From:	"Robert A. Hayden" <hayden@*******.MANKATO.MSUS.EDU>
Subject:	Re: New TV Series: RoboCop
Date:	Sun, 27 Mar 1994 21:30:21 -0600

On Sun, 27 Mar 1994, Stainless Steel Rat wrote:

> RAH> Yes, it is watered down from the movies, but that is also because the
> RAH> movie was Rated-R (it originally was rated X [before NC-17] due to
> RAH> violence, but was cut).
>
> Just a nit, but there is no official ``X'' rating; that is a ploy from the
> companies who market sex flix. The official ratings are G, PG, PG-13, R,
> NC-17, and Unrated. At the time, Robocop was unrated until some of the
> violence was edited out.

You are wrong :-)

_Originally_ the X rating was designed for adult oriented moved (both
sexually and violently adult). It was an official rating for the MPRG.
Unfortunately, it soon became synomous with "porn". The "xxx" rating
was
ficticious and created by the porn industry to try to increase sales.

NC-17, was the answer. It was designed to be for movies that were
unsuitable for children, without the porn stigma of getting an 'X'
rating. But, NC-17 didn't come around until about 3 or 4 years ago
(there was some Lisa Bonnet [sp?] movie that was given an X rating and it
raised an uproar when the studio forced the producers to remove enough
scenes to make it just barely 'R').

RoboCop, the first movie, had enough graphic violence that it would have
gotten an X rating, dispite there being zero sexual content (well, there
is a scene with two breasts, big deal). They cut the film before release
to secure an R rating.

> Yeah, unfortunate though, as it does water down the nature of the world
> it's set in, where gratuitious violence is commonplace.

I don't mind much. I watch the storyline. I LIKE the storyline. The
acting is decent for a non-network show from a no-name production house
and the SPFX are also decent. If lack of violence is the biggest
complaint, I think it's time to overhaul our viewing expectations.

> RAH> Maybe I'm too old.
>
> Wonderful. What does that make me? An old-timer at 27?

We'll play shuffleboard together at the home.

____ Robert A. Hayden <=> hayden@*******.mankato.msus.edu
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