Scum (1979) - Censorship

Scum is a British Crime Drama directed by Alan Clarke in 1979. It stars; Ray Winstone, Mick Ford, Julian Firth, John Blundell, Phil Daniels, Alan Igbon, Ray Burdis and many more. It portrays the brutality of the life inside of a British borstal. The script was originally written for the BBC in 1977, but due to the violence involved, it was removed from broadcast. The remake of this program was remade in 1979 as a film, which was shown on Channel 4 in 1983. The story of the film is about a young offender, Carlin when he arrives at the institution as he rises through violence and self-protection. The convicts and the warders are brutalized by the system. The film consists of its graphic depiction of racism, rape, suicide, extreme violence, strong language as well as many fights, which break out.

This film is different to the productions BBC originally in many ways such as the strong language. One scene in particular, which has been put into the BBC version, has been taken out of the film version, which was made. The scene of the homosexual relationship between Carlin and another inmate was not put in the film.

There have been many places during the film and the TV drama on BBC where censors had to be put in place for the safety of the viewers. There are many times where the bbfc and ofcom had to step in to protect the viewers from extreme violence. Racist comments towards black people, bullying, informal and foul language as well as fights and beatings they receive have to be censored for the publics’ protection. 

Ofcom is a government organization, which was set up in 2003 and is designed to protect television viewers from harmful or offensive material, which is why the watershed has been put in place. With the film version of Scum, the British Board of Film Classifications (BBFC), a non-government organization, which is funded by the film industry, are responsible of the classification and the censorship of the film(s) within the UK.

The War Game (1965) - Censorship

The War Game is a black and white BBC television documentary style drama directed and written by Peter Watkins in 1965, starring; Michael Aspel and Peter Graham. It shows the effects that the nuclear war had on Britain. The War Game was removed from television broadcast because it had caused concern with the BBC and the government. “The effect of the film has been judged by the BBC to be too horrifying for the medium of broadcasting” – The Corporation. This film was not shown on full British television until 1985. The War Game also won an Academy Award for the Best Documentary Feature.

The War Game is a fictional film made about a docu-drama about the nuclear war and the effect of it all. This film shows realism of the world with a low budget. During the film, we see a nuclear war, which erupts between the West and the East as the missiles strike Britain.

The War Game is a black and white documentary set in London and that won the Oscar for the first documentary, which has been banned for 20 years. There are many reasons why the film had been banned; one of the reasons is the brutally graphic scenes. 

We hear voice over speech as well as a voiceover with information that connects with the images, which are shown. There are also single boxpox interviews with the public and their opinions. The film also includes interviews with the adults and children who have survived the nuclear war. Ofcom had to step in to protect the public from harmful material.

Gabbeh (1996) - Gender and Sexuality

Gabbeh is an Iranian film produced by Khalil Daroudchi, written and directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf in 1996. The film Gabbeh gets its name from a Persian rug with pictures or patterns woven into it. It belongs to the New Iranian Cinema and the Iranian New Wave started in the 1990’s. The cast includes Abbas (Uncle), Shaghayeh Djodat (Gabbeh), Hossein Moharami (Old Man), Rogheih Moharami (Old Woman) and Parvaneh Ghalandari. Gabbeh has also been awarded 3 awards. The Best Director Award at the Catalonian International Film Festival, the Silver Screen Award at the Singapore International Film Festival and lastly, the Best Artistic Contribution Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Gabbeh starts with an elderly couple bickering with each other as they carry on with their day routine of cleaning their Gabbeh (designed rug). They get to the lake to wash the rug, as a young woman appears magically and helps them both with cleaning it. She belongs to a clan whose history is depicted in the design of a Gabbeh. She believes that a mystery guy on a white horse will come to get her.

Gender and sexuality in Gabbeh has been told in a multi layered way with its realistic and magical scenes and is also one of the first films the west saw. We hear the constant animal and water noises as well as wind, fire and rain noises. Throughout the film, women are shown a lot while doing their daily jobs. 

Different languages have also been used, such as Hindi, Persian and Turkish. As we hear Gabbeh’s story unravel, we hear the dreams she has and the obstacles in her way. Gabbeh’s father has bad temper issues because of her ugliness. 

The Thick of It (2005) - Authourship

The Thick of It is a British Comedy television series on BBC, which is written by Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bait, Ian Martin and Armando Iannucci who has also directed the program made in 2005 to 2012. It stars Peter Capaldi, Chris Langham and many more. This program satirizes the inside workings of the modern British government. The script has been improvised rather than having it scripted which makes it more realistic to the actors and the audience. The program also includes strong language throughout.

Series one of The Thick of It was first broadcasted in 2005. In this series, Hugh Abbot is the new minister who follows the forced resignation of his predecessor Cliff Lawton. The episodes in this series follows his attempts to make a mark on the department with introducing some new policies following the party line which is enforced by Malcom Tucker. With many complications and mistakes in place, the minister comes close to being close to being fired on many occasions.

Episode one includes a lot of sarcasm from the characters, which also creates humour. The stupidity and the childlike acts of the characters may cause problems with the government in Britain in many ways. The shaky camera movements and the voice over the credits add many effects to the episode.

Marilyn on Marilyn (2001) - Authourship

Marilyn on Marilyn is a BBC documentary produced and directed by Paul Kerr in 2001. This documentary is a story told about Marilyn’s life told by herself from previously recorded interviews she had done with Life and the French Marie Claire magazine. This has been accompanied with rare and unseen footage with less than a month before she had died.

Norma Jean, also known as Marilyn Monroe has been involved in a few interviews before she had died. The use of the archive footage gathered by the producer, Marilyn’s life has been brought to life as she tells it. The story comes to life with the help of 40-year-old interviews and rare footage. The ‘show runners’ of today in the UK, the Executive Producers are often the key writers and the series creators.