Silver-celluloid

Every state, province and country has a cinema rating system. This system is usually based around controlling the lower age limit of the audience and monitoring films so that they remain appropriate. The ratings system in most territories is self-regulatory and there is usually an independent body of people to vet each movie and make the appropriate decisions. In the UK this job falls to the British Board of Film Classification, and these decisions are mostly based on the incidence of bad language, nudity, sex and violence within each picture. However, in Sweden, some cinemas are going to introduce a new rating system alongside the one for age that will advise whether the film passes the Bechdel Test. They will be the first in the world to do this. For those who are unfamiliar with this test, it is a marker of the incidences of women on screen. The test is simple. To pass the test a film must contain a scene in which two named women have a conversation that is not about a man and do...

Sick of the schmaltz and annoying adverts, even looking for a good movie is hijacked by the usual Valentine’s day agenda. A quick search brings a million anti-Valentine’s Day movie lists with the usual suspects: Fatal Attraction, Kramer vs Kramer, divorce, broken hearts, blah, blah, blah. Who wants to watch that kind of misery on Valentine’s Day (okay so some people do, and all power to them, but it’s still all about Valentine’s Day). Check out this alternative anti-Valentine’s Day movie list and crack open some popcorn for a fun-filled night of single-dom. First things first, anything by Quentin Tarantino   Let’s face it, a blood spattered dose of ultra-stylish direction will have you glued to your seat. Recommended: Inglorious Basterds or Pulp Fiction (avoid Deathproof. Sorry Mr Tarantino, but it was not your best). Goodfellas – Always worth a watch, and nothing says romance like gangsters, cocaine and domestic violence. Enjoy. Scream – A good old fa...