LO4 - TASK 5 - Legal and Ethical

Any film has to avoid causing any legal and/or ethical issues.

As a family film, Night at the Museum must be even more careful not break any BBFC1 guidlines; this is to guarentee that the film is not given a high age rating. If the film was given an age rating (e.g. 12, 15, 18) by the BBFC, the film would not be viewed by children under that age, causing the film to lose out on a large percentage of their target audience in terms of age demographics.

Night at the Museum was released with a PG rating (Parental Guidance). This is suitable for the film as it still allows for all ages to watch but also lets them get away with some risky moments which they would not be allowed to have in a film rated U (Universal).
 
The main theme of Night at the Museum is the museum and how everything in the museum comes to life at night. This causes no legal or ethical issue, however the sub-plot is about the protagonist's divorce and how his child reacts to this. PG rated films do permit for some challenging themes, such as this one and the ones mentioned below, like bereavment and bullying.

 
Some profanity is used in Night at the Museum, though it remains mild. The BBFC website states that a PG film can contain some bad language, as long is it remains mild and is used frequently though out the film. The makers are also aware of what is deemed appropriate when considering the age of some of the viewers. For example, NATM2 uses the word "sh*t", but it is muffled by the actor saying it; therefore the young audience are unlikely to hear/understand it.

Night at the Museum does not present any nudity or sexual content though it is implied through innuendo. An example of this is when Larry starts slapping Dexter the Monkey and Ted asks him "Why are you spanking a monkey?", which contains a second and more adult meaning that implies a form of sexual relief. The BBFC guidelines state that this form of sexual content can remain in a PG film as comical innuendo will soften the impact.

However Night at the Museum does contain multiple cases of violence at points through the course of the film. For example one action scene depicts one of the characters being cut in half; although, this character is a wax-work figure so he does not die and the scene does not contain any blood or gore. Within the conditions of the BBFC, it states that if a movie/scene is set within a historical/fantasy setting it is more acceptable as it distances itself from reality, which is exactly what NATM does, explaining that the violence it is presenting (or implying) is fictitious and unacceptable. This is even evidenced in the film with Larry confronting the Huns and reprimanding them for their historical violent actions and helping them resolve their anger issues with alternative methods.

Another example of violence in NATM is when Larry and Dexter (the monkey) start to slap each other. This scene may have caused an issue due to the violence, violence towards animals, and it being an easily imitable act of violence. However, we can observe from the awarded PG rating that this scene didn't cause too much of an issue with the BBFC. This is perhaps due to this form of violence only being slapstick, as the BBFC also states that mild violence used comedically in this style of film is more acceptable as it is more humourous than realistic so it again distances the audience from actual physical contact.

Night at the Museum does not appear to show any form of smoking, alcohol or drug use in any form. If the film did contain any of these subjects without showing them in a negative light that it may not have recieved it's PG rating and instead given a higher age restiction or had this content removed from the film to recieve the PG rating.

Below is a list created by the ASA3. This list is the BCAP4 Code which all advertisers must follow before publicly airing/transmitting any of their adverts.

The old media print adertisment for Night at the Museum does not break any of these rules, so it was safe to publish/print. Meanwhile, the new media television/film advert, (below), was also aired/transmitted but I assume that it may have had more difficulty than the old media print ad due to some of the extra included content. For example, the advert depicts some acts of violence included in the film (e.g. Larry getting hit by the dinosaur and knocked onto the stairs). Despite this, the the advert was still transmitted, so the ASA must have deemed it as suitable regardless of the violent act included; they may have ruled that it isn't to violent as it doesn't present any gore or physical damage and, similarly to the BBFC rating system, decided that due to it being fantasy slapstick removes it from reality and unlikely for any impressionable viewers to imitate.

 
* - British Board of Film Classification
** - Night at the Museum
*** - Advertising Standards Authority
**** - Broadcasting Comitees of Advertising Pactices

http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/pg

http://asa.org.uk/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0477347/parentalguide?ref_=tt_stry_pg

 http://www.cap.org.uk/Advertising-Codes/Broadcast.aspx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWDwJIBqjSU