Documentary filmmaker Kirby Dick (Sick: The Life & Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist, “Twist of Faith”) is our f*****g hero! And with his latest film that gives the Motion Picture Association of America a good kick in the a*s that it’s been deserving for way too long, Dick is about to become a hero to a legion of filmmakers who’ve been unfairly reamed by these bastards. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the time has come for the MPAA to get its a*s reamed by our favorite Dick. Let the cheering begin!
Throughout “This Film Is Not Yet Rated,” Dick takes us through the submission process to the MPAA in where a movie will be given it’s rating…and in where a group of strangers will sit around watching artists’ works and deciding for the rest of us what should be cut in order for a movie to avoid the dreaded NC-17 rating. We’re taken through the various procedures and practices of the MPAA, mostly through interview footage of filmmakers such as Atom Egoyan, Matt Stone, John Waters and many others who all share horror stories of being f****d by the MPAA. And, of course, there’s plenty of archival interview footage of everyone’s most hated old fart, the former President of the MPAA, Jack Valenti, jamming his foot in his mouth. This guy’s so full of s**t it’s incredible.
But going back to this mystery ratings board, whose members have been kept secret ever since its inception, threading this whole film together is an investigation Dick begins in order to find out who exactly these member are. Hey, if you’re gonna have your work censored, you want to know by whom, right? Otherwise you’re just getting kicked in the a*s by the Invisible Man and that’s just frustrating. So, Dick hires a private investigator and thus begins their efforts to unveil the identities of the secret board members. Brilliant.
One of the hottest films at this year’s Sundance film festival, expect to hear a lot about this one throughout the following months. It’s vital that everyone who cares about film see this documentary.
