You may be surprised to learn those ubiquitous ratings, from G to NC-17, put on movies in America are actually handed down by anonymous employees of a secretive organization that serves as a lobbying firm for Hollywood's six biggest studios.
AI Summary
In this episode of Stuff You Should Know, Josh and Chuck dive into the controversial world of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and its film rating system. They explore how the familiar G, PG, PG-13, R, and NC-17 ratings came to be, starting from the early days of Hollywood's moral codes through today's secretive process involving anonymous raters. The hosts examine criticisms of the system's apparent biases regarding violence versus sexuality, its impact on independent filmmakers, and the organization's broader role in lobbying against movie piracy.
Movies Discussed
Afternoon Delight
"there was something called Afternoon Delight — Mentioned in discussion of MPAA's bias against female sexual gratification in films."
— Chuck
Blue Is the Warmest Color
"Blue is the warmest color. Yeah, last year, that teenage lesbian love story — Cited as another example of MPAA bias against LGBTQ+ content, receiving an NC-17 rating."
— Chuck
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
"when you want to show E.T. — Another example of movies that would require licensing for community screenings."
— Josh
Frozen
"if you want to show Frozen at your church — Used as an example of how public screenings require licensing even for seemingly innocent movies."
— Josh
Godzilla
"someone has that brand new copy of Godzilla on a video cassette — Used as an example of bootleg movies being sold on the street."
— Josh
Gremlins
"And he produced another, Gremlins — Another Spielberg film that contributed to the need for the PG-13 rating category."
— Chuck
Happiness
"Happiness, Todd Solans, one of my favorite movies of all time — Discussed as a movie that received harsh treatment from the MPAA and was released unrated."
— Chuck
Henry & June
"the first movie to come out with that was Henry in June — Mentioned as the first movie to receive the new NC-17 rating when it replaced the X rating."
— Chuck
Hey Dude
"stars of the cult classic show, Hey Dude — Referenced in a podcast advertisement at the beginning of the episode."
Hostel: Part II
"It had the same rating as Hostel 2 — Compared with 'Once' to show how both received R ratings despite vastly different content."
— Chuck
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
"He directed one, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom — Discussed as one of the Steven Spielberg movies that led to the creation of the PG-13 rating due to violent content."
— Chuck
Longtime Companion
"the great 1989 movie, Longtime Companion — Used as an example of MPAA homophobia in rating decisions."
— Chuck
Love Is Blind
"Nancy Rodriguez from Netflix's Love is Blind Season 3 — Referenced in a podcast advertisement during the episode."
Once
"One featured two Dublin musicians singing songs together — Used to contrast with violent R-rated movies, showing the inconsistency of MPAA ratings."
— Chuck
Philomena
"A movie like Filomena, which you saw, was rated R — Used as an example of unnecessarily harsh ratings due to language rather than content appropriateness."
— Chuck
Rudy
"Rudy — Referenced when discussing Sean Astin's involvement in anti-piracy campaigns."
— Josh
Rushmore
"Rushmore rated R for the scene at the end — Used as an example of questionable MPAA rating decisions for minimal sexual content."
— Chuck
Seinfeld
"if you've seen Seinfeld — Referenced in context of discussing bootleg movie recordings."
— Josh
Some Like It Hot
"Tony Curtis and Jack Lemon are dressed like women hitting on Marilyn Monroe — Cited as an example of how the Hayes Code was being subverted by the end of the 1950s."
— Chuck
The Avengers
"is the new Avengers movie going to be rated R — Used as an example of how PG-13 is the target rating for blockbuster movies."
— Josh
The Man with the Golden Arm
"Frank Sinatra. Got an Oscar nomination for playing a heroin addict. And the man with a golden arm — Used as an example of how movies began pushing boundaries after WWII, breaking the Hayes Code."
— Chuck
The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill
"the 2003 documentary, The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill — Mentioned in listener mail about wild parrots in San Francisco."
— Chuck
The Wolf of Wall Street
"after Wolf of Wall Street came out — Used to contrast MPAA treatment of male versus female sexual gratification in films."
— Chuck
This Film Is Not Yet Rated
"anybody who's seen the documentary, this film, is not yet rated — Josh mentions this documentary as influential in understanding MPAA practices and credits it with exposing the secretive rating system."
— Josh
True Detective
"go watch True Detective — Used as an example of HBO content that people share passwords to watch."
— Chuck
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