Does Sex Sell? A Look at the Effects of Sex and Violence on Motion Picture Revenues

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is responsible for assigning all movies one of five movie ratings (G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17). Previous research has found that G and PGrated movies perform better at the box office, yet movie studios continue to make more PG-13 and R-rated movies. Other research has used data on a film’s levels of sex, violence and profanity (SVP), to explore the link between SVP, movie rating, and box office revenues. In this paper, we use a more recent data set and include additional variables to account for movie quality to further explore this relationship. We investigate the issue of how the amount of SVP has changed in the last fifteen years. We also use theater-level data for a major Midwestern theater chain to extend our analysis beyond total box office revenues, examining the effects on revenues in four ticket categories: adult, child, senior citizen, and student. Finally, we explore the difference between foreign and domestic box office responses to SVP levels and suggest that there is a justifiable reason why movie studios continue to produce far more PG-13 and R movies than G and PG movies

Does Sex Sell? A Look at the Effects of Sex and Violence on Motion Picture Revenues

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is responsible for assigning all movies one of five movie ratings (G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17). Previous research has found that G and PGrated movies perform better at the box office, yet movie studios continue to make more PG-13 and R-rated movies. Other research has used data on a film’s levels of sex, violence and profanity (SVP), to explore the link between SVP, movie rating, and box office revenues. In this paper, we use a more recent data set and include additional variables to account for movie quality to further explore this relationship. We investigate the issue of how the amount of SVP has changed in the last fifteen years. We also use theater-level data for a major Midwestern theater chain to extend our analysis beyond total box office revenues, examining the effects on revenues in four ticket categories: adult, child, senior citizen, and student. Finally, we explore the difference between foreign and domestic box office responses to SVP levels and suggest that there is a justifiable reason why movie studios continue to produce far more PG-13 and R movies than G and PG movies

MAKNA PESAN PADA FILM ACTION (Analisa Semiotik pada Film Action yang Mencapai Box Office Tahun 2015)

This research aims to find out and explain the existence of some meaning of the message in the action movies, which reached the box office in 2015. The research is qualitative, using semiotic analysis of Roland Barthes on denotative and connotative meaning. Data obtained through observations at the box office 25 action movies circulating in Indonesia. The result showed that; there is another meaning of the message in an action movie in addition to the meaning of the message of violence. still found positive messages in an action movie like the concept of heroism, skill and technology. besides denotative meaning, there is also a connotative meaning in the meaning of violence, namely background or the reason of violence and heroism. Key words: Connotative, Denotative, Violence, Fil

The Roles Of Violence in Recent Biblical Cinema: The Passion, Noah, And Exodus: Gods And Kings

When The Passion was released, its extremely graphic violence horrified critics and scholars of religion although its success at the box office indicates that this, if anything, made the story of Jesus more appealing for viewers. Now that more time has passed and expectations surrounding levels of acceptable violence in cinema have changed, it is worth reconsidering how cinematic violence is used as reception strategy in Biblical cinema. Considering The Passion with more recent Biblical films, Noah and Exodus: Gods and Kings, it becomes apparent that violence is not only used to expand laconic Biblical narratives but to invest them with a sense of verism, to situate the stories in either specifically historical or generally mythological time, to elicit audience sympathy, to remake Biblical characters into figures of heroic masculinity, and to harmonize Biblical story-telling with cinematic genre conventions. Viewing violence from a genre perspective, this article explores how considering instances of cinematic violence as light or heavy helps to better understand the complexities of the roles violence plays in adapting Biblical stories for the screen

The Legacy of Thelma & Louise - A Panel Discussion

Thelma & Louise, directed by Ridley Scott, written by Callie Khouri and starring Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon was a box office hit on its release thirty years ago and ignited an extraordinary debate about the representation of women, violence and feminism. In this talk the panel considers the film's significance and contemporaneity in the age of #MeToo and #TimesUp. Panellists include: - Professor Marita Sturken - Department of Media, Culture, and Communication at New York University. - Lucy Brown - Award-winning educator and practitioner. She is Head of Division for Film and an Associate Professor at London South Bank University. - Funke Oyebanjo - Script consultant, lecturer and scriptwriter. She is one of the founding members of the Talawa theatre writers’ group. - Dr Shelley Cobb - Associate professor of Film at the University of Southampton and Principal Investigator of Calling the Shots: Women and Contemporary Film Culture in the UK

Motion Pictures, Social Theory and Contemporary Film: A Thematic Content Analysis of Values.

A content analysis of the ten top-grossing films of 1993 was conducted examining the depiction of the family, the portrayal of violence, and the representation of religion. The results were compared with the rhetorical vision of popular motion pictures by film critic Michael Medved. Medved\u27s 1992 Hollywood VS America attacked the entertainment industry for its anti­ family, pro-violence, and anti-religious messages in film. A thematic comparison indicated that, across the three categories, Medved\u27s criticisms were supported about half of the time by the film sample. A deeper look at the results shows that Medved\u27s criticisms regarding the depiction of the family and the portrayal of violence were largely unsupported by the sample. His observations about anti-family messages were not found in any of the seven films evaluated for family content. The pro-violence content was reported in two of the six films studied for violence. Medved\u27s contention that religion is not represented in popular film was strongly supported, showing agreement in nine of the ten films in the sample. The thesis concludes that, in the areas of family and violence, his criticisms focus on the film content outside of their narrative context. That is, actual anti family and pro-violence issues are present in the films, but are treated in such a way as to reaffirm the traditional values of contemporary society. It is concluded that, overall, this reflection of accepted ideals is validated by the top-grossing box office status of the films. That popular motion picture content may be an indication of current social standards is discussed. Future areas of research and criticism within the context of social responsibility are considered

Brady Statute Data: Establishing Noncriminal Classifications for the Alaska Department of Public Safety

The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 prohibits the purchase of firearms by persons in certain noncriminal categories. These reports describe potential data sources for the identification of mental committments, addicted substance abusers, illegal aliens, and persons who have been the subject of a domestic violence restraining order and discusses possible procedures, problems, and solutions associated with data collection for the purpose of Brady background checks. Lack of infrastructure for collecting certain types of data, incompleteness of information, and state constitutional protections, including the guarantee of privacy, are the chief obstacles to completely meeting the provisions of the Brady Act in Alaska.Bureau of Justice Statistics, United States Department of Justice Grant No. 96-RU-RX-K026Background / Needs and Benefits / Goals and Objectives / Project Design / Findings by Classification / Conclusio

Intimate partner violence and stalking\ud

“Stalker guilty of stabbing ex-girlfriend to death in "brutal' attack”, reads the London Evening Standard news headline (Bailey, 2010). This article goes onto describe how Gemma Doorman, 24, was stabbed to death in July 2008, as she left a restaurant in South-West London, by her ex-partner Vikramgit Singh. The ‘frenzied attack’ occurred after months of stalking and harassment, which Miss Doorman had previously reported to the police. This is just one example of many worldwide media headlines that depict stories of relationships that have culminated in the murder of one partner. While, not all cases of partner homicide are characterised by stalking and harassment, most victims of stalking know their perpetrator, and in a large proportion of stalking cases the target is an ex-intimate partner (Spitzberg, 2002). Such murder cases provoke questions about why the fatality occurred and whether this arguably foreseeable event could have been prevented. These are questions that many academics and practitioners in the field have endeavoured to answer