A Bumper Year for Appeals against MPAA Ratings...8 appeals so far for 2012 US movie releases

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See article from latimes.com

The MPAA, which administers the US ratings system via its Classification and Rating Administration, has already heard eight appeals for films scheduled for release this year. That’s double the number the group heard for movies released in 2011 and surpasses the seven appeals it heard for 2010 films. Failed appeals were: Bully, a documentary about bullying.  Producers failed to get the rating reduced from an R for strong language to PG-13. Sea Level, an action adventure. Producers failed to get the rating reduced to G. Killer Joe, a crime drama. Producers failed to get the rating reduced from NC-17 for graphic aberrant content involving violence and sexuality, and a scene of brutality to R. Haywire, starring Gina Carano in an action picture.  Producers failed to get the rating reduced from an R for some violence to PG-13. This Means War.  Producers failed to get the rating reduced from an R. Apart. Producers failed to get the rating reduced from an R. The Possession, a thriller. Producers failed to get the rating reduced from an R and so made cuts for a PG-13 The only successful appeal was: The Perks of Being a Wallflower, a high-school romance. It was reduced from R to PG-13 I think studios are starting to push a little harder, said Ethan Noble, who runs Motion Picture Consulting, a company that assists filmmakers and studios with ratings and who has worked on numerous appeals, including the one for Bully. And while I think that this is the best system we can have, there does seem to be a disconnect between what the ratings board wants and what filmmakers think should be allowed. That disconnect, say Noble and others, comes from changing social mores about language and other areas of explicit content while the MPAA, Noble said, is basically using the same system it’s had in place for years.

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