It looks like Sacha Baron Cohen’s lastest film, Bruno, may be undergoing some changes soon. The film’s initial screening by the MPAA culminated in an NC-17 rating for the edgy film. You can’t release a film with an NC-17 rating. No one will screen it and no one will watch it.
Here’s a look at what pissed off the censors:
Among the scenes reportedly causing the most issues: one in which flamboyant fashionista Brüno is seen engaging in what appears to be anal sex with another man, and one in which he sneaks, naked, into a tent, unbeknownst to its male occupant.
The film is slated for a summer release and, while already buzzworthy, has garnered significant praise from critics who were privy to a 22-minute preview at the South by Southwest festival earlier this month.
Three scenes were shown in their MPAA-offending entirety. One reveals the setup for the film: Brüno and his boyfriend decide to jump on board the latest Hollywood trend and adopt an African baby (which arrives via a cardboard box). Unfortunately, the beaus quickly break up, and Brüno loses custody of the child. He spends the rest of the movie attempting to get it back by proving himself to be one of the most heterosexual men in the country.
Along the way, he plans a photo shoot featuring his newest baby/accessory and auditions child actors to take part; shocking hilarity ensues when he gets the OK from stage mothers to administer liposuction to their apparently hefty toddlers, throw them from buildings in the name of art and dress them up like baby Hitlers.
The second previewed scene shows Brüno appearing on a Springeresque talk show to show off his newest acquisition. Unfortunately, it’s done with the aid of (Photoshopped) images of him and his boyfriend in the throes of passion with the baby looking on.
The final scene, by most accounts one of the movie’s most shocking, features the newly butch Bruno, going by the name Straight Dave, in an ultimate fighting ring, challenging his ex-boyfriend. After they beat each other into a bloody state, they passionately reconcile—in front of the clearly scandalized audience.
Now correct me if I’m wrong, but none of this sounds like anything worse than what’s happened in R-rated movies. Something tells me the MPAA was particularly offended by the anal sex — they may actually even have specific rules about anal vs. missionary sex. I mean, did anyone actually see Zack & Miri Make a Porno? There was a lot of fucking in that film, but it was all man-on-woman. It kind of annoys me that man-on-man anal warrants a stronger rating. It’s still sex, peeps.
It looks just as dumb as borat…
I would have to know how attractive his co-star is before deciding if I want to see it or not.
There is a movie called “This Film is Not Yet Rated”, which is all about the MPAA and their shady rating process. They DO have rules about how many different positions there can be in a sex scene. It’s very interesting.
Regardless of how it’s rated, I think I’ll be passing on this one. I would probably feel compelled to scrub myself with a wire brush after watching it.
i’m right with you on this one beet, about sex being sex.
Well, yes sex is sex. but gay sex IS more controversial. One is generally accepted while the other is not. That’s how the world goes I guess…
Woah Beet, did you actually see Zack and Miri Make a Porno? There is one full frontal naked shot of both male and female, one graphic sex scene, one with Banks and Rogan, which was more hinted to than shown, One with Bubbles and Barry, but that was with a female strap on anally penetrating a man, and not shown and finally ( SPOILER) the anal sex in which Deacon gets “frosted”. The actual sex for that was not shown either. So if your talking graphic sex scenes, there is one. Hinted at, just as many if not less than one of the American Pie movies.
And Zack and Miri only got the NC-17 rating the first time because of the possible names for the porn, 17 too many thrusts, and the “frosting”, which was less than a full second long.
How is it that Brokeback Mountain didn’t get NC-17 if they are so anal about anal scenes? It’s total BS if you ask me.
How is it that Brokeback Mountain didn’t get NC-17 if they are so anal about anal sex? It’s all BS if you ask me!
I just think it is kind of ridiculous how showing nudity and sex seems to warrant harsher ratings than brutal violence.
Maybe it’s some sort of british humor that I’m not getting but this Sacha dude loves to play off the gay thing. In the Ali G movie he had some dudes fuckin each other just to try it out since they thought they were gonna die. In Borat, he’s all balls in face with the fat hairy guy and this Bruno movie is just gonna be plain gay.. I think this dude’s sending some signals we’re not picking up on. I think he’s in the closet
I think he is making fun of people who are so uncomfortable with homosexuality. It’s kind of an easy way to get laughs.
Thank you MPAA for forwarning those of us who would have a hard time sleeping after seeing a movie like this.
I think it’s a LITTLE different than Brokeback Mountain because that story has a…point…. no one wants to see Sasha Cohen having anal sex with a woman, let alone a man.
if fake gay sex bothers you so much that you wouldn’t be able to sleep, you might want to get that checked out. pussy.
I really love and appreciate Evil Beet’s post and most everyone’s comments about the ridiculousness of the ass-backward rating system. I really do not understand at ALL how there are absolutely no restrictions on violence (*cough*Grind house*cough*) but show a penis or a vagina and you get slapped with an NC-17! This nation needs to take a look at other nation’s rating systems where someone’s head being blown off is considerably more horrifying than the all natural naked body, and then compare the affects violence has on the human brain to sex/nudity.
Yeah, it’s pretty sad. Very good point.
It’s absolutely ridiculous. We (women) have to put up with fucked up shows like tila tequila and all the lesbian crap, not in a movie, but on tv at fucking 8am!!! now THAT is shocking. And lately it’s like all the movies, and i mean ALL the movies have to have nudity (female, of course) and very explicit sex scenes, and it’s ok. But a man naked? omfg!! no way!!! give me a fucking break. Gay sex is gay sex, man on man is no different than stupid tila tequila making out with some cheap hooker.
Holy crap! That is so true and it’s been pissing me off for so fricken long!
Sex is sex, but anything with Sasha Barat Cohen is automatically just a pile of twat clippings. I wouldn’t see it no matter what the rating.
It’s like I can’t see a single damn movie without having some girl’s tits shoved in my face. Why the hell can’t those Hollywood a-holes make a movie without nudity? They lean on the nudity to make their movie less crappy but, needless to say, it doesn’t work. It just makes their already poor quality movie into a trashy one.
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