Monday’s discussion involved further exploration into the rating system and the discrimination evolved.
There is a very large double standard that comes into play over homosexuality and heterosexuality in film. As it stands now in the U.K. it would be illeagal to judge homosexuality with more harshness than heterosexuality because of human rights legislation. This, however, is not the case in the U.S. Homosexual love in films is viewed as immoral, disgusting, and almost every bad name in the book, and will be given a much more restricted rating than, lets say for instance, a film where a woman is being raped or otherwise sexually assaulted as long as it is a man doing it. So as long as the abuse is heterosexual it has the potential to be given an “R” ,for restricted, where as a film with a consentual gay sex love scene it will almost always be given an “nc17″ rating ,no children under 17, the most restricted of movie ratings, and recently taking the place of the “x” (explicit) rating in some instances. This is absurd and disturbing. Basically this point of reference for ratings carries the message “yes I would rather myself or my adolecent child watch a film with rape, sex, or violence, as long as it’s heterosexual, before I would want myself or my child to watch two consenting adults of the same sex make love, be naked together, or kiss.” I would also like to state that not all heterosexual sex is ok either. Ususally if the woman is really enjoying the experience, nosie making, moaning, facial expressions – that’s not allowed either. I’m not sure which is worse; we don’t want to see gay sex or that we don’t want to see women enjoying sex.