LO4, Task 5: Ethical, Legal and Regulatory Issues

Hi everyone, welcome back to another educational resource. I'm Alex Blundell, and this time I'll be taking you through the ethical, legal and regulatory issues surrounding the release of a film.

a) The product's impact and effect on the audience

Media products are obviously going to have an effect on the audience that views them. In 1930, Theodore Adorno came up with his 'hypodermic syringe' theory, in which he stated that media has a negative impact on a mass audience because they believe whatever they see. In a way, they are 'injected' with what they are being shown, and they then go out and copy what they see in the film.

Adorno also came up with the idea of an 'active' audience and a 'passive' audience. He said that an 'active' audience watches films for gratification and pleasure - they don't believe whatever they see, but enjoy it and then discuss, challenge and debate it. A 'passive' audience is one that, as I mentioned before, might re-enact what they see after they have seen a film and believe all of its content. Therefore, the 'hypodermic syringe' theory applies to passive audiences.

One way in which the film Taken 3 could have a negative impact on the audience is the theme of violence and combat throughout. One example of this is at the point 1:05:21, which denotes a particularly vicious fighting scene involving guns, glass and bottles. The violence in this scene is glorified as it is extended and over-the-top - Bryan needed to interrogate one of the antagonists and had to use violence to make him vulnerable, but it is unnecessarily brutal. The continuous and glorified violence might impact on the audience in the way that they could think it is okay to harm people when it isn't really necessary, or make a passive audience go out and re-enact some of the things they have seen, thinking that it isn't bad. It could subconsciously make someone more violent.

Another way that Taken 3 might impact negatively on the audience is the the objectification of women at 1:21:38. The scene denotes Oleg Malankov in his jacuzzi, kissing two girls in bikinis at the same time. This is an example of Laura Mulvey's 1975 theory of "the male gaze", which states that men look at women as sex objects and not really as human beings. It might impact negatively on an female audience because they might then go away seeing that as acceptable, and on a male audience because they might start treating women like that.

Taken 3 could also have positive impacts on the audience, however. Bryan Mills is generally a good role model, as although he is violent a fair bit, he tries to do it for the right reasons, and we can see that he really cares about his family. For example, when his wife Lenore dies, he is distraught and will stop at nothing to prove that he didn't kill her. Also, he has to protect his daughter Kim all the way through the film, making sure that nothing happens to her. This could have a really positive influence on the audience as they might go away being more appreciative and protective of their loved ones.

Another way in which the film might positively impact on the audience is the point 1:37:52, a scene which denotes Bryan, Kim and her boyfriend discussing her pregnancy, the baby's name and how the family will deal with the situation. The connotations of this discussion are a confidence between family members and a togetherness that would get them through any hardships - this could obviously have a positive impact on the audience because they might then take inspiration from this. They might go away and try to deal with any unexpected occurrences within their family in a calm way without letting things get out of hand.

b) Relevant issues of representation

'Representation' means the way that a certain group or type of person is portrayed in films and the media. In 1980, Stuart Hall said that all representations in films are "mediated", which means that they are done on purpose for effect. In addition, films use stereotypes and countertypes - stereotypes are ideas that are widely held by society about certain groups, while countertypes challenge these ideas. Tessa Perkins theorised in 1979 that stereotypes are never a true depiction of a person or group, as they are over-simplified views of things which are in fact much more complex. She said that they are usually negative, and usually created by the media.

One example of a negative stereotype in the film Taken 3 is the character of Oleg Malankov, a Russian who initially appears to be behind the murder of Bryan's wife, Lenore. He is a violent character, unsympathetic, booze-loving and clearly views females as sex objects. At various points in the film he can be seen drinking alcohol, kissing women and firing his machine gun. He is an example of a negative stereotype because Russians are often thought of to like their alcohol and be stony-faced and cruel. The stereotype might reinforce negative ideas about Eastern Europeans in the audience members' brains, and since the film is American, it could have originated from their media's negative opinion of Russians. In addition, Malankov is an example of a negative stereotype of men in general, that they are violent and like to dominate situations. Earp and Katz, in 1999, theorised the "equation of masculinity with pathological control and violence", meaning that men are aggressive and controlling. Malankov would be an example of this, perhaps giving the female audience members a more negative view of men, while making the male audience members think it is okay to behave like that.

On the other hand, an example of a positive stereotype in Taken 3 is the caring and protective nature of Bryan Mills. One stereotype of the male gender is that they are very protective of their families and want to make sure that nothing happens to their loved ones. Bryan epitomises this stereotype, as he is the main protagonist in a film series which shows him having to constantly protect his daughter, Kim, and rescue her from danger. An example of this in the film is towards the end at the point 1:31:32, when Bryan asks the police chief "What's your first priority here, Inspector?", to which he replies "arrest St. John, and charge him with your ex-wife's murder." Bryan then responds with "my first priority is my daughter," as Kim is in danger at the time and he has to do all he can to protect her. This is only one example from many in the film which highlight his concern and determination to protect Kim. The effect of this positive stereotype on the audience might be to encourage them to appreciate their families and endeavour to protect their loved ones also.

In addition, Kim Mills, Bryan's daughter, is an example of a countertype. This is because, throughout the film, she appears strong and isn't afraid to share her opinions and what she thinks about things. She also isn't dressed sexually so she isn't a victim of Laura Mulvey's "the male gaze" theory, while she has a main part in the film so John Berger's 1972 theory of "men act, women appear" doesn't apply either. A stereotype of women is that they are weak and aren't as brave as men, and Kim's character goes against this, making her a countertype. At the point 1:30:19 in the film, we see her in Stuart St. John's car, being held captive. Instead of being submissive and frightened, she challenges him, asking him "why are you doing this?" and saying "you killed her, I know you did", until Stuart shouts at her to "shut up." This behaviour from Kim highlights that she is brave and won't let anyone get the better of her, going against the typical female stereotype, and showing how society has evolved from the simple-minded idea that "men are strong and brave, women are weak".

c) Relevant legal and/or ethical issues

"Copyright infringement" is a term which means the use of content that you do not have the rights for or permission to use - basically, you don't own the content and it is technically a form of theft. You can be sued or even prosecuted for copyright infringement, depending on the severity of the theft.

There are many songs in Taken 3, which for legal use would have required 20th Century Fox to contact the record labels of the artists. For example, as Bryan prepares dinner towards the start of the film and Lenore unexpectedly walks in, The XX's "Infinity" song plays. For this, their record label XL Records would have had to be contacted and paid a considerable amount of money by 20th Century Fox. Another example of a song in Taken 3 would be the the Glass Animals' song, "Toes", being played over the establishing shot of Los Angeles. In order to avoid copyright infringement, 20th Century Fox would have contacted the record label Harvest Recordings and paid them money for the right to play the song.

Taken 3 also contains a considerable amount of ethical issues, leading to it getting an age rating of 12 in the UK from the BBFC, British Board of Film Classification. This is because passive audiences are likely to be influenced negatively by ethical issues. For example, there is some mild sexual content present when Malankov is in his jacuzzi, kissing two girls in bikinis at once. There is also some strong language present, for example when Kim verbally assaults Stuart while she is being held captive ("you're a lying piece of s***!"), or when she calls a police officer an "asshole". The most prominent ethical issue is the torture scene when Bryan throws a cloth over Stuart's face and pours water over him, in an attempt at interrogation. It is a particularly gritty scene in which Stuart's discomfort can be clearly seen. These three issues contribute to the BBFC age rating of 12, not to mention the amount of violence the whole way through the film which means it almost got a rating of 15. The DVD actually got a 15 rating, containing a few more gritty and violent scenes deemed too inappropriate for younger audiences.

d) Regulatory bodies

The BBFC is the British Board of Film Classification, and it examines films before they are released to give them an age rating. The certificate it is given intends to protect certain ages from "unsuitable and even harmful content", according to the BBFC. Issues such as violence, sexual content and strong language influence their decision.

The certificate that Taken 3 received from the BBFC was a 12 for cinema showings as some "harder" scenes were edited out, but it was changed for the DVD which received a 15 rating as a few more gritty and violent scenes were put back in. In the US, Taken 3 received a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America in cinemas and on DVD, which is fairly similar to in the UK, in between the 12 of the cinema version and the 15 of the DVD. It was likely found to be just about acceptable for an audience of teenagers and above.

Since the film was originally a 15 and had to be edited to receive a 12 rating, we will look at the BBFC's guidelines for a 15 rating and why they decided to give the DVD that certificate. In terms of violence, the BBFC states that "violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury." Taken 3 keeps to these guidelines in the way that there is strong violence throughout, but a lack of gore and detail. The BBFC also says that "dangerous behaviour should not dwell on detail which could be copied". The torture scene in Taken 3 just about adheres to this guideline as it is fairly brief, but you could say it is detailed - Bryan throws a cloth over Stuart's face and pours water over it, and we see Stuart struggle and choke. In terms of sexual content, the BBFC says "sexual activity may be portrayed, but usually without strong detail." Taken 3 adheres to this because there is a brief sexual scene when Oleg Malankov kisses two girls in his jacuzzi, but it is brief and not detailed. Finally, the BBFC says that "there may be strong language" which there is in Taken 3 in certain cases. It isn't frequent, however.

Another regulatory body in the UK is the ASA, the Advertising Standards Authority. They regulate advertising across all media to make sure it is appropriate for anyone who might see it. The advertising code that regulates print material like posters is the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing, which is set out by a sister organisation called The Committee of Advertising Practice, or CAP.

One aspect of the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing is the rules on "harm and offence". This section affects Taken 3 as the film contains a lot of violence and some disturbing scenes, so there was potential for the poster to be offensive to some people who might see it. Therefore, the creators of the poster would have had to follow the CAP guidelines to make sure it was suitable. Some examples of the guidelines on "harm and offence" are "marketing communications must not cause fear or distress without justifiable reason" and "marketing communications must contain nothing that is likely to condone or encourage violence". Since Taken 3 contains some distressing scenes and strong violence, the poster would have been made not to show these things in order to adhere to the ASA's rules and prevent offence. Instead, Liam Neeson, the film's A-list actor and main protagonist is pictured being closed in on by three helicopters, with the tagline "IT ENDS HERE". This creates intrigue and makes people want to see the film to find out what happens, without the use of any offensive content.

Another aspect of the this CAP code that relates to Taken 3 is "Motoring". There are a few lengthy driving scenes throughout the film, which show the police and Bryan driving dangerously and often breaking the speed limit. There is one especially dangerous scene in which an antagonist tries to kill Bryan by using his car to push Bryan's off a cliff. The poster would not be allowed to show anything like this, as the guidelines state that "marketing communications must not condone or encourage unsafe or irresponsible driving", "marketing communications must not depict speed in a way that might encourage motorists to drive irresponsibly" and "marketers must not make speed or acceleration the main message of their marketing communications". Most of the driving in Taken 3 does not adhere to these guidelines and so it would be inappropriate to show it on a promotional poster.

Finally, the rules on "Sales Promotions" apply to Taken 3 to some extent because alcohol appears in the film on occasion, such as when the antagonists say "let's go get drunk" and then choose their alcohol from a liquor store. The guidelines state that "alcoholic drinks must not feature in promotions directed at people under 18", and this is relevant because the film targets an audience of 12 and up in the UK. Therefore, the poster is not allowed to show anything to do with alcohol.

Instead of using any offensive content, the poster shows Liam Neeson, the film's A-list actor and main protagonist, being closed in on by three helicopters, with the tagline "IT ENDS HERE". This creates intrigue and makes people want to see the film because they want to find out what happens and because of the actor, not because of any inappropriate or offensive content.

I've been Alex Blundell, and I thank you for listening to another educational resource!