Film Censorship Mock

"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.

Many films during the 1980s had very graphic and gory images, which people didn't like to watch. Therefore, they didn't watch the films like that leading to a downfall in cinema attendance and a lose in profit for film producers, and the studios selling food and drinks. This didn't apply to certain age ranges, because the films are certificated, for example 18 or 21. But this didn't stop people who were under age to watch horror 'video nasties', and technology has introduced VHS, so anyone can watch these films. The main fear is that the younger generation will be influenced and like what they see on screen and try and copy some of the things they see. Studio's also fear that no-one will ever attend the cinema ever, due to VHS.

Owning a VCR in the 80s made people look wealthy and 'cooler' than people who didn't own one. As this was new to people, they found it fashionable to stay at home. VCR allows people to easily watch videos in the comfort of their own homes without having to go out and pay for an expensive cinema ticket. This was also more convenient for people who couldn't easily travel to cinemas. The disadvantage of this was that film piracy had risen, creating a threat for cinemas and a huge drop in cinema attendance.

Secondly, video nasties caused a lot of discussions about whether these types of  films should be shown to the public. Low budget films, like The Evil Dead, should have some film censorship due to the explosive images that people see when watching films like it. The fear of some people not liking these types of films cause a threat to cinemas earning money. This is because people were too afraid of going to see video nasties, for reasons such as not liking blood or disliking the idea of death and guts on big screens. The reason people were so shocked about video nasties is that it was so uncommon to see it in films in the 80s.

There was a way of preventing younger people from seeing nudity and violence, through the use of pro censorship. This protected the viewer from seeing any pornographic material and harmful information. It also prevents violent events from being viewed, only promoting good morals. That meant that inappropriate material could not be viewed by. UK pressure group, national viewers and listeners association was a campaign founded in 1965. It was against broadcasts of media that contained sex, violence and blasphemy  It was a follow on from the "clean up TV campaign" which was released the year before.

Overall, I feel that film censorship is motivated by fears about audiences as they will be restricted from what type of films that are available at the cinema. Many people don't like the idea of seeing very explicit and sexual content on their screens. But this was only in the 1980s as they didn't expect that kind of material which shocked them. In the present day, we have become de-sensitized to this sort of material as many films contain it. Also, younger people have had easier access to horror films due to the quick development of films. To quite a high extent, some parts of the films should have been censored due to how they might play with peoples minds and make society corrupt. On the other hand, this will make films boring as some people find it entertaining to watch. Therefore, some people may not watch censored films.