Salt is a 2010 US spy thriller by Phillip Noyce. See IMDb
An Extended Version/Director’s Cut was passed 15 uncut for:
The BBFC explained their rating:
SALT is an action espionage thriller starring Angelina Jolie as CIA agent Evelyn Salt. She is forced to go on the run after being accused by a defector of being a Russian deep-cover sleeper agent.
This is an extended version of a film that was classified 12A in the cinema and 12 on DVD for moderate violence and one use of strong language. Additional material present here meant this version of the film was classified 15 for strong violence.
The BBFC’s Guidelines at 12A’/’12 state that Moderate violence is allowed but should not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if justified by the context. SALT includes several fast-paced fight scenes featuring moderate violence, with crunchy kicks and blows. In most scenes little is seen in terms of blood or injury detail but there are a few sequences of strong violence, including a woman being repeatedly beaten and smashed into a desk as she fights a dirty agent and a woman pulling a chain around a man’s neck to throttle him. The film also opens with a torture scene in which a plastic tube is forced into Salt’s mouth and filled with water, with some brief emphasis on her struggle. These stronger scenes exceed the terms of the 12A’/’12 Guidelines and are more appropriately placed at 15 where Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic or sexualised violence is also unlikely to be acceptable.
SALT also contains a single use of strong language that is neither aggressively delivered nor directed. This would have been permissible at 12A’/’12 where the Guidelines state that The use of strong language (for example, ‘fuck’) must be infrequent.
Alternative Ending
There is also an Extended Version with an alternative ending which was also passed 15 uncut for:
- UK 2010 Sony Blu-ray
- UK 2010 Sony R2 DVD
Theatrical Version
At the cinemas and also on DVD/Blu-ray. the film was passed 12/12A after BBFC suggested cuts for 12A which were implemented for:
- UK 2010 Sony Blu-ray
- UK 2010 Sony R2 DVD
- UK 2010 cinema release.
The BBFC commented:
This film was originally shown to the BBFC in an unfinished version. The BBFC advised the company that the film was likely to receive a 15 classification but that the requested 12A certificate could be achieved by making cuts in six sequences in order to reduce a scene of torture, four violent scenes and a scene of strangulation. When the finished version of the film was submitted, all six scenes had been reduced acceptably and the film was classified 12A.
