Weekly News

A Paris appeals court has rejected requests to block the most popular adult tube sites in the country.

Following months of statements and threats pressuring tube sites to implement undefined age verification schemes, French media censor ARCOM went to court in March and April to demand that French ISPs block Pornhub, xHamster, xVideos, Cliphunter and Xnxx.

Meanwhile 2 morality campaign groups are also pushing for ISP blocking via the courts, and their blocking requests add YouPorn, RedTube and Tukif to the list.

ARCOM had  sent formal notices to tube site operators demanding they find a more robust solution than the simple declaration of age. The porn sites did not comply, seemingly because ARCOM had not defined what age verification methods would be acceptable.

French reports now reveal that the Council of State, an appeals court, issued a ruling rejecting the ARCOM blocking requests. The reasons for the rejection are not wholly clear so far but the most plausible is that recourse to blocking should be the last resort rather than the first call. It seems that ARCOM should be doing more work to define what age verification measures the porn websites should be taking.

The Phone-paid Services Authority (PSA), the censor for premium rate services (PRS) in the UK is to hand its responsibilities over to telecoms censor Ofcom by late 2023.

Subject to approval from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) , the PSA will then cease to operate as an independent body. The PSA says that it anticipates Ofcom will assume responsibility for regulation in the second half of 2023, with PSA staff transferring to Ofcom. Ofcom will look to retain the key components of Code 15 to continue regulation in the consumer interest. PSA rules and Code 15 will remain in place until the transfer.

The PSA Chairman, David Edmonds said:

The work of the PSA in recent years has reduced risks to consumer to historically low levels. We introduced in April this year a new set of regulations which further protect consumers. And the industry -- both phone companies and service providers -- is increasingly conscious of its own responsibility to ensure dubious services are not operated. Complaints to the PSA are down by over 90%. We are also conscious of market trends and as a result the Board decided that future regulation of an industry increasingly dominated by larger players would be better served by an organisation with the capacity and breadth of Ofcom rather than a free-standing body. We already work closely with Ofcom who designate the PSA to deliver the day-to-day regulation of the market, by approving our Code of Practice. We look forward to working with them on this transition.

This proposed transfer of responsibilities has already been approved by the Ofcom board.

Human Lanterns is a 1982 Hong Kong action horror by Chung Sun
Starring Tony Liu, Kuan Tai Chen and Lieh Lo

The film was heavily cut for Hong Kong release but was released on 2005 18 rated UK DVD with just one scene missing. The film was released uncut on 2022 18 rated Blu-ray.

Summary Notes

A psychotic craftsman pits two rival Kung-Fu masters against each other while designing special lanterns from a disturbing source.

UK: Passed 18 uncut for strong bloody violence, sexual violence:

• 2022 88 Films (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 16th May 2022
• 2022 88 Films Amazon VoD [UK] at UK Amazon #ad

Reviews

• See review from mcbastardsmausoleum.blogspot.com : " A bizarre early 80's Shaw Bros. flick that taps into early 80s slasher craze with a well executed martial arts/horror approach "

Versions

uncut run: 99m pal: 95m		UK: Passed 18 uncut for strong bloody violence, sexual violence: 2022 88 Films (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad 2022 88 Films Amazon VoD [UK] at UK Amazon #ad This release is based upon the previous UK release but has the cut scene, previously provided on DVD Extras, being spliced back into the film.
pre-cut cut: 24s run: 98:29s pal: 94:33s		UK: A pre-cut version was passed 18 for strong bloody violence without further BBFC cuts: 2005 Momentum Pictures video US:  The same pre-cut version is MPAA Unrated for: 2008 Image DVD but with the cut scene included in the DVD Extras This version is missing the scene with the first victim Yen-chu having her skin peeled. See pictorial cuts from movie-censorship.com
cut cut: 3:40s run:   pal:	Hong Kong	Hong Kong: Cut by 3:40s for theatrical and DVD release From pictorial cuts from movie-censorship.com : The cuts were: To remove the scene in the run up to the skin peeling of Yen-chu. Chun Fang rips off Yen-chu's clothes and cuts her head with an axe and a little later inserts the poison into her head wound. Afterwards he cuts her shoulder as the start point to the peeling Note that the subsequent skin peeling of Yen-chu is included in this version, whereas it was missing from the UK DVD. The Hong Kong version is then missing Fang showing Yen-chu her peeled skin and then moving to wash it A scene is missing showing old Tsui being drowned in a barrel of blood A scene with Fang ripping off the Lung's wife's clothes before starting to rape her

Hero is a 1997 Hong Kong/China film by Corey Yuen
Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro, Biao Yuen and Jessica Hester Hsuan

Exists as an International Version and an extended Taiwan Version.

UK: The International Version was passed 15 uncut for strong bloody violence, injury detail:

• 2022 88 Films (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 16th May 2022

Promotional Material

From director and writer Corey Yuen (Righting Wrongs, Red Cliff, The Transporter) comes this high-octane tale of criminal gangs, betrayal and greed. When brothers Ma Wing-jing (Taksehi Kaneshiro) and Ma Tai-cheung (Yuen Wah) flee their impoverished homeland to seek their fortune in Shanghai, they at first find more grinding penury when they are forced to work as lowly coolies, however Wing-jing soon becomes embroiled in the seedy world of big city triads and his once insignificant life becomes an arrogant lust for power. This fabulous remake of Cheh Chang's classic The Boxer from Shantung (1972) from the legendary Shaw Brothers studios is given a 90s makeover chock full with stunts, fights and awe inspiring action sequences. A must for collectors of martial arts cinema.

Extreme Prejudice is a 1987 USA action crime western by Walter Hill.
Starring Nick Nolte, Powers Boothe and Michael Ironside.

Cut by the BBFC for cinema, VHS and 2000 DVD. Uncut since 2003 DVD. Uncut and MPAA R rated in the US. Initially cut in Germany and Australia but was later released uncut.

Summary Notes

When they were kids Texas Ranger Jack Benteen used to be best friends with drug kingpin Cash Bailey. At present, however, the only element linking them together is Jack's girlfriend Sarita, who used to be with Cash. She returns to Cash as a voluntary hostage to make certain that Jack keeps his hands off the drug lord's operation. On top of that, there is a meticulously planned drug bust, in which both Jack and Cash butt heads with CIA-funded paramilitary Maj. Paul Hackett, following his own agenda.

US: Uncut and MPAA R rated for:

• 2022 Lionsgate/Vestron (RA) Blu-ray at US Amazon #ad released on 17th May 2022
• 2022 Lionsgate Amazon VoD [US] at US Amazon #ad

Promotional Material

Jack Benteen is an old fashioned Texas Ranger working out of El Paso, across the border in a small Mexican village resides his one time childhood friend Cash Bailey, who has become the districts drug running king. The two men have another link in sensual Sarita, a one-time mistress to Cash, and now Jack's lover. Both men run into a CIA-backed para-military group headed by a cold and calculating army major who plans to terminate Cash.

Girls Nite Out is a 1982 US film by Robert Deubel
Starring Julia Montgomery, James Carroll and Suzanne Barnes

Cut by the BBFC for 18 rated VHS. Passed 15 uncut for 2022 Blu-ray. Uncut and MPAA R rated in the US.

UK: Passed 15 uncut for strong violence, bloody images, sex references, sexual threat:

• 2022 Arrow Special Edition (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 16th May 2022

Promotional Material

A host of familiar genre faces including Hal Holbrook ( Creepshow ), Rutanya Alda ( Amityville II: The Possession ), Julia Montgomery ( The Kindred ) and Lauren-Marie Taylor ( Friday the 13th Part 2 ) rounds out the cast of this gloriously mean-spirited slice from the slasher golden age, Girls Nite Out !

The students of DeWitt University are preparing themselves for a night of fun and frolics in the form of an all-night scavenger hunt. Little do they know that they are in fact the ones being hunted... An unhinged assailant, disguised in the college's goofy bear mascot outfit -- and bearing knives for claws, two years before Freddy donned his famous gloves -- is stalking the campus hellbent on carving up co-eds.

Originally released under the only marginally more appropriate title of The Scaremaker , Girls Nite Out is a decidedly singular slasher flick which comes on like a frenetic cross between Animal House and Friday the 13th -- veering from jovial frat antics to jarringly disturbing scenes of the killer shrieking obscenities as he slices up his victims. On this nite out, no one is coming home!

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS

• Brand new 2K restoration from 35mm vault elements
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
• Original uncompressed mono audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Brand new audio commentary with genre film critic/author Justin Kerswell and film historian/author Amanda Reyes
• Staying Alive -- a brand new video interview with actress Julia Montgomery
• A Savage Mauling -- a brand new video interview with actress Laura Summer
• Alone in the Dark -- a brand new video interview with actress Lois Robbins
• It Was a Party! -- a brand new video interview with actor Paul Christie
• Love & Death -- a brand new video interview with actors Lauren-Marie Taylor and John Didrichsen
• Archival video interview with actress Julia Montgomery
• The Scaremaker Alternate Title Card
• Original Trailers
• Reversible sleeve featuring original artwork and newly-commissioned artwork by Justin Osbourn

An outdoor poster ad for Get Hard, an online gay sex toy store, seen in January and February 2022, featured a person wearing a gimp mask and a background of aubergine and peach emojis. Large text superimposed in-front of the person's face said GET HARD and ANYONE CAN GET INTO IT!. The ad also included the URL www.WeGetHard.com.

The ASA received two complaints. The complainants challenged whether the ad was:

1. offensive because they believed it was overly sexualised; and

2. inappropriate for display in an untargeted medium where children could see it.

Get Hard Ltd said they used the tagline Get Hard. Anyone can. Get into it! to encourage an attitude of passion, grit, empathy, affection and self-care, that could be reached by anyone.

Get Hard said they wanted to encourage people to be open with themselves and have fun with the topic of sex, rather than the over serious and frigid attitude they believed was held by many people.

ASA Assessment: Complaints upheld

The ad was displayed at an outdoor poster site in London, which was an untargeted medium and where the image was likely to be seen by children and adults.

The ad featured a person in what appeared to be a gimp mask and large text that stated GET HARD. We understood that a gimp mask was an item of clothing worn by some people during sex who liked to be dominated. We considered that the image of the person wearing a gimp mask, which also emphasised their open mouth, was overtly sexual. We also considered that the text GET HARD was likely to be understood as slang for an erection, which we considered was sexually suggestive. We further understood that the peach and aubergine emojis were commonly used as references to a bottom and a penis, respectively, and often had sexual connotations. Taking the image of the person in the gimp mask together with the references to getting hard and the use of peach and aubergine emojis, we considered that the ad was overtly sexual.

We concluded that, because the ad was overtly sexual and was displayed in an untargeted medium where it had the potential to be seen by a large number of people, including children, it was likely to cause serious and widespread offence and was irresponsible. We concluded that the ad was unsuitable for outdoor display and therefore breached the Code.

The ad must not appear again in outdoor advertising. We told Get Hard Ltd to ensure that their advertising was suitably targeted and to exercise caution when preparing ads for display in outdoor space.

The Seventh Curse is a 1986 Hong Kong action horror by Ngai Choi Lam
Starring Chow Yun-Fat, Siu-Ho Chin and Maggie Cheung

The film was cut by the BBFC for sexual violence in the 18 rated video release of 1998. The 2022 18 rated Blu-ray release is uncut. There are alternative endings whereby editors have shortened or removed the final 2 scenes on account of brevity.

UK: Passed 18 uncut for strong sexualised nudity, injury detail:

• 2022 88 Films Collector's Edition (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 27th June 2022

Versions

uncut run: 80m pal: 77m		UK: Passed 18 uncut for strong sexualised nudity, injury detail: 2022 88 Films Collector's Edition (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad
cut: 17s run: 78:40s pal: 75:31s		The dubbed English version was passed 18 after 17s of BBFC cuts for: 1998 MIA VHS The BBFC cut the film as follows: A woman is seen cutting her breasts with a knife. Both the knife cut and the resulting bleeding has been removed.
cut: 16s run: 81:11s pal: 77:56s		The Cantonese version was passed 18 after 16s of BBFC cuts for: 1998 MIA VHS Cuts as per the English Version

Promotional Material

Starring Chow Yun-fat (Hard Bolied, The Killer, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) The Seventh Curse is a curious entry from Golden Harvest, the legendary production company which had previously bought us the stone cold Bruce Lee classics, Way of the Dragon, Fist of Fury and Enter the Dragon. When Dr Yuen (Chin Siu-ho) attempts to rescue a girl about to be sacrificed by the Worm Tribe in the middle of a Thailand jungle, he is damned with seven 'Blood Curses'. Though he finds a temporary antidote this will only last a year and he must return to the jungle to find a permanent cure.

The Seventh Curse is an adventurous story of lost tribes and deadly magic. Featuring strange locales, evil sorcerers and monsters, this bonkers thrill fest is a rollicking Asian oddity, a must for collectors of exotic Hong Kong cinema.

Violent City is a 1970 Italy/France/US film by Sergio Sollima
Starring Charles Bronson, Telly Savalas and Jill Ireland

Cut by the BBFC for X rated cinema release in 1971. Later the cuts were waived for 18 rated DVD in 2004. Exists as a full length Italian version and a shortened English version.

UK: Passed 18 uncut for brief strong sex scenes and strong violence:

• 2022 88 Films [Italian + US Versions] (RB) Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 16th May 2022

Promotional Material

Starring Charles Bronson (ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, DEATH WISH) and Telly Savalas (THE DIRTY DOZEN, HORROR EXPRESS) this early Italian Poliziotteschi movie directed by Sergio Sollima, blasts its way across the screen in a bloody crime thriller of revenge and retribution. After being framed for a murder following a bloody shoot out, assassin Jeff Heston is finally released from prison where he immediately sets about seeking the pair who betrayed him. However, when he refuses to accept an offer to join the gang which set him up in the first place, Heston finds himself murderously pursued through the streets of New Orleans. Like the spaghetti westerns from a few years earlier, Violent City places its protagonist against the mercy of a corrupt system in a violently entertaining story full of twists, turns and surprises.

Extras: 3 Cuts of the Film, 4K Violent City 2K Italian Cut New The Family Version Audio Commentary by Paul Talbot Trailer Poss Mike Segal and or Bill Lustig interviews with Sergio Solima

House On The Edge Of The Park is a 1980 Italy horror thriller by Ruggero Deodato
Starring David Hess, Annie Belle and Christian Borromeo

Alex, a psychopathic mechanic, rapes a woman in the park. Later, a debauched couple pull into his shop needing car repair. They invite Alex and his mentally challenged buddy to join them at a decadent suburban party. Once there, Alex amuses himself by raping the guests and tormenting them in various ways.

House on the Edge of the Park has just been passed 18 uncut by the BBFC for an 88 Films release advertised as the Uncut Nasty Edition.

The film has a long history of censorship in the UK:

Banned by the BBFC for 1981 cinema release. Banned as a video nasty in 1983. Unbanned after 12 minutes of cuts in 2002. Cuts reduced to 43s in 2011, and then uncut for 2022 Blu-ray. Uncut and MPAA Unrated in the US.

Versions

cut: run: 91m pal: 87m		UK: Passed 18 uncut for sexual violence, sadistic violence, strong threat: 2022 88 Films video Set for Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray release in late 2022 in a release advertised as the Uncut Nasty Edition.
cut cut: 43s run: 91:23s pal: 87:44s		UK: Passed 18 for strong sexual violence and threat after 43s of BBFC cuts for: 2014 Shameless [Deadato's Cinema of Death set] R2 DVD 2011 Argent/Shameless R0 DVD The BBFC commented: Company was required to make cuts to one sequence of sexualised violence in which a razor is traced over a woman's naked body, after which her body is cut with the razor. According to Shameless, the BBFC originally asked for 16 cuts totalling 1:20s. The BBFC was asked to think again, and it reduced the cuts by 37s, leaving 43s still cut. The waived cut was 37s to the sex scene between Alex and Lisa which had previously been cut due to the questionability of whether or not Lisa is enjoying her ordeal. See article from dvdcompare.net . The 43s of cuts are to remove: sight of razor being traced between woman's breasts. sight of razor being traced over woman's breast and nipple. sight of razor being traced over woman's breasts and nipples. sight of razor being traced over woman's breast and nipple and over her body. sight of razor being traced over woman's stomach, with her breast visible. sight of razor being eased inside woman's jeans. As man approaches woman with razor blade, remove all sight of breast and arm being slashed with razor. all sight of razor cutting woman's breast and arm. all sight of razor cutting woman's breast and arm (again). all sight of razor cutting woman's breast and arm (again, for a third time). close sight of razor cutting woman's leg, next to her genitals. close sight of razor cutting woman's leg, next to her genitals (again). sight of razor cutting down woman's body, between her breasts.
cut cut: 11:43s run: 79:15s pal: 76:05s		UK: Passed 18 after 11:43s of BBFC cuts for: 2009 Cornerstone R2 DVD 2002 Protected/Vipco R2 DVD The BBFC commented: Cuts required to several sequences of sexual violence, humiliating depictions of female nudity and gross violence From IMDb: BBFC removed most of the rape and assault scenes heavily edited the razor-slashing of Cindy heavily edited the opening murder scene removed shots of Tony's head being slammed against a table.
uncut		UK: Released uncut on pre-cert video for: 1982 Skyline VHS Released in October 1982, it was listed as a video nasty in July 1983. It stayed on the list throughout the panic so became one of the collectable DPP39s
banned	New Zealand	UK: Banned by the BBFC for: 1981 cinema release New Zealand: Banned for a 2014 re-release