Rob Zombie’s latest film, “31” has been relegated to the extreme horror market as the Motion Picture Association of America has given it the dreaded NC-17 rating. This rating, which prohibits anyone under the age of 17 from watching the film in public exhibition, is considered the kiss of death by many distributors. “Well, after two tries through the MPAA our rating on ’31’ remains NC-17.”, said Zombie in a quote.”Maybe three is the charm to get an R rating. Why R you ask? Well, because your local theater will not show an NC-17. Even though you are a f—ing adult… things must be censored for your enjoyment.”
“31” tells the story of five friends who are kidnapped on the day before Halloween and are held hostage. While trapped, they must play a violent game called 31, in which the mission is to survive 12 hours against a gang of evil clowns. Its cast includes, Sheri Moon Zombie, Malcolm McDowell, Richard Brake, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Jeff Daniel Phillips and Meg Foster.
This news comes as a shocker since Zombie’s other films up to this point have always played it safe, offering family-friendly entertainment. In his heartwarming, debut feature “House of 100 corpses” (2003), Zombie told the tale of a group of petulant explorers who learned that some mysteries needn’t be explored. This was followed by “The Devil’s Rejects” (2005) whose story focuses on family bonding during trials from within as external forces attempted to pull a family unit apart. Of course we can’t forget the remakes of “Halloween” (2007) and its sequel (2009) pushing an agenda of family. “Family is Forever.” declared the tagline for “Halloween II”. Finally, in his most recent feature “Lords of Salem” (2013) Zombie again goes for a cautionary slant, warning of the dangers of the occult.
Always the auteur, Zombie has always bristled at the studio system dictating what stories he should tell, much less how to tell them. Corpses had a similar battle and was sent to the ratings committee five times before it was granted a borderline R rating, with Universal Pictures declaring the film “too dark and disturbing to release”. The pic eventually made it to Lionsgate and everyone ended up the better for it. Those who wanted to see the film did, those who did not want to learn the valuable lesson of “staying on the safe path” weren’t bothered. So why is it that he is so very concerned that the pesky MPAA has effectively cursed another one of his creations?
Rob, we have some thoughts on the matter. Tell your stories. Tell them how you want to tell them. Take the opinions and advice of the “committees” with a grain of salt and do what you do best, entertain. You are at your very best when delivering unadulterated horror-grunge that goes where others are afraid of heading. You have an impeccable eye for style and aesthetic. Your style is part Tarantino, part Argento, with a dash of Carpenter. Own it and sell that. Who cares what a group of stuffy Hollywood types are taking issue with what you made. You are creating for your audience, not the mass market. Those who want to see your films will seek them out at the arthouse cinemas that will screen them or get them through Video on Demand.
“31” is already highly anticipated as it has been awarded a coveted spot at Sundance, screening as part of the Midnight Films series. We look forward to seeing this twisted creation the second it is released. Get thee hence, sir.
