[LAEM] Movie MPAA rating?

[Fainne Roisin]

What do you think the film will or should be rated? For the amount of violence, should they rate it R? Or cut back on that and keep it PG-13?
I believe it will be PG-13 at most, simply to get more people to view it, as it will probably be very appealing to that age range.
I wish it would be rated R and show all the more disturbing aspects of it, however.

Also, assuming they do make live action EoE, how will they handle the masturbation scene? Does that fall under PG-13?

[drinian]

Also, assuming they do make live action EoE, how will they handle the masturbation scene? Does that fall under PG-13?

I don't really have an answer for that, as the movie-ratings system in this country gets more disturbingly convoluted with each passing year (cf. the infamous one F-bomb allowed in a PG-13 movie -- any more and it's R, any less and the movie studio feels like they haven't fulfilled some sort of obligation...)

But I digress. If we're looking at this one specific scene from EoE, you have to remember that it is not only really there for the shock value but also as a criticism of the otaku culture in general. Live action Eva may not want to add these criticisms as they don't make sense in an American context; the scene will probably be cut in any case. Speculation is really useless at this point, although I would be interested in hearing others' thoughts on how the original series would have been rated if the American anime industry were to adopt the MPAA rating system.

Cultural norms seem to be so different between Japan and the US that even the most innocuous anime might end up getting an R-rating for nudity, for instance. The whole system really is broken in a lot of ways.

[The Eva Monkey]

I guarantee you they will make it PG-13. From a buisness perspective, they would be limiting a lot of their potential audience by making it an R rated film. They'll go for the same crowds that would go to a Spider-man or X-men film.

If you look at Box office trends, it is actually quite hard for R-rated films to perform, due to their designation. There are only so many really successful R-rated films in the box office. The films that TRULY defied their rating was The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions. They really cleaned up, and I should hold the records for R-rated movies for a while.

[Winslow Leach]

I'm hoping for a PG-13 for the first film to suck people in (the first half of the anime series is at PG-13 level anyways), then an R-rating for the sequel(s), if there are any made. Or they could just release all the movies in watered down PG-13 versions theatrically then release R-rated extended editions with all the violent stuff from the anime to try and stop the rabid Eva otaku from sending them bomb threats.

[Hexon.Arq]

I don't really care for the prospect of an R-rated conclusion, though I'm all for R content. This is why I think they should just tell everybody they want to do Nadesico instead. Forget that Eva crap; too much red tape.

[BEsERk EVA01]

Ach. I hope they put it to PG-13. Because I'm only 12 and several of my 12-15 year old mates wanna see the movie as bad as all of you do. They're really desperate, I can tell you that for sure.

[CitizenGeek]

Also, assuming they do make live action EoE, how will they handle the masturbation scene? Does that fall under PG-13?

Oh, I think they'll get around that by not having that scene at all. Seriously, they'd never, ever show a 14-year-old masturbating over another 14-year-old's comatose body.

Also, 'Fainne Roisin' ... is that Irish?

[BrikHaus]

I'm sure it will be PG-13 so they can make tons of money. Besides, it can still be awesome and be PG-13. It's not like Evangelion has much swearing, and only punctuated violence. The nudity thing isn't necessary, either. Overall, I think they could do justice to it with a PG-13 rating.

Ach. I hope they put it to PG-13. Because I'm only 12 and several of my 12-15 year old mates wanna see the movie as bad as all of you do. They're really desperate, I can tell you that for sure.

By the time they make this movie you'll be 25 years old, so it won't matter by then.

[NAveryW]

Hey, Matt Greenfield might actually be dead by the time they make it and we can get a competent supervisor! =D

[CitizenGeek]

I'm sure it will be PG-13 so they can make tons of money. Besides, it can still be awesome and be PG-13. It's not like Evangelion has much swearing, and only punctuated violence. The nudity thing isn't necessary, either. Overall, I think they could do justice to it with a PG-13 rating.

Yes, I agree. The first 4 or 5 volumes of Eva were rated as "PG" over here and the final volumes only as "12". So, I think justice could be done with such a rating.

Hey, Matt Greenfield might actually be dead by the time they make it and we can get a competent supervisor! =D

I like Matt Greenfield. He done more than a good enough job on the dub, seems to have a genuine interest in Evangelion's "deeper" meaning. Both him and his wife seem to be very fond and very passionate about Eva ... isn't that better than dragging in someone who's never even heard of Evangelion before, forcing them to watch it a few times and then giving them the job?

[Wevangeliwon]

I would say it is a PG-13 rating. You know, you're going to have to cut out the gutted Unit-02 . . . the masturbation scene would get the book and Cannibal-01 would be out, but you know, apart from that, PG-13.

I like Matt Greenfield. He done more than a good enough job on the dub, seems to have a genuine interest in Evangelion's "deeper" meaning. Both him and his wife seem to be very fond and very passionate about Eva ... isn't that better than dragging in someone who's never even heard of Evangelion before, forcing them to watch it a few times and then giving them the job?

This is something I have to agree with. I mean, the dub wasn't stuffed with. Imagine if some kiddie company . . . oh let's say 4Kids took this and like One Piece thought it would be a great Anime for kids. Shawn Vangel, Ray Rilim, Alice Rice, pilots of the Evangelion Units, with all the deep stuff and violence cut out.

[Gendo'sPapa]

PG-13 all the way. A budget as large as the film demands and the desire to do a series, an R rating would be financial suicide. Especially if the protagonists are so young.....bullshit, they'll be aged up to 19.

And the movies would (relatively) stick close to the series storyline while bastardizing the characters but would not in any way go for a climax like End of Evangelion.

If it stays true to its "Being more open for non-fans" than any live action Eva ending would be closer in relation to what Rebuild might offer.

EOE is not going to get a live action revision in any way people. The masturbation scene is the key issue but you've also got big naked 14 year olds. A Giant Naked Rei works well in animation but live action the concept is laughable (cough, At World's End, cough). Then there's the downright pessimism and end of the world.

EOE and the best parts of Eva have strictly come from teh insane, narcissitic and unfliching brain that is Anno's. Despite what ADV and their Propoganda folks are saying they're not trying to do an Eva movie cause they HAVE too. With Anno he HAD to Eva to find meaning in his life I feel. And thats probably why its his greatest work. He HAD TO MAKE IT.

With any live action Eva (and to be fair, Rebuild, don't feel that Anno HAD to make it) you're not going to see it be as wild, out there, and personal because no one in the production feels like they have to make it. They just know it will pay off.

Look at any artist. Their best works are the pieces they have to make or have desired to make simply because the story has shaped who they are.

So any of EOE popping up in a Live Action Form? HAHA!!! Only aspects I can actually see occuring are SEELE invading NERV and the Mass Produced Evas (without killing Asuka). Anything else is too confrontational for audiences to accept.

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

True.

Though IMO there is still a possibility (albeit low probability) that the insane EoE moments will be, in some way, depicted.

ADV/Weta then has to ask themselves a question...

Do they feel lucky?

[Fainne Roisin]

Also, 'Fainne Roisin' ... is that Irish?

Indeed it is.

Especially if the protagonists are so young.....bullshit, they'll be aged up to 19.

Oh gods, I hope not.

So any of EOE popping up in a Live Action Form? HAHA!!! Only aspects I can actually see occuring are SEELE invading NERV and the Mass Produced Evas (without killing Asuka). Anything else is too confrontational for audiences to accept.

You're probably right about that--if they make more than one movie, they'll probably end up compressing EoE with the end of the series -- just picking out the "good" parts to use. A shame, that.

[Shiro]

EOE is not going to get a live action revision in any way people. The masturbation scene is the key issue but you've also got big naked 14 year olds. A Giant Naked Rei works well in animation but live action the concept is laughable (cough, At World's End, cough). Then there's the downright pessimism and end of the world.

Hm...I don't really think SFAiBL is the key issue. SFAiBL could really be skipped over without much change in the plot of the movie, it serves an intriguing character development, but it's hardly key. GNR, however, would be damn near impossible.

I'm betting on a variation on the Arka ending if ANYONE related to Eva's original production gets involved. Otherwise, it just won't work. Arka, Aluka, whatever the heck you want to call it, is really the only one of the ending scenarios that can be put into ELAM without butchery.


PG-13 is 99% for sure. NGE was shown on Adult Swim without any butchery (except for groping in 5), except voicing. EoE's only R-rated parts are SFAiBL and the boobs that go with it. Hell, if Xmen could get away with Mystique's boobs, GNR's boobs would be sorta passable, not that they'll keep GNR.

[Ornette]

Hm...I don't really think SFAiBL is the key issue. SFAiBL could really be skipped over without much change in the plot of the movie, it serves an intriguing character development, but it's hardly key. GNR, however, would be damn near impossible.

They pulled it off in X-Men, who had a girl that was naked but had paint covering her nipples.

[Themaninblack]

They can just edit Shinji's Fap-tastic to a more suitable form...it would e quite easily to do....well that or out. of the Movie entireley...though it would be quite harmful .

[Shiro]

Yeah, I mentioned that later in the post. I meant that it would look ridiculous. I mean, think about it. A giant 14 year old girl actor painted white. C'mon. It looked dumb in Pirates 3, and it wasn't even painted one colour.

@maninblack: While personally I think SFAiBL was a bit much but a HUGE WTF, it's not necessary in ELAM by any means. It's pretty much taboo to have 14 year olds engaging in any sexual act.

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

honestly though IMO, with the PG-13 rating basically morphing into more of a softened version of a R with every passing year, I think there is more that ELAM could get away with than we currently assume it would

Exhibit A:

Don't get me wrong. ^This^ was still pretty good, despite the obvious changes from the poem (full disclosure: I am one of the biggest Zemeckis fanboys EVAR, BTTF FTW); but IMO, it was a miracle this film did not receive a R.

[Shiro]

I haven't seen Beowulf yet; what exactly did it get away with? I've heard that a ton of times, so I'm curious.