The impact of certification on film openings

Depending on the films certification, there are limits as to how a film establishes it's genre, mood and tone. Every film uses all four technical areas (camera, editing, mise and sound) to convey these elements however, because there are certain criteria's that a particular certification has to meet, it can restrict how a film is conveyed. Another thing to take into consideration is audience expectation, because if they go to watch a 15 rated film they're expecting it to have a darker and more adult tone than a 12, PG or U rated film.

An example of the impact certification has can be seen in the controversy surrounding 'Casino Royale's age rating. When it was first released, some critics and audience members alike questioned whether or not a 12A was an acceptable age rating for it in cinemas, due to a graphic and detailed opening sequence involving suffocation and an extensive torture scene, both of which involving the main protagonist. On top of this, even the films opening contained a very vivid death involving drowning, which was surprising, seeing as the James Bond franchise isn't usually known for this high level of grit and realism. It's reasons like this that the B.B.F.C (the British Board of Film Classification) update the guidelines of each age rating every few years, as audience demands change and younger audience members now have easier access to higher age rated films, as a result of digitalisation.

Because film openings are created to give audiences an idea as to what can be expected from the rest of the film, certification impacts them when it comes to the extremity of the content and how film makers visually convey these elements. We will take into consideration this impact of certification and while filming we'll make sure that we don't exceed the boundaries of the 15 age rating we're setting out to achieve, specifically the extremity of the content.