Somebody Think of the Children
Film Censorship
Movies you won't see at the 2012 Mardi Gras Film Festival

Movies you won’t see at the 2012 Mardi Gras Film Festival

You won’t see Community Action Centre or In Their Room: Berlin at the 2012 Mardi Gras Film Festival. The Australian Classification Board has refused to give festival organisers an exemption to show the films at the public attended event because each would likely be classified X in Australia. Why? Both contain real sexual activity. Festival...
L.A. Zombie banned at Melbourne International Film Festival

L.A. Zombie banned at Melbourne International Film Festival

The Australian Classification Board has banned L.A. Zombie from screening at the Melbourne International Film Festival. According to The Age, the ACB refused to issue an exemption for the festival to show the film based ‘on information submitted by MIFF,  inspection of the film and the classification history of the director”. Festival director Richard Moore...

Classifiers refuse to comment on breast size specifics: Look young and you’re banned

The Australian Classification Board (ACB) has confirmed to Somebody Think Of The Children that a person’s overall appearance is used by the Board to determine whether someone appears to look under the age of 18 in a film or publication. A spokesperson for the Board said the overall appearance of persons in publications in conjunction...

Classification Board responds to small breasts ban

Important Update, 01/02/10: The Classification Board has confirmed that a person’s appearance is used when they determine the apparent age of a model. The ACB’s Director refused to comment on specifics about breast size. Read more. The Australian Classification Board (ACB) has responded to accusations by The Australian Sex Party that material with depictions of...

Australia bans small breasts

Important Update, 01/02/10: The Classification Board has confirmed that a person’s appearance is used when determining the apparent age of a model. The ACB’s Director refused to comment on specifics about breast size. Read more. The Australian Sex Party (ASP) said Wednesday that the Australian Classification Board (ACB) is now banning depictions of small-breasted women...

Aussie film up for review after Classification Board sees non-existent drug scene

I’m sure the Australian Classification Board sees a lot of things during their day-to-day duties, but scenes of strong drug use that don’t actually exist? That sounds like Fear and Loathing in Surry Hills. According to the ACB’s report for the Australian comedy, Stone Bros. opens with a montage in which marijuana is shown being...

Hustler among latest adult movie bans

A bonus DVD attached to a Hustler magazine is just one of many recent adult films banned by Australian Classification Board. Here’s the most recent titles to be given the ACB black label treatment: HUSTLER’S TABOO MAGAZINE BONUS MAGAZINE DVD — DVD RC 07/08/2009 (Applicant: ACT Office of Regulatory Services) PEEING IN PUBLIC #2 —...

Classification Board’s new website reveals long list of banned titles

The new website for the Australian Classification Board reveals a comprehensive list of content that is Refused Classification (RC) in Australia. Although this information has been available to the public in the past (unlike the contents of the ACMA blacklist of banned websites), to the best of my knowledge the grouping of this data has...

Greater Union stops screening Aussie gang film in NSW

I get no pleasure from blogging about any censorship (or anything that warrants the attention of STOTC), but I have to admit I’m a little relieved that this post isn’t about mandatory filtering. A welcome change, even if an unwelcome incident: Greater Union has stopped showing The Combination (MA15+) in their NSW cinemas after ‘violence flared’...

Hot tub scene lands Charlie Wilson’s War ‘partial nudity’ sticker

In response to an application from the Minister for Home Affairs (at whose request I wonder), the Classification Review Board has changed the consumer advice for Charlie Wilson’s War from ‘Moderate coarse language and drug references, Violence’ to ‘Moderate coarse language, drug references and violence; partial nudity’. It remains classified M. Classification Review Board Acting...

Classification Review Board reviews Charlie Wilson’s War

The Classification Review Board today undertook a review of the consumer advice for Charlie Wilson’s War starring Tom Hanks. At this stage I don’t know who lodged the application or why (distributor looking for a more lenient rating?), but the ACB PR says the decision and reasons will appear on www.classification.gov.au (not published at time...

Latest censored adult DVDs

Refused-Classification.com writes that Australian Rosie Finnish Erotica #3 has been cut to meet an X18+ classification after being refused classification back in September. Double Vision 2 has also been cut to get an X18+ rating, while Killer Grip #4 has been refused classification. Why? R-C doesn’t know and to tell you the truth, nor do...