*Hays Code-Group 3 Report*

The key points that were covered in Group 3 (Black, page 305) were: how evil and sin shouldn’t be portrayed as “alluring” and how the law should not be “ridiculed”. They did not want evil to appear appealing to the audience or create feelings of sympathy for the wrong that the person has committed. They also did not want the law to be scorned by the audience when a criminal was punished for their sins. They wanted to protect the audience, and they did not want them to do evil or commit sin, like what they saw on film.

–By Laura Milchak

Many members in our group believed that the Code had reason to enforce these rules; however, the public also has the right to differentiate between what is wrong and right. Specifically toward our section, some of us believed a story should be portrayed just as the creators intended, regardless of whether or not it represents the law or crime appropriately, because there is a difference between media (news) and film. Film is a form of expression that exists to tell a story, not relay facts. The public understands this and can make moral decisions based on their own personal moral guidelines. Two priests should not be able to dictate what everyone should watch and believe. The main disagreement between our members was whether the Code was needed at the time; our mindsets are far too modern to understand the impact the films may have had on the public in the 1930s. After reading the Code many times, we noticed that everything during the 1930s seemed to be offensive; however, one thing we all agreed on was that the Code is simply too harsh to be continually enforced.

–By Natasha Barbosa

In terms of Scarface, the code seems to be loosely applied. The alternate endings are mainly a distinction of the code that is applied to the movie. Had no code been established, the original script ending would have shown Camonte’s lifestyle to be far more appealing. However, the alternate endings ruined any appeal the lifestyle of a gangster may have. The scenes of corruption of law officials which were cut are also addressed in the code. The code states that there should be no scenes which reflect poorly on the government and the court system. Furthermore, Mrs. Camonte’s feelings toward Tony are also addressed in the code. Her feelings about her son leave a strong impression on the viewer and help to assure us that if his mother cannot even seen the good in him, then there must be no good present. The incest plot also comes into play in regards to the code. Incest is considered a taboo and is seen as immoral, which would be a clear violation of the code. However, there are parts of the code that don’t seem to have been applied to the production of Scarface. For instance, everyone in Group 3 agreed that they felt bad for Tony Camonte at the end of the film. The code states that the audience’s sympathy should not lie with the criminal or anti-hero. However, the audience will commonly side with Tony Camonte because they are rarely exposed to his character flaws. We never really see him murder people or commit other crimes, with the exception of Guino. Due to a lack of so called “immoral” scenes, Tony Camonte is portrayed as a nice guy with a sense of humor. Had we been exposed to his criminal ways, our sympathies would have lied elsewhere. The humor that is used throughout the film is also key to our opinion of the gangsters. It serves to humanize them, thus making them more appealing. The code seems to be loosely applied to Scarface, but there are certain instances where Scarface seems to have slipped by the censors.–By Katie Posey

The ratings system we use today is incredibly different from the Lord-Quigley proposal, mostly in that it is a lot less detailed – it just names a specific audience that should or should not see the movie. This leads me to believe that it is harder to enforce specific behaviors or actions in today’s age because the ratings system is pretty vague and so guarantees free speech. If a film is rated G, then it can be seen by anyone (General Audiences) and usually movies with this rating are children’s films, like Disney productions. If it is rated M, it means that only mature audiences should view the film content, but this rating is not defined by a specific age, like the ratings PG-13 and R (which means you have to be 17 to view the content). There is also the PG rating, which means that some of the portrayed material might be unsuitable for children, but again no more information is enumerated here. What’s more, sometimes there is no stopping a child from seeing sexually or violently perverse subjects and situations on television shows. There is a brief warning before the production is shown, but if there is no authoritative figure around to stop the viewing of the show, many children can be free to see scenes that may be too mature for their own immature levels. Basically, the ratings system today is a lot more relaxed and open to interpretation, giving parents the authority to determine what is right for their children to see and what is inappropriate for their age range. But there are still irresponsible parental figures in existence, so there are still limitations within our movie rating system.

–By Michelle Sargent