Page 21 - The Staunch Test

THE STAUNCH TEST

When female characters are subjected to violence, it’s less often because of what
they’re involved in than because of what they are. In films, on TV and in crime
fiction, generally, women are beaten, stalked, abducted, raped and murdered
because they’re women. The violence is sexualised, it defines and degrades them.
Just as in real life, fictional women are preyed upon for being women. But how often
have you seen a male character facing violence because he’s a man? There are some
exceptions — typically when he’s the wrong sort of man: When he’s gay, black,
passive, old, disabled, or any other descriptor that fails to meet an imaginary ideal
of manhood. Such characters aren’t victimised because they are men, but because
they don’t uphold the standard of what men judge a man should be.

6. Is the Staunch Test censorship?

The simple answer is no. That’s not our job. Organisations equivalent to the British
Board of Film Classification (BBFC) exist all over the world. In the UK, they are
made up of individuals unconnected to the film and television industries and their
main task is not censorship, but certification. They award the rating — for example
U, 12, 15, 18, (or the local categories), granted to every film. Television has to
some extent adopted this system for films and some dramas for the sake of
guidance and consistency, but programmes made for television broadcast or
streaming do not have to carry a certificate unless they are released on a physical
medium such as video, DVD or Blue-Ray. Some video games are also classified
under a separate system.

UK film certification categories

In the UK, censorship is only imposed when scenes violate the Protection of
Children Act 1978 or Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937. Otherwise, the

only changes involved for a film to gain a specific classification involve cuts made
voluntarily by the filmmakers (on advice from the Board), in order to gain a lower
rating than would be awarded if certain scenes were not removed or shortened.
A lower rating can make the film available to a much wider audience of young
people. But for some films, the 18 certification is preferred as it shows the
content is more ‘adult’ — and that’s is its appeal.