MPAA Rates Poster an F (Winterbottom's "The Road To Guantanamo")

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

The Motion Picture Association of America has censored a poster advertising a film about the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The image that ran afoul of the MPAA is tame by the standards set by the amateur photographers of Abu Ghraib. It shows a man hanging by his handcuffed wrists, with a burlap sack over his head and a blindfold tied around the hood. It appeared in advertisements for the new film "The Road to Guantanamo," a documentary with some reenacted scenes, that follows the fate of three British men imprisoned at Guantanamo for more than two years before being released with no charges ever filed against them.

The distributors of the film, directed by Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross, submitted the poster to the MPAA, which must approve publicity materials for the films it rates, on April 24. It was rejected the next day.

"The reason given was that the burlap bag over the guy's head was depicting torture, which wasn't appropriate for children to see," said Howard Cohen, co-president of Roadside Attractions, which is distributing the film in North America. The film will open on June 23, advertised by another poster, approved by the MPAA, which shows only a pair of shackled hands and arms.

(...)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/16/AR2006051601910.html


The MPAA approved poster

The Road To Guantanamo is an film is excellent and well worth seeing either theatrically or on DVD.

The article goes on to mention an upcoming documentary about the MPAA called This Film Is Not Yet Rated which I've heard really good things about. Somewhat ironically, it was given an NC-17 rating (a death curse I've never really understood) due to the nature of some of the film clips used.

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Has anyone told the Bush Administration & Rummy that a hood

over a guy's head is torture?

[saigon68]

2. These 4 photos say it all

[DBoon]

3. torture? I thought that was just a fraternity prank?

Like a sort of Cuban "Animal House"

[gort]

4. wonder why this was MPAA approved?

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I am not good at uploading images but hopefully the link will work.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Time to disband the MPAA.

The whole thing was started to keep slasher flicks out of children's matinee's; not political censorship.

[madmark]

6. so how is this more disturbing to children than a beat up jesus dragging

a cross in a "Passion" advertisement. The answer is its not. The image is the most disturbing to the people that advocated the policies and people that resulted in the torture.