events for major changes in film content and in the US film industry during the 1960’s. But most importantly, we will see that these changes are so important that they still, to this today, influence film, the film industry and the movies you watch.
This exploration, the one of the ratings system, fittingly begins with the history and demise of its ornery predecessor, The Production Code. The Motion Picture Production Code (frequently called Hay’s Code after its creator Will Hays) was developed by the major studios in 1930 which specified and governed what content was allowable in film produced for the public. But a better description (which we will see why later on) is that it “was a self-imposed system of regulation that explicitly and implicitly affected the themes, story lines, and tone of Hollywood films produced between 1930 and the 1960s, particularly with regard to the treatment of sexuality” (Monaco, 1201). This code existed until 1968 but its guidelines only started to be enforced in 1934 after a brief bought of “some of the raciest films made in Hollywood history” (Monaco, 1201).

The film industry widely adopted this code, despite its ridged rules, because it wanted to prevent governmental-run film censorship and because it wanted to showcase that movies were wholesome and appropriate for all types of audiences (Bell, 366). It is also important to note that this code was especially important in reviving Hollywood’s image after the release of some risqué films and scandals. To help in writing this code, Will Hays became allies with the Catholic Church because they were highly interested in the arts and did not want to see film misused and abused (Film and the Church). Some of the rules they came up are as follows. Movies shall not be lower than moral standards of those who see it, they should have the correct standards of life and law, and natural or human objects should not be ridiculed. There were even ridiculous rules such as that a man and a women could not be shown the same bed and that their beds be spaced several inches apart.

But if one thing is to be highlighted about this code, it is that it severely effected “dialogue, plot, themes, and…the selection of scripts to be produced” (Bell, 366) which, thus, effected the success of the film industry. The main reason why this was the case was because it made it hard for directors to have free expression, to be artistic and it greatly limited the types of films and genre that were produced in the film industry. Some examples of this are, in one scene, Hitchcock had to get around a three second kissed rule by having his actors break off every three seconds before going back for another kiss. Others include the sex symbol cartoon Betty Boop having to be redrawn wearing more sensible clothes and Warner Bros pictures being denied the right to make a movie about concentration camps.

But despite the efforts to reform and keep it updated with the pace of the widening morals and values at the time, The Production Code began to fail overtime. This mostly was the case because it was out dated, unpopular, drew away from attendance, was hard to enforce and was “challenged by new domestic and foreign films with forbidden situations and language as well as by the sexual and the civil and gay rights movements (Monaco, 1201). TV and other new technology also forced the code to be eliminated because the industry needed to compete with these technological advances that offered viewers the convenience of entertainment without having to leave the home (Williams et. al, 2007). By 1966 the Production Code was effectively dead, later being replaced by the MPAA ratings system in 1968, which was spearheaded by new MPAA president, Jack Valenti.

The effect the new ratings system was massive. The new system allowed more artistic freedom, it eliminated censorship completely, and brought back viewers and income to the theaters overtime. Essentially, by giving parents and others the information to make decisions on their own, it allowed the production of film without limits—which would cause an increase in different genres, such as the disaster and SciFi/Horror genres, as well as increase in new types of films, many of which were actually controversial because of the use of new, allowable content. Midnight Cowboy (John Schlesinger, 1969), a graphical film about a prostitute and his friend trying to survive in New York City, Bonnie and Clyde (Arthur Penn, 1967), an especially real and violent film about the two famous outlaws, and The Graduate (Mike Nichols, 1967), a film about sexual taboos, the corruption of old values and innocence, are great examples of some of the controversial films made and how the new film code changed the way it was presented to the audience given that there was an increased amounts of sex, drugs, violence, counterculture and other against the grain elements that appealed to a younger audience. These films also represented the new types of directors, and their shift away from the old way of making movies to the new way of incorporating different visual, auditory and technical styles.

What particularly made this ratings system so successful was that it was designed to help people easily identify what films were appropriate for them to watch. There was the rating of G (general audiences), M (for mature audiences), R (guardian required for persons under 16 years) and X (only 16 years and above). The only unsuccessful part of this system was in regards to the X rating. Since the X rating did not impose content restrictions, as it only signified that the content was not suitable for those under a certain age and because the MPAA did not trademark the rating, this classification (XX and XXX were also used) soon become associated with pornographic films in the 1970s (Sandler, 2007). To solve this reputation tarnishing problem, the X rating was changed to NC-17 to denote the more graphic, obscene films (filmratings.com). There were also some other smaller changes later on such as the M rating switching to PG (guidance suggested) and the addition of the PG-13 (parents cautioned) rating to serve as a middle ground between the R and G ratings. But the most recent changes made are the MPAA expanding their ratings system to include more explanations in their thought process behind rating a movie (Jacobs, 2007) and in that they are now more lenient in allowing violent content in PG-13 movies (Waxman, 2004).

The MPAA ratings system and its changes in film classification not only effected film content, it also influenced the US cinema/film industry from the late 1960s onward too. Aside from the ones mentioned already, there are many influences to note. But those most important to mention are that it helped keep the industry alive and thrive, but not after a disappointing period from 1969-1971 in which the industry hit a recession by making the mistake of producing too many films after the ratings system’s birth. It also helped usher in the era of “New Wave” cinema and got the ball rolling in respect to the rise of the Auteur. The industry also saw an increase in highly profitable movies, such as Easy Rider (Dennis Hopper, 1969) and The Graduate, as well as an increase in viewership thanks to the fact that movies better covered the ever changing and shifting social landscape (Williams et. al., 2006). It also helped break traditions that were established in the older classical Hollywood system and helped contribute to making the following decade one of the most exciting in film history.
To immerse even further in the depths of this topic and to greater understand the ratings system effect on the film industry and film content, it is prudent to closely evaluate a film that represents this topic. And there is no better and appropriate than Easy Rider because it features elements of sex, drugs, violence, shows a distinctive and unique directing style, features controversial themes and shows an increase in the new thoughtfulness and meaningfulness of film—all of which were allowed and made possible by the ratings system. Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper) are the main characters in this movie where they go out in search of America. On this journey, they travel on motorcycles, meet strangers, dance with hippies, do drugs, camp next to the highway and become well acquainted with the vast and open American Southwest above other things. This movie, at first, seems like it’s really not much about anything other than just two dudes (as they were referred to in the movie) riding their motorcycles on the highway because it takes a minimalistic approach to story, plot and narrative. But this approach has its purpose, which is to completely direct the viewer’s attention on the main character’s actions and to make it clearly visible how they react to the changing geographic and social landscapes they travel through. This technique also does a great job at helping show, rather than tell, the audience exactly what the message of Easy Rider is about, which follows.

“A man went looking for America…and couldn’t find it anywhere” is the movie’s tag line, which is appropriate since it deals with critiquing America in the midst of many social issues during the 60s. One of these most obviously being the search for freedom in a corrupt and violent nation. The search for freedom theme can be found, firstly, in the movie’s premise of the two men riding across America on motorcycles simply because these machines are commonly associated with freedom and retaliation against social norms. On top of this, many of the shots in the film are of these men on their bikes, without helmets and hair flowing the wind, having a great time outside the reaches of society—alone and loving it. While this theme of freedom is clearly seen in the first 45 minutes of the movie, it is not until they reach civilization, and get arrested for riding in a small town parade, that we see the movie is also critiquing American society. In this arrest, the director makes clear that America was afraid and scared of Billy and Wyatt simply because they represented counterculture (drugs, sex and hippie values) and freedom. There is evidence of this fear and judgement later in the film too. Billy and Wyatt are in a restaurant in a small city in Louisiana and begin to receive poor looks from other customers. After a while they leave not only because they are not served but because they begin to feel threatened from some of the customers—showing the viewer, once again, that Billy and Wyatt make those in society afraid because of who they are, what they represent and what they are wearing. Close outside this city also happens to be the place where the friend they met in jail, George (Jack Nicholson), is beaten to death at a camp site with baseball bats and where Billy and Jack are shot while riding on their motorcycles, ending the movie. On a side note, it is also important to note that it can be seen that the director purposely contrasted the character’s experiences they had out on the open road, such as their being welcomed by strangers and their having fun on their bikes, versus those in civilization, such as their causing fear, being judged and ultimately being killed, to further develop the theme of the search for freedom, violence and corruption in urban American society and to show that Billy and Wyatt were only really were accepted “out there”.

Other important issues this movies deals with are drug use and the hippie movement. Drug use is extremely important in this movie, we can see this mainly in that it is featured in many of the scenes. Also, while in many movies drugs are often shown as being evil and associated with bad characters, this movies portrays drugs in a light that they are ways to escape, have fun and in that they are essential “por la vida”, as one of the Mexican’s in the movie states. An example of this idea is that there are many scenes with characters sitting around a fire in which they use marijuana to become friends and have deep discussions about life and other important things. In regards to the hippie movement, the scenes filmed at the compound are shot in a way that puts the hippie characters on close display (such as close up shots and panning) to show that the people and their type of lifestyle is not a poor choice nor a bad influence, which is contrary to what others think in reality and in the movie. The many scenes featuring marijuana in this movie also features the concept of the rise of the hippies and their takeover of society in relation to their use of this drug and the freedom of expression it gives.

This movie makes use of relatively simple musical, directing, camera and editing techniques, but are used to great importance. In regards to directing, it can be seen that the scene set ups, number of actors and shooting locations bode well for relatively little interaction between the director and the actors. The scenes at the camp fires and the scene where the main characters are in the jail cell are get examples of sets where this hands off approach to directing can be seen. What one piece of directing that is clearly visible is the use camera angles to both create space and establish a point of focus. Many angles are used in a way that makes each character very visible, allowing the audience to see up close their personalities, actions and feelings. These camera angels also put each character right in front of the audience so that it feels almost as if they are there in the scene watching up close and experiencing what everybody else in the scene is experiencing. In regards to editing, it is very harsh and psychedelic, which helps add to the drug and countercultural feel of this movie. The primary editing technique is the use of flashing back and forth between two pictures. This can both be seen in the shifting of different scenes as well as during the scenes at the cemetery acid trip. Panning and zooming are also used which displays the area of the scene and sets the tone for interactions to come. One last visible technique, while rarely used, is the overlapping of moving pictures. Seen especially in the cemetery acid trip, this technique really makes you feel as if you too were tripping on acid. In regard to the musical aspects of this film, the songs featured were great at continuing to set the tone of the movie and they helped watching a large amount of motorcycle riding in the film more bearable.

Through this paper, we have seen that one of the most important factors on the content of film and the film industry in the late 1960’s was the creation of the MPAA ratings system. We have learned about the restrictive production code, its demise and learned how the rise of ratings system and the new film classification system greatly affected both film content and the US cinema/film industry. We have also explored some of the controversial films that were initially made and took and in depth look at one of them, Easy Rider. On top of this, we have learned about the rise of X film—its problems—and the various changes to the ratings system that have been made over time. But why should you care about such things?

First of all, the ratings system is still in place today, continuing to effect what movies you watch and even what type of movies are made. Without the demise of The Production Code, the most famous movies like Star Wars, The Godfather, and E.T. and the not as famous, but still entertaining 21 Jump Street, Risky Business and Knocked Up certainly would have never existed. It can even be argued that famous directors such as Martin Scorsese, Brain de Palma, and George Lucas may have never influenced film in that way they did. Or maybe they would have never directed at all. In order words, all the films we love and cherish today would have never existed because the world of film would have stayed very similar to what it was at the time of the Hays Code. There would be less types of genre, less freedom and less creativity. There would be no auteur theory, less experimentation and more conservative film. There would be more censorship, more stale content and certainly less meaningful film. Perhaps even, as discussed, foreign films and TV competition would have been the death of the US film industry all together.

In closing, there is one more very big thing to take away from this paper, being that it is much more important and relevant than what you have learned so far. While you may have been given the impression through this exploration that the ratings system is, and will always be, the biggest influence on film, this is not the case. Never will be. The real truth is that you have the power. Every time you watch a movie at home, online or in theaters, you are voting for films with both your money and time, influencing—more than the ratings system ever could—the film industry, the types of films made and the content in them. So before you go to your next movie, think about what you want film to be like in the future. If you choose wisely, one ticket may end up being all you need to make a difference.

Works Cited
Bell, Jennifer Lyon. “Production Code (Hays Code).” Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender. Ed. Fedwa Malti-Douglas. Vol. 3. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007. 1201-1202. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web.
Easy Rider. Pando Company ; Raybert Productions, 1969. Film.
“Film, the Church and.” New Catholic Encyclopedia Supplement 2009. Detroit: 366-371. Print.
Jacobs, Matthew. “MPAA Ratings System Expands To Include More Detailed Explanations.”The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com. Web Article. .
Monaco, Paul. Ed. Charles Harpole. The Sixties: 1960-1969. Vol 8. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2001. History of the American Cinema 8. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web.
Sandler, Kevin S. The Naked Truth: Why Hollywood Doesn’t Make X-Rated Movies. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press, 2007. Print.
Waxman, Sharon. “Study Finds Film Ratings Are Growing More Lenient.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 13 July 2004. Web Article. .
“WHY: HISTORY OF RATINGS.” The Film Rating System (CARA).
Williams, Linda, and Michael Hammond. Contemporary American Cinema. England: McGraw-Hill, 2006. Print.