Video nasty
Encyclopedia
"Video nasty" was a colloquial
term coined in the United Kingdom
by 1982 which originally applied to a number of film
s distributed on video cassette that were criticized for their violent content by the press, commentators such as Mary Whitehouse
and various religious organizations.
While violence in films released to cinemas had received attention from an official body, the British Board of Film Censorship
, for many years, the lack of a regulatory system for video sales combined with the claim that any film could fall into children's hands led to public debate. Many of these 'video nasties' were low-budget horror
films produced in Italy
and the United States
. The furore created by the response to video nasties led to the introduction of the Video Recordings Act 1984
which imposed a stricter code of censorship
on videos than was required for cinema
release. Several major studio productions ended up being banned on video, falling within the scope of legislation designed to control the distribution of video nasties. Due to a legislative mistake discovered in August 2009, the Video Recordings Act 1984 was repealed and re-enacted without change by the Video Recordings Act 2010
.
which had been amended in 1977 to cover erotic films. Major film distributors were initially reluctant to embrace the new medium of video for fear of piracy
and the video market became flooded with low-budget horror films. Whilst some of these films had been passed by the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) for cinema release, others had been refused certification. The Obscene Publications Act defined obscenity as that which may "tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it". This definition is of course open to wide interpretation.
If the Director of Public Prosecutions
(DPP) felt that a certain video might be in breach the Act then a prosecution could be brought against the film's producers, distributors and retailers. Prosecutions had to be fought on a case by case basis and a backlog of prosecutions built up. However, under the terms of the Act the police
were empowered to seize videos from retailers if they were of the opinion that the material was in breach of the Act. In the early 1980s, in certain police constabularies, notably Greater Manchester Police
which was at that time run a devout Christian Chief Constable
James Anderton
, police raids on video hire shops increased. However the choice of titles seized appeared to be completely arbitrary, one raid famously netting a copy of the Dolly Parton
musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
(1982) under the mistaken belief it was pornographic.
The Video Retailers Association were alarmed by the apparently random seizures and asked the DPP to provide a guideline for the industry so that stockists could be made aware of the titles which were liable to be confiscated. The DPP recognized that the current system, where the interpretation of obscenity was down to individual Chief Constables, was inconsistent and decided to publish a list that contained names of films that had already resulted in a successful prosecutions or where the DPP had already filed charges against the video's distributors. This list became known as the DPP list of "video nasties".
The lack of regulation of the domestic video market was in sharp contrast to the regulation of material intended for public screenings. The BBFC had been established in 1912 and it was their responsibility to pass films intended for the cinema for certification within the United Kingdom (though local councils were the final arbiters). As part of this process the board could recommend, or demand in the more extreme cases, that certain cuts be made to the film in order for it to gain a particular certification. Such permission was not always granted, and in the case of the release of The Exorcist
in 1973, a number of enterprising managers of cinemas where permission had been granted set about providing buses to transport cinema-goers from other localities where the film could not be seen.
, took out full page advertisements in a number of specialist video magazines, depicting the video's explicit cover; an action which resulted in a large number of complaints to the Advertising Standards Agency
. A few months later Go Video, the distributors of the Italian Cannibal Holocaust
(1980), in an effort to boost publicity and generate sales that ultimately backfired, wrote anonymously to Mary Whitehouse
of the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association complaining about their own film. Whitehouse sparked off a public campaign and coined the term 'video nasty'. Amid the growing concern, The Sunday Times
brought the issue to a wider audience in May 1982 with an article entitled "How high street horror is invading the home". Soon the Daily Mail
began their own campaign against the distribution of these films. The exposure of 'nasties' to children began to be blamed for the increase in violent crime amongst youths. The growing media frenzy only served to increase the demand for such material among adolescents. At the suggestion of the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, the Conservative MP Graham Bright
introduced a Private Member's Bill
to the House of Commons
in 1983. This was passed as the Video Recordings Act 1984
which came into effect on 1 September 1985.
, which was made available by Warner Home Video in December 1981, was not submitted for video certification by the BBFC and was withdrawn from shelves in 1986. Similarly Straw Dogs was denied video certification and removed from video stores. Popular culture backlash against the Video Recordings Act included the May 1984 release of "Nasty
" by the punk
-goth outfit, The Damned, who celebrated the condemned genre with the lyrics, "I fell in love with a video nasty."
The TV show The Young Ones
included an entire episode entitled "Nasty", in which the characters rent a video recorder
specifically to watch a "video nasty" (with the fictitious name "Sex With the Headless Corpse of the Virgin Astronaut"), and which featured a lip synched performance of "Nasty" by The Damned. In another episode, "Bambi", the titular character had apparently done a "Disney nasty" entitled "Bambi Goes Crazy-Ape Bonkers With His Drill and Sex".
The television programme Spitting Image
parodied the Video Nasties with their sketch of a sickeningly nice, low budget film, entitled a video "nicie".
Neil Innes
’ song "My New School" (1984) contains a video nasty reference “its got all the charm of a video nasty, I’ve never been anywhere so ghastly, my new school”.
The 1985 Doctor Who
serial "Vengeance on Varos
" was set within the confines of a 'Punishment Dome' where the repellent alien delegate Sil
was delighted to learn that recordings of real life executions, dismemberments, drownings, acid baths and other 'delights' were being peddled to the apathetic population at large to keep them both docile and entertained. After the transmission in January 1985 there were quite a few official complaints about the content of the serial to both the BBC
itself and the Radio Times
.
BBC Video advertised their offerings (such as Doctor Who
) as "Video Tasties."
. Claims, since proven at best to be speculative, at worse outright media fabrication, relating to the Hungerford massacre
and the murder of James Bulger
(the 1991 film Child's Play 3
was held up as influencing the perpetrators) provided an additional impetus to restrict films and as late as December 1997, the board claimed "The Board has never relaxed its guidelines on video violence, which remain the strictest in the world". However, the board did loosen its standards, especially at the 18 level, in response to public consultation in 2000. The departure of James Ferman
from the BBFC may also have allowed some long-proscribed films to be re-appraised around this time. The Exorcist
was granted an uncut 18 certificate
on 10 June 1999 and several official 'nasties' were passed in the early 2000s either uncut or with cuts restricted to sexual violence or actual animals being harmed. A list of these is given below. Among modern films, many such as the Hostel and Saw
series, contain brutal, graphic violence but are passing through uncut.
In 2008, there was another brief media frenzy over such films that had years earlier been approved for release by the BBFC, in particular SS Experiment Camp
. This coincided with an attempt by MPs Julian Brazier
and Keith Vaz
to pass a law allowing MPs greater powers to tighten BBFC guidelines or force an appeal of a release. The bill failed to pass.
However, the UK Government passed a law criminalising possession of "extreme pornography
". Whilst BBFC-rated films are exempt from the legislation, somewhat illogically screenshots from these same BBFC-rated movies are not, and would also apply to unrated films. Hostel: Part II was cited in the House of Commons as an example of a film where screenshots could become illegal to possess.
A number of films spent a short time on this list because their prosecutions failed shortly after publication or because it was decided that prosecution was not worth pursuing. Ultimately, the list became obsolete when the Video Recordings Act came into force, and since 2001, several of the films have been released uncut. In the majority of cases below where cuts were made, they were scenes of real-life animal cruelty and/or excessive violence to women, both of which are still regarded with some degree of severity by the BBFC.
Although commonly thought of as part of the DPP list, the following two titles never actually appeared on the DPP's official "nasties" list:
Unless noted otherwise, all films that have been released have been rated 18. Also note that a large number of these movies caused additional controversy with the cover art of the original big box releases seen in the video shops of the early 1980s.
Colloquialism
A colloquialism is a word or phrase that is common in everyday, unconstrained conversation rather than in formal speech, academic writing, or paralinguistics. Dictionaries often display colloquial words and phrases with the abbreviation colloq. as an identifier...
term coined in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by 1982 which originally applied to a number of film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s distributed on video cassette that were criticized for their violent content by the press, commentators such as Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse, CBE was a British campaigner against the permissive society particularly as the media portrayed and reflected it...
and various religious organizations.
While violence in films released to cinemas had received attention from an official body, the British Board of Film Censorship
British Board of Film Classification
The British Board of Film Classification , originally British Board of Film Censors, is a non-governmental organisation, funded by the film industry and responsible for the national classification of films within the United Kingdom...
, for many years, the lack of a regulatory system for video sales combined with the claim that any film could fall into children's hands led to public debate. Many of these 'video nasties' were low-budget horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
films produced in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The furore created by the response to video nasties led to the introduction of the Video Recordings Act 1984
Video Recordings Act 1984
The Video Recordings Act 1984 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that was passed in 1984. It states that commercial video recordings offered for sale or for hire within the UK must carry a classification that has been agreed upon by an authority designated by the Home Office...
which imposed a stricter code of censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
on videos than was required for cinema
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
release. Several major studio productions ended up being banned on video, falling within the scope of legislation designed to control the distribution of video nasties. Due to a legislative mistake discovered in August 2009, the Video Recordings Act 1984 was repealed and re-enacted without change by the Video Recordings Act 2010
Video Recordings Act 2010
The Video Recordings Act 2010 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that received Royal Assent on 21 January 2010. The Act repealed and then brought back into force parts of the Video Recordings Act 1984 which related to the regulation of video recordings...
.
Obscenity and video
At the time of the introduction of domestic video recorders in the United Kingdom during the 1970s, there was no legislation specifically designed to regulate video content, apart from the Obscene Publications Act 1959Obscene Publications Act 1959
The Obscene Publications Act 1959 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom Parliament that significantly reformed the law related to obscenity. Prior to the passage of the Act, the law on publishing obscene materials was governed by the common law case of R v Hicklin, which had no exceptions...
which had been amended in 1977 to cover erotic films. Major film distributors were initially reluctant to embrace the new medium of video for fear of piracy
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
and the video market became flooded with low-budget horror films. Whilst some of these films had been passed by the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) for cinema release, others had been refused certification. The Obscene Publications Act defined obscenity as that which may "tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it". This definition is of course open to wide interpretation.
If the Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world...
(DPP) felt that a certain video might be in breach the Act then a prosecution could be brought against the film's producers, distributors and retailers. Prosecutions had to be fought on a case by case basis and a backlog of prosecutions built up. However, under the terms of the Act the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
were empowered to seize videos from retailers if they were of the opinion that the material was in breach of the Act. In the early 1980s, in certain police constabularies, notably Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police is the police force responsible for law enforcement within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester in North West England...
which was at that time run a devout Christian Chief Constable
Chief Constable
Chief constable is the rank used by the chief police officer of every territorial police force in the United Kingdom except for the City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police, as well as the chief officers of the three 'special' national police forces, the British Transport Police, Ministry...
James Anderton
James Anderton
Sir Cyril James Anderton CBE is a British former police officer who served as Chief Constable of Greater Manchester from 1975 to 1991.-Career:...
, police raids on video hire shops increased. However the choice of titles seized appeared to be completely arbitrary, one raid famously netting a copy of the Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (film)
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas is a 1982 film adaptation of the musical of the same name released by Universal Pictures, which was co-written and directed by Colin Higgins...
(1982) under the mistaken belief it was pornographic.
The Video Retailers Association were alarmed by the apparently random seizures and asked the DPP to provide a guideline for the industry so that stockists could be made aware of the titles which were liable to be confiscated. The DPP recognized that the current system, where the interpretation of obscenity was down to individual Chief Constables, was inconsistent and decided to publish a list that contained names of films that had already resulted in a successful prosecutions or where the DPP had already filed charges against the video's distributors. This list became known as the DPP list of "video nasties".
The lack of regulation of the domestic video market was in sharp contrast to the regulation of material intended for public screenings. The BBFC had been established in 1912 and it was their responsibility to pass films intended for the cinema for certification within the United Kingdom (though local councils were the final arbiters). As part of this process the board could recommend, or demand in the more extreme cases, that certain cuts be made to the film in order for it to gain a particular certification. Such permission was not always granted, and in the case of the release of The Exorcist
The Exorcist (film)
The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
in 1973, a number of enterprising managers of cinemas where permission had been granted set about providing buses to transport cinema-goers from other localities where the film could not be seen.
Public concern
Public awareness of the availability of these videos began in early 1982, when Vipco (Video Instant Picture Company), the UK distributors of Driller Killer (1979), a slasher filmSlasher film
A slasher film is a type of horror film typically involving a psychopathic killer stalking and killing a sequence of victims in a graphically violent manner, often with a cutting tool such as a knife or axe...
, took out full page advertisements in a number of specialist video magazines, depicting the video's explicit cover; an action which resulted in a large number of complaints to the Advertising Standards Agency
Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom)
The Advertising Standards Authority is the self-regulatory organisation of the advertising industry in the United Kingdom. The ASA is a non-statutory organisation and so cannot interpret or enforce legislation. However, its code of advertising practice broadly reflects legislation in many instances...
. A few months later Go Video, the distributors of the Italian Cannibal Holocaust
Cannibal Holocaust
Cannibal Holocaust is a 1980 Italian horror film directed by Ruggero Deodato from a screenplay by Gianfranco Clerici. Filmed in the Amazon Rainforest and dealing with indigenous tribes, it was cast mostly with United States actors and filmed in English to achieve wider distribution...
(1980), in an effort to boost publicity and generate sales that ultimately backfired, wrote anonymously to Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse
Mary Whitehouse, CBE was a British campaigner against the permissive society particularly as the media portrayed and reflected it...
of the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association complaining about their own film. Whitehouse sparked off a public campaign and coined the term 'video nasty'. Amid the growing concern, The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
brought the issue to a wider audience in May 1982 with an article entitled "How high street horror is invading the home". Soon the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
began their own campaign against the distribution of these films. The exposure of 'nasties' to children began to be blamed for the increase in violent crime amongst youths. The growing media frenzy only served to increase the demand for such material among adolescents. At the suggestion of the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, the Conservative MP Graham Bright
Graham Bright
Sir Graham Frank James Bright is a British politician and businessman. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as a Member of Parliament from 1979-97....
introduced a Private Member's Bill
Private Member's Bill
A member of parliament’s legislative motion, called a private member's bill or a member's bill in some parliaments, is a proposed law introduced by a member of a legislature. In most countries with a parliamentary system, most bills are proposed by the government, not by individual members of the...
to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
in 1983. This was passed as the Video Recordings Act 1984
Video Recordings Act 1984
The Video Recordings Act 1984 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that was passed in 1984. It states that commercial video recordings offered for sale or for hire within the UK must carry a classification that has been agreed upon by an authority designated by the Home Office...
which came into effect on 1 September 1985.
Effects of the Video Recordings Act 1984
Under the 1984 Act, the British Board of Film Censors was renamed the British Board of Film Classification and became responsible for the certification of both cinema and video releases. All video releases after 1 September 1985 had to comply with the Act and be submitted for classification by the BBFC. Films released on video before that date had to be re-submitted for classification within the following three years. The increased possibility of videos falling into the hands of children required that film classification for video be a separate process from cinema classification. Films that had passed uncut for cinema release were often cut for video. The supply of unclassified videos became a criminal offence, as did supplying 15 and 18 certificate videos to under-aged people. As well as the low-budget horror films the Act was originally intended to curb, a number of high profile films which had passed cinema certification fell foul of the Act. In particular, The ExorcistThe Exorcist (film)
The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
, which was made available by Warner Home Video in December 1981, was not submitted for video certification by the BBFC and was withdrawn from shelves in 1986. Similarly Straw Dogs was denied video certification and removed from video stores. Popular culture backlash against the Video Recordings Act included the May 1984 release of "Nasty
Thanks For The Night
"Thanks for the Night" was a single released by The Damned in 1984.It was recorded at something of a transitional stage for the group, being the last studio recording completed with Captain Sensible until 2001's Grave Disorder album...
" by the punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
-goth outfit, The Damned, who celebrated the condemned genre with the lyrics, "I fell in love with a video nasty."
The TV show The Young Ones
The Young Ones (TV series)
The Young Ones is a British sitcom, first broadcast in 1982, which ran for two series on BBC2. Its anarchic, offbeat humour helped bring alternative comedy to television in the 1980s and made household names of its writers and performers...
included an entire episode entitled "Nasty", in which the characters rent a video recorder
Videocassette recorder
The videocassette recorder , is a type of electro-mechanical device that uses removable videocassettes that contain magnetic tape for recording analog audio and analog video from broadcast television so that the images and sound can be played back at a more convenient time...
specifically to watch a "video nasty" (with the fictitious name "Sex With the Headless Corpse of the Virgin Astronaut"), and which featured a lip synched performance of "Nasty" by The Damned. In another episode, "Bambi", the titular character had apparently done a "Disney nasty" entitled "Bambi Goes Crazy-Ape Bonkers With His Drill and Sex".
The television programme Spitting Image
Spitting Image
Spitting Image is a British satirical puppet show that aired on the ITV network from 1984 to 1996. It was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central Television. The series was nominated for 10 BAFTA Awards, winning one for editing in 1989....
parodied the Video Nasties with their sketch of a sickeningly nice, low budget film, entitled a video "nicie".
Neil Innes
Neil Innes
Neil James Innes is an English writer and performer of comic songs, best known for his collaborative work with Monty Python, and for playing in the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and later The Rutles.-Personal life:...
’ song "My New School" (1984) contains a video nasty reference “its got all the charm of a video nasty, I’ve never been anywhere so ghastly, my new school”.
The 1985 Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial "Vengeance on Varos
Vengeance on Varos
Vengeance on Varos is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from 19–26 January 1985.-Synopsis:...
" was set within the confines of a 'Punishment Dome' where the repellent alien delegate Sil
Sil (Doctor Who)
Sil is a fictional alien from the television series Doctor Who, first appearing in the 1985 serial Vengeance on Varos. Sil was portrayed by Nabil Shaban....
was delighted to learn that recordings of real life executions, dismemberments, drownings, acid baths and other 'delights' were being peddled to the apathetic population at large to keep them both docile and entertained. After the transmission in January 1985 there were quite a few official complaints about the content of the serial to both the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
itself and the Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
.
BBC Video advertised their offerings (such as Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
) as "Video Tasties."
Relaxation of censorship
With the passing of the Video Recordings Act, the films on the list could be prosecuted for both obscenity and not being classified. As well as not passing any film liable to be found obscene, the BBFC imposed additional bans and cuts on films such as The Texas Chain Saw MassacreThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
. Claims, since proven at best to be speculative, at worse outright media fabrication, relating to the Hungerford massacre
Hungerford massacre
The Hungerford massacre occurred in Hungerford, Berkshire, England, on 19 August 1987. The gunman, 27-year-old Michael Robert Ryan, armed with two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun, shot and killed sixteen people including his mother, and wounded fifteen others, then fatally shot himself...
and the murder of James Bulger
Murder of James Bulger
James Patrick Bulger was a boy from Kirkby, England, who was murdered on 12 February 1993, when aged two. He was abducted, tortured and murdered by two ten-year-old boys, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables .Bulger disappeared from the New Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle, near Liverpool, while...
(the 1991 film Child's Play 3
Child's Play 3
Child's Play 3, also known as Child's Play 3: Look Who's Stalking, is a 1991 horror film. It is the third installment in the Child's Play series with Brad Dourif returning as the voice of Chucky...
was held up as influencing the perpetrators) provided an additional impetus to restrict films and as late as December 1997, the board claimed "The Board has never relaxed its guidelines on video violence, which remain the strictest in the world". However, the board did loosen its standards, especially at the 18 level, in response to public consultation in 2000. The departure of James Ferman
James Ferman
James Alan Ferman was an American television and theatre director. He was the Secretary of the British Board of Film Classification from 1975 to 1999....
from the BBFC may also have allowed some long-proscribed films to be re-appraised around this time. The Exorcist
The Exorcist (film)
The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
was granted an uncut 18 certificate
18 certificate
The 18 certificate is issued by the British Board of Film Classification to state that, in its opinion, a film, video recording, or game should not be seen or purchased by a person under 18 years old....
on 10 June 1999 and several official 'nasties' were passed in the early 2000s either uncut or with cuts restricted to sexual violence or actual animals being harmed. A list of these is given below. Among modern films, many such as the Hostel and Saw
Saw (film)
Saw is a 2004 American independent horror film directed by James Wan. The screenplay, written by Leigh Whannell, is based on a story by Wan and Whannell. The film stars Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter, Michael Emerson, Ken Leung, Whannell and Tobin Bell...
series, contain brutal, graphic violence but are passing through uncut.
In 2008, there was another brief media frenzy over such films that had years earlier been approved for release by the BBFC, in particular SS Experiment Camp
SS Experiment Camp
SS Experiment Camp is a 1976 Nazi exploitation film directed by Sergio Garrone. The plot concerns a Nazi officer who wanted a testicles transplant. It gained infamy in the 1980s for its bad-taste sexual and violent content involving, as the title suggests, Nazi human experimentation...
. This coincided with an attempt by MPs Julian Brazier
Julian Brazier
Julian William Hendy Brazier TD is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Canterbury...
and Keith Vaz
Keith Vaz
Nigel Keith Anthony Standish Vaz, known as Keith Vaz, was born 26 November 1956 in Aden, Yemen.Keith Vaz is a British Labour Party politician and a Member of Parliament for Leicester East, He is the longest serving Asian MP and has been the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee since July...
to pass a law allowing MPs greater powers to tighten BBFC guidelines or force an appeal of a release. The bill failed to pass.
However, the UK Government passed a law criminalising possession of "extreme pornography
Extreme pornography
Section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 is a piece of legislation in the United Kingdom that criminalises possession of what it refers to as "extreme pornographic images". The law was enacted from 26 January 2009...
". Whilst BBFC-rated films are exempt from the legislation, somewhat illogically screenshots from these same BBFC-rated movies are not, and would also apply to unrated films. Hostel: Part II was cited in the House of Commons as an example of a film where screenshots could become illegal to possess.
DPP list
The DPP list of 'video nasties' was first made public in June 1983. The list was modified monthly as prosecutions failed or were dropped. In total, 72 separate films appeared on the list at one time or another. 39 films were successfully prosecuted under the Obscene Publications Act but some of these films have been subsequently cut and then approved for release by the BBFC. The remaining 33 were either not prosecuted or had unsuccessful prosecutions.A number of films spent a short time on this list because their prosecutions failed shortly after publication or because it was decided that prosecution was not worth pursuing. Ultimately, the list became obsolete when the Video Recordings Act came into force, and since 2001, several of the films have been released uncut. In the majority of cases below where cuts were made, they were scenes of real-life animal cruelty and/or excessive violence to women, both of which are still regarded with some degree of severity by the BBFC.
- AbsurdAbsurd (film)Absurd is a 1981 Italian horror film, an unofficial sequel to Antropophagus...
(original title: Rosso Sangue; AKA Horrible; The Monster Hunter; Anthropophagus 2 — released with 2m 32s cut in 1983, but was withdrawn post VRA, and has never been re-submitted for classification. Has a release in the United States uncut under the title Horrible) - Anthropophagous: The BeastThe Anthropophagous BeastAntropophagus, released in the UK as Anthropophagous: The Beast also known in some places as Zombie 7: Grim Reaper after 1981, the release year of Absurd and in the US as Anthropophagus: The Grim Reaper, is a 1980 Italian language horror film, directed by Joe D'Amato and co-written by D'Amato and...
(original title: Antropophagus; AKA Anthropophagous; Antropofago; Gomia, Terror en el Mar Egeo; Man Beast: Man-Eater; The Savage Island — released with approximately 3m of pre-cuts as "The Grim Reaper" in 2002. Has a release in the United States uncut under the title Antropophagus: The Grim Reaper) - AxeLisa, LisaLisa, Lisa is an American exploitation horror film film, it was written and directed by Frederick R...
(AKA Lisa, Lisa; California Axe Murder; The Axe Murders — re-released uncut in 2005) - The Beast in HeatLa Bestia in CaloreLa Bestia in Calore is an Italian exploitation film released in 1977. Directed by Luigi Batzella and written by Batzella and Lorenzo Artale, it gained notoriety when it was banned in the UK as a video nasty...
(original title: La Bestia in Calore) (Banned outright) - The Beyond (original title: E Tu Vivrai Nel Terrore - L'Aldilà; AKA Seven Doors of Death — re-released uncut in 2001)
- Blood BathTwitch of the Death NerveTwitch of the Death Nerve is a 1971 Italian horror film directed by Mario Bava. Bava cowrote the screenplay with Giuseppe Zaccariello, Filippo Ottoni and Sergio Canevari, with story credit given to Dardano Sacchetti and Franco Barberi. The film stars Claudine Auger, Luigi Pistilli, and Laura...
(original title: Reazione a Catena; AKA A Bay of Blood; Twitch of the Death Nerve — released uncut in 2010) - Blood FeastBlood FeastBlood Feast is a 1963 American horror film directed by Herschell Gordon Lewis, often considered the first "splatter film". It was produced by David F. Friedman. The screenplay was written by Alison Louise Downe, who had previously appeared in several of Lewis' other films. Lewis also wrote the...
(re-released uncut in 2005) - Blood RitesBlood RitesBlood Rites is a 1968 horror film directed by Andy Milligan.-Plot:Three sisters, Veronica, Victoria and Elizabeth, receive letters from their late father's lawyer informing them of their father's wish that they spend three nights in his house on an isolated island before his will can be read...
(original title: The Ghastly Ones) (Banned outright) - Bloody MoonDie Säge des TodesBloody Moon, also known as, The Bloody Moon Murders , is a German horror film directed by Jesus Franco and released in 1981. This film can be considered a typical slasher film.- Plot :...
(original title: Die Säge des Todes — released with 1m 20s cut in 1993, released uncut November 2008) - The Bogey ManThe Boogeyman (1980 film)The Boogeyman is a 1980 horror film directed by Ulli Lommel. It was followed by Boogeyman 2, and Return of the Boogeyman.-Plot:As children, Willy and Lacey watch their mother with her lover and are punished for it...
(original title: The Boogeyman — re-released uncut in 2000) - The Burning (re-released uncut in 2001)
- Cannibal ApocalypseCannibal ApocalypseCannibal Apocalypse is a 1980 horror film directed by Antonio Margheriti, written by Margheriti and Dardano Sacchetti, and starring John Saxon.-Plot:...
(original title: Apocalypse Domani — released with 2s cut in 2005) - Cannibal FeroxCannibal FeroxCannibal Ferox, also known as Make Them Die Slowly, is a 1981 Italian exploitation film written and directed by Umberto Lenzi. Upon its release, the film made claims to being "The most violent film ever made"...
(alternate title: Make them Die Slowly - released with approximately 5m of pre-cuts plus 6s of additional cuts in 2000) - Cannibal HolocaustCannibal HolocaustCannibal Holocaust is a 1980 Italian horror film directed by Ruggero Deodato from a screenplay by Gianfranco Clerici. Filmed in the Amazon Rainforest and dealing with indigenous tribes, it was cast mostly with United States actors and filmed in English to achieve wider distribution...
(released in 2001 with 5m 44s cut to remove most animal cruelty and rape scenes, new version approved with 15s cut in 2011) - The Cannibal Man (original title: La Semana del Asesino; AKA The Apartment on the 13th Floor — released with 3s cut in 1993)
- Cannibal TerrorCannibal TerrorCannibal Terror is a 1981 Cannibal film. It was directed by Alain Deruelle and written by Julio Pérez Tabernero and H.L. Rostaine...
(original title: Terror Caníbal — released uncut in 2003) - Contamination (released uncut in 2004 with a 15 rating)
- Dead & BuriedDead & BuriedDead & Buried is a 1981 horror film directed by Gary Sherman, starring Melody Anderson and James Farentino. With a screenplay written by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett, the movie was initially banned as a "Video Nasty" in the UK in the early 80s, but was later acquitted of obscenity charges and...
(re-released uncut in 2004) - Death TrapEaten AliveEaten Alive is a 1977 horror film directed by Tobe Hooper...
(original title: Eaten Alive — re-released uncut in 2000) - Deep River SavagesIl paese del sesso selvaggioIl paese del sesso selvaggio , better known as The Man from the Deep River in North America or Deep River Savages in Europe, is an Italian exploitation film directed by Umberto Lenzi...
(original/alternate title: Il paese del sesso selvaggio, Man from Deep River — released with 3m 45s cut in 2003) - Delirium (Alternate title: Psycho Puppet — released with 16s cut in 1987)
- Devil Hunter (original title: Il cacciatore di uomini) (Passed uncut November 2008)
- Don't Go in the HouseDon't Go in the HouseDon't Go in the House is a low budget 1980 slasher film emulating Psycho that gained notoriety as a video nasty and remains banned in some countries...
(released with 3m 7s cut in 1987) - Don't Go in the WoodsDon't Go In The WoodsDon't Go In The Woods is a 1980 American B grade-slasher film directed by James Bryan. This film has generally been poorly reviewed, though it has gained something of a cult following over the years; Deron Miller, lead guitarist and vocalist of the band CKY is a notorious fan of the film...
(released uncut in 2007) - Don't Go Near the ParkDon't Go Near the ParkDon't Go Near the Park is a 1981 American horror film directed by Lawrence D. Foldes...
(released uncut in 2006) - Don't Look in the Basement (original title: The ForgottenThe Forgotten (1973 film)The Forgotten is a 1973 psychological horror film.-Synopsis:The film is set in Stephens Sanitarium, a secluded rural mental health institute whose chief doctor believes that the best way to deal with insanity is to allow the patients to freely act out their realities in the hopes that they will...
— released uncut in 2005 with a 15 rating) - The Driller KillerThe Driller KillerThe Driller Killer is a 1979 slasher film directed by and starring Abel Ferrara. It was on a list of banned so-called video nasties in the United Kingdom...
(released with cuts in 1999 — re-released uncut in 2002, now considered to be public domainPublic domainWorks are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
) - The Evil DeadThe Evil DeadThe Evil Dead is a 1981 horror film written and directed by Sam Raimi, starring Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, and Betsy Baker. The film is a story of five college students vacationing in an isolated cabin in a wooded area...
(re-released uncut in 2001) - Evilspeak (re-released uncut in 1999)
- ExposéExposé (film)Exposé is a 1976 video nasty starring Udo Kier, Linda Hayden and 1970s sex symbol Fiona Richmond. On release, it sparked controversy due to graphic scenes of sex and violence, resulting in a re-release in 2006, with around 30 cuts...
(re-released with approximately 30s cut in 2006) - Faces of DeathFaces of DeathFaces of Death is a 1978 mondo film which guides viewers through explicit scenes depicting a variety of ways to die and violent acts....
(released with 2m 19s cut in 2003) - Fight For Your LifeFight For Your LifeFight for Your Life is a 1977 action film starring William Sanderson .-Synopsis:Sanderson plays Kane, a hate-fuelled redneck who absconds from jail with his sidekicks...
(Banned outright) - Flesh for FrankensteinFlesh for FrankensteinAndy Warhol's Frankenstein or Flesh for Frankenstein is a 1973 horror film directed by Paul Morrissey and produced by Andy Warhol, Andrew Braunsberg, Louis Peraino, and Carlo Ponti and starring Udo Kier, Joe Dallesandro, Monique van Vooren and Arno Juerging...
(AKA Andy Warhol's Frankenstein — re-released uncut in 2006) - Forest of FearToxic ZombiesToxic Zombies, also known as Bloodeaters and Forest of Fear, is a 1980 horror film. The film was directed by Charles McCrann, who also acted in the film...
(AKA Toxic Zombies; Bloodeaters (Banned outright) - Frozen ScreamFrozen ScreamFrozen Scream is a 1975 horror film directed by Frank Roach. It was a title banned in the UK under the Video Nasties laws during the 1980s and remains restricted as of 2010.-Plot:A mad scientist tries to create a drug for immortality...
(Banned outright) - The FunhouseThe FunhouseThe Funhouse is a 1981 horror film in which four teenagers are trapped in a dark ride and stalked by a deformed killer. The film was directed by Tobe Hooper, and the screenplay written by Larry Block...
(Released uncut in 1987, re-classified 15 in 2007) - Gestapo's Last Orgy (original title: L'ultima orgia del III Reich) (Banned outright)
- The House by the CemeteryThe House by the CemeteryThe House by the Cemetery is a 1981 Italian supernatural horror film directed by Lucio Fulci and is the third instalment of the unofficial Gates of Hell trilogy which also includes City of the Living Dead and The Beyond Its plot revolves around a series of murders taking place in a New England...
(original title: Quella villa accanto al cimitero — re-released with 33s cut in 2001, released uncut in 2009) - House on the Edge of the Park (original title: La casa sperduta nel parco — released with 11m 43s cut in 2002)
- Human Experiments (released with 26s cut in 1994)
- I Miss You, Hugs and Kisses (released with 1m 6s cut in 1986)
- I Spit on Your GraveI Spit On Your GraveDay of the Woman is a 1978 controversial rape revenge film. The film received a limited release, with a wider release in 1980. Prominent film critics condemned the film for its graphic violence and lengthy depictions of gang rape, and the motion picture remains controversial to this day...
(original title: Day of the Woman — released with 7m 2s cut in 2001, re-released uncut in 2010) - InfernoInferno (1980 film)Inferno is a 1980 Italian supernatural horror film written and directed by Dario Argento. The film stars Irene Miracle, Leigh McCloskey, Eleonora Giorgi, Daria Nicolodi, and Alida Valli. The cinematography was by Romano Albani, and Keith Emerson composed the film's thunderous musical score...
(re-released with 20s cut in 1993 — re-released uncut in September, 2010) - Island of Death (original title: Ta Pedhia tou dhiavolou — released uncut September, 2010)
- Killer NunKiller NunKiller Nun is an Italian nunsploitation film directed/co-written by Giulio Berruti and co-written by Alberto Tarallo...
(original title: Suor Omicidi — re-released uncut in 2006) - The Last House on the LeftThe Last House on the Left (1972 film)The Last House on the Left is a 1972 horror film written and directed by Wes Craven and produced by Sean S. Cunningham.The story is inspired by the 1960 Swedish film The Virgin Spring, directed by Ingmar Bergman, which in turn is based on the 13th century Swedish ballad "Töres döttrar i Wänge"...
(passed uncut on the 17th March, 2008) - Late Night TrainsL'ultimo treno della notteL'ultimo treno della notte is a 1975 Italian revenge thriller...
(original title: L'ultimo treno della notte — released uncut in 2008) - The Living Dead (original title: Non si deve profanare il sonno dei morti; AKA The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue; Let Sleeping Corpses Lie; Don't Open the Window — re-released uncut in 2002)
- Love Camp 7Love Camp 7Love Camp 7 is a 1969 U.S. women-in-prison B-movie directed by Lee Frost and written by Wes Bishop and Bob Cresse, the latter of whom also acts as a sadistic camp commandant.-Plot:...
(refused a certificate in 2002) (Banned outright) - Madhouse (original title: There Was a Little Girl — released uncut in 2004)
- Mardi Gras MassacreMardi Gras MassacreMardi Gras Massacre is a 1978 horror film written and directed by Jack Weis. It is a semi-remake of the 1963 film Blood Feast.- Plot :...
(Banned outright) - Night of the Bloody Apes (original title: La Horripilante bestia humana — released with approximately 1m of pre-cuts in 1999)
- Night of the Demon (released with 1m 41s cut in 1994)
- Nightmare MakerNight WarningNight Warning is a 1982 exploitation horror film directed by William Asher; it was nominated for a Saturn Award for the Best Horror Movie of 1982 by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror...
(AKA Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker; Night Warning on the credits of some versions) (Banned outright) - Nightmares in a Damaged BrainNightmare (1981)Nightmare is a 1981 horror film directed by Romano Scavolini.-Synopsis:...
(re-released with pre-cuts in 2005) - PossessionPossession (1981 film)Possession is a 1981 cult horror film directed by Andrzej Żuławski.-Plot:Mark returns home to Berlin to find his wife Anna is leaving him for unclear reasons. He initially suspects an affair and hires detectives to track her, but gradually discovers clues that something far stranger is afoot...
(released uncut in 1999) - PranksThe Dorm That Dripped BloodThe Dorm That Dripped Blood is a 1982 American horror movie, directed by Stephen Carpenter and Jeffrey Obrow, and written by Carpenter and Stacey Giachino. The movie is a slasher film that stars Laura Lapinski, Stephen Sachs, David Snow and Pamela Holland as four college students who are clearing...
(AKA The Dorm That Dripped Blood; Death Dorm — re-released with 10s cut in 2001) - Prisoner of the Cannibal GodThe Mountain of the Cannibal GodThe Mountain of the Cannibal God is an Italian cult movie starring Ursula Andress and Stacy Keach with English dialogue that was filmed in Sri Lanka. The film was also widely released as Slave of the Cannibal God and released in the UK as Prisoner of the Cannibal God...
(original title: La montagna del dio cannibale; AKA Mountain of the Cannibal God — released with 2m 6s cut in 2001) - Return of the BoogeymanReturn of the BoogeymanReturn of the Boogeyman is a 1994 horror film by American director Deland Nurse. It was released in the US by Sony Pictures.-Plot:...
(original title: Boogeyman II — released with additional footage in 2003) - The SlayerThe Slayer (film)The Slayer is a 1982 horror film directed by J. S. Cardone. The film gained notoriety and was classified in the UK as a video nasty in the 1980s.-Plot:...
(re-released uncut in 2001) - Snuff (Passed uncut in 2003, however it has not yet been re-released)
- SS Experiment CampSS Experiment CampSS Experiment Camp is a 1976 Nazi exploitation film directed by Sergio Garrone. The plot concerns a Nazi officer who wanted a testicles transplant. It gained infamy in the 1980s for its bad-taste sexual and violent content involving, as the title suggests, Nazi human experimentation...
(original title: Lager SSadis Kastrat Kommandantur — released uncut in 2005) - TenebraeTenebrae (film)Tenebrae is a 1982 Italian horror thriller film written and directed by Dario Argento. The film stars Anthony Franciosa, John Saxon, and Daria Nicolodi...
(original title: Tenebre — re-released uncut in 2003) - Terror EyesNight School (film)Night School is a slasher film released in 1981 directed by Ken Hughes and starring English actress Rachel Ward in her feature film debut. The plot revolves around a series of gruesome decapitation murders happening among college coeds in Boston, Massachusetts. The film was originally to be...
(original title: Night School — released with 1m 16s cut in 1987) - The Toolbox Murders (released with 1m 46s cut in 2000)
- UnhingedUnhinged (1982 film)Unhinged is a 1982 low budget American slasher film directed by Don Gronquist. It was filmed on location at the Pittock Mansion in Portland, Oregon...
(released uncut in 2004) - Visiting HoursVisiting HoursVisiting Hours is a 1982 horror film starring Michael Ironside, Lee Grant, Linda Purl, William Shatner and Lenore Zann...
(released with approximately 2m cut in 1986) - The Werewolf and the YetiLa Maldicion de la BestiaLa Maldicion de la Bestia , is a 1975 Spanish horror film that is the eighth in a long series about the werewolf Count Waldemar Daninsky, played by Paul Naschy.-Synopsis:Waldemar Daninsky goes to Tibet to look for proof...
(original title: La Maldición de la Bestia) (Banned outright) - The Witch Who Came From the SeaThe Witch Who Came From the SeaThe Witch Who Came From the Sea is a 1976 American horror film directed by Matt Cimber and shot by cinematographer Dean Cundey. The film concerns a dysfunctional and disturbed woman called Molly who, after suffering repeated sexual abuse at the hands of her alcoholic father, embarks on a spree of...
(released uncut in 2006) - Women Behind Bars (original French title: Des diamants pour l'enfer) (Banned outright)
- Zombie Creeping Flesh (original title: Virus; AKA Hell of the Living Dead — released uncut in 2002)
- Zombie Flesh Eaters (original title: Zombi 2; AKA Zombie — re-released uncut in 2005) (alternate title: ZombieZombieZombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
)
Although commonly thought of as part of the DPP list, the following two titles never actually appeared on the DPP's official "nasties" list:
- Shogun AssassinShogun AssassinShogun Assassin, known in Japan as , is a jidaigeki film made for the British and American markets and released in 1980. In 2006 it was restored and re-released on DVD in North America by AnimEigo....
(re-released uncut in 1999) - XtroXtroXtro is a low-budget British science fiction horror film made in 1982 and directed by Harry Bromley Davenport and co-produced by Bob Shaye.-Plot:...
(Released uncut in 1987, re-classified 15 in 2007; Xtro was a common title seized during police raids in the North of England prior to the official list being published.)
Breakdown of the list
Of these 72 films:- 37 have been released uncut.
- 23 have been released cut.
- 1 has been released with additional footage.
- 11 are banned in the UK because they have not yet been resubmitted for classification by any distributors or been rejected for classification.
Unless noted otherwise, all films that have been released have been rated 18. Also note that a large number of these movies caused additional controversy with the cover art of the original big box releases seen in the video shops of the early 1980s.
Films banned by the BBFC but not classed as Video Nasties
- The ExorcistThe Exorcist (film)The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
(commonly said to have banned around the same period as video nasties, this is actually untrue as the studio decided not to push for UK release following the 1984 act.) - The Texas Chain Saw MassacreThe Texas Chain Saw MassacreThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
(passed uncut with an 18 certificate18 certificateThe 18 certificate is issued by the British Board of Film Classification to state that, in its opinion, a film, video recording, or game should not be seen or purchased by a person under 18 years old....
in 1999) - Silent Night, Deadly NightSilent Night, Deadly NightSilent Night, Deadly Night is a 1984 slasher film produced by Ira R Barmak, directed by Charles E. Sellier Jr. and starring Robert Brian Wilson, Lilyan Chauvin, Gilmer McCormick, Toni Nero, Linnea Quigley, Britt Leach, and Leo Geter...
(Originally never submitted for a certificate. It was submitted and passed uncut with an 18 certificate18 certificateThe 18 certificate is issued by the British Board of Film Classification to state that, in its opinion, a film, video recording, or game should not be seen or purchased by a person under 18 years old....
on January 22, 2010.) - Straw Dogs (Banned around the video nasty period but not actually included on the list. It was re-released in 1995 partially cut with it finally being released uncut in 2002.)
- The New York RipperThe New York RipperThe New York Ripper, original title Lo squartatore di New York, is a 1982 Italian horror film directed and co-written by Lucio Fulci.The film score was written by Francesco De Masi...
(Banned outright in 1982 until it was released with cuts in 2002) - MikeyMikey (film)Mikey is a 1992 horror film directed by Dennis Dimster and starring Brian Bonsall. The film centers on the character of Mikey Holt, a young boy who is adopted by a family after his previous adoptive family dies...
(Still banned) - ManiacManiac (1980 film)Maniac is a 1980 American slasher film , about a disturbed and traumatized serial killer who scalps his victims. It was directed by William Lustig and written by Joe Spinell and C. A. Rosenberg...
(Passed with cuts on May 29, 2002)
Other Films grouped with Video Nasties
- A Clockwork Orange (1971)A Clockwork Orange (film)A Clockwork Orange is a 1971 film adaptation of Anthony Burgess's 1962 novel of the same name. It was written, directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick...
. It is often mistaken that Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation of 'A Clockwork Orange' was banned by the BBFC. It was actually Kubrick himself who decided to withdraw the film from exhibition in the UK on Police advice after receiving death threats toward himself and his family, as well as disliking reports found in the British Press that the film was responsible for copycat violence. Quoting Kubrick: "To try and fasten any responsibility on art as the cause of life seems to me to put the case the wrong way around. Art consists of reshaping life but it does not create life, nor cause life. Furthermore, to attribute powerful suggestive qualities to a film as at odds with the scientifically accepted view that, even after deep hypnosis, in a posthypnotic state, people cannot be made to do things which are at odds with their natures." The film was eventually released uncut on both Video and DVD in the UK shortly after Kubrick's death in 1999.
- Scum (1979)Scum (film)Scum is a 1979 British crime drama film directed by Alan Clarke, portraying the brutality of life inside a British borstal. The story was originally made for the BBC's Play for Today strand in 1977, however due to the violence depicted in the film, it was withdrawn from broadcast...
. The British film 'Scum' has a tagline "The film they tried to ban". The original TV film was made by the BBC, but they later decided not to broadcast it owing to the violence and suicides in the film. It was quickly remade by most of the original production team and released in cinemas, It was released on VHS at the height of the Video Nasties controversy and quickly became associated with them in the media.
Further reading
- Kate Egan's article The Celebration of a "Proper Product": Exploring the Residual Collectible through the "Video Nasty" in, R. Acland (editor), Residual Media, pages 200-222 (University of Minnesota Press, 2007). ISBN 978-0-8166-4471-1
- Article, Something Nasty This Way Comes..., pages 13-32 (The Dark SideThe Dark Side (magazine)The Dark Side is a bi-monthly UK magazine. covering the field of horror cinema. It generally offers a mix of reviews of new releases and interviews with directors and actors, and has been edited throughout its run by Allan Bryce...
, Stray Cat Publishing Ltd, Issue 20, May 1992). - John Martin, The Official "Video Nasties" and how they got that way..., pages 48-62 (The Dark Side, Stray Cat Publishing Ltd, Issue 58, July 1996).