American Society &The Military

The constant glorified depiction of war in American movies influences the American society greatly, socially and politically. First of all, socially; with the media's glorification of war and soldiers, depicting them as epic heroes, and also the idea of the American military as the ultimate "good guy" influences American society to be not only dangerously patriotic, but also pro-violence. It's obvious, especially with the recent controversy over gun rights in the United States, that Americans are very attached to guns and "self defence" and that many are more passionate about protecting their "rights" than they are about public safety. This, no doubt, is related to the media's depiction of the military, and more so, the idea of violence as a solution. These social implications will impact political decisions, as that is the nature of democracy. People are more likely to support a party or a candidate that is pro-war (even for pointless reasons- ex. the Bush administration) because of the ideology that this glorification in the media is imposing on them. In conclusions, because of the constant idealization of war in American media, American society and government has become far too pro-violence.

Titanic Film Rating

The film Titanic (1997) was rated PG by the Ontario Film Review Board, which I disagree with. I think that the film should have a higher rating, 14A. 

The reasons given on the OFRB website for the PG rating are that the film includes frightening scenes that are not recommended for children. Of course these exist in the film, but more disagreeable content is there too. 

To begin, the film follows the story of two individuals who both happen to be on the Titanic- Rose and Jack; the movie documents their love story. Language wise, this film should definitely fall under a 14A rating, it includes coarse language as well as obscene gestures (Rose gives her butler The Finger when her and Jack are escaping in the elevator.) There is not much in the way of violence and gore, but the physiological impacts far outweigh this. The story of the Titanic is clear, and we see a true historical portrayal of the event; including the mistreated third-class and the death of many people, men, women and children. This can have huge effects on everyone, young minds in particular. This is probably the biggest contributing factor to the 14A rating, though the sexual activity and nudity sections have an impact as well. 

In the film, we see female nudity, in the way of Rose posing for Jack to "draw her like one of his French girls." This of course is not suitable for children under the age of fourteen. Alongside this, there is an explicit sex scene between the two leads, complete with windows fogging up and all; it's very serious. 

In conclusion, because of the major discrepancies in the areas of language, nudity/sexual activity and psychological impact, I think that The Titanic should be rated 14A rather than the current rating of PG.