Gire: Rating movie nudity along with the MPAA
Partial vs. full nudity?
If you've seen “Jupiter Ascending,” you probably remember actress Tuppence Middleton, completely nude, slowly rising from a large tub in a bathing scene. I noted the film's rating warned of “partial nudity,” yet there was nothing remotely partial about what I saw.
Why the inaccuracy? I went straight to the source, Joan Graves, chair of the MPAA's Classification and Ratings Administration. She quickly responded:
“Dear Mr. Gire: I believe it was a rear view of her body only, not a frontal view. Many times a rear view, depending on context, length etc., is described as 'partial.' Front breast nudity is usually 'nudity.' Full-frontal nudity is usually signified as 'graphic nudity.'
“Nothing is in stone. Immediately after the screening, we form the descriptor in an effort to give parents an impression of what to expect at that rating level within the specific film. I am sorry you feel we misrepresented the content of this film, and I certainly will share your concern with the Board.”
So there we have it. A key to deciphering the Rating Administration's interior code for various stages of nudity, even though they read as factually inaccurate.
More Oscar shows
• Join me and film historian Raymond Benson when Dann & Raymond's Movie Club presents its last Academy Awards preview at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, at the Palatine Public Library, 700 N. North Court, Palatine. Free admission. palatinelibrary.org.
• I'll be going solo for “And the Oscar Goes To ...,” my final Academy Awards preview at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, at the Dundee Library, 555 Barrington Ave., East Dundee. dundeelibrary.info.
• Dann Gire's Reel Life column runs Fridays in Time out!