Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Dec2: "Brokeback Mountain"

Our last screening of "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" saw about 30 people turn up for the movie. We got the chance to hear the documentary's director express his own criticism towards the movie rating system of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and also got a first hand look on how the system works.

Also interesting was the fact that the people in the MPAA who review and rate movies are not known to the public. The director... Kirby Dick... actually had to hire a private investigator to find out who they were... with some surprises.

After the documentary, we had a discussion about film censorship in Malaysia, and a comparison with other countries such as Germany, France, and Australia.

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This Sunday, on December2, we will be showing "Brokeback Mountain", Ang Lee's famous (or infamous) film that won many awards in film festivals; such as the Oscar for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and the Best Director at the BAFTAs... among all others. The movie is based on a story by writer Annie Proulx.

I'm sure you all know what the story's about... considering the controversy and publicity surrounding Ang Lee's movie. Set in a time period in the 1960s to the 1980s, two American cowboys (Jake Gyllenhaal from "Donnie Darko" & Heath Ledger) are hired as sheepherders in Wyoming. Both men develop a romantic relationship between themselves. They both part ways, move to different ends of the vast United States, and get married (to women).

The two cowboys meet a few years later and continue with their secret lives, while at the same time, living the life of married men with families on the outside.


Time: 7PM, Sunday, Dec 2.

Admission: FREE

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Nov18: New Movie - "This Film Is Not Yet Rated"

Yes, thats the title.

In this documentary, Kirby Dick explores the inner workings of the ratings board of the Motion Picture Association of America. While movies are not banned, an improper rating from the MPAA may cause distributors or cinema operators not to screen the film, for fear of losing revenue. For example, a children's or family movie slapped with a PG-13 rating might cause its target audience (families with young children) not to view the movie due to the rating.

Some interesting topics we can later discuss is the Film Censorship Board of Malaysia, and movie ratings for appropriate ages in Malaysia...


Time: 7PM, Nov 18 (Sunday)

Admission: FREE