"This Film is Not Yet Rated" Review

Phenomenal. This documentary is so well done, and is very interesting to watch. It kept my attention the entire time.

There are really two different levels to this film.
1. Is the exposure of the MPAA and their hypocritical and often questioned motives for rating various films. It interviews a number of directors, and they explain what they were told (at various stages of their careers) that needed to be done, in order to lower their rating to an "R" from an "NC-17".

2. The film is also an investigative piece, where it hires a private investigator to help them uncover the identities of those people who actually watch and rate the films. During this investigation, it unearths various lies and deceits that the MPAA gives the general public and filmmakers, in regards to the members of the reviewing board. Through their investigative efforts, the filmmakers track down and identify the reviewers, and flat-out shows how they DO NOT fit the guidelines for reviewers that are told to the public/filmmakers.

Then, once the filmmaker has exposed all of these aspects - he submits his film to the MPAA to be reviewed. What follows, in the third act, is the stonewall of attempts to appeal the "NC-17" that his film received. It's really eye-opening and seriously shows what a "secret society" is all about.

The only thing that I wanted more, were more stories from filmmakers about their second submissions and their appeals. It touches on some some of these aspects, but not some of the more famous ones that I was previously aware of. It interviews Kevin Smith, but focuses on "Jersey Girl" and not the issues they faced with the original "Clerks". It does do a good job of covering "Team America" and what Matt Stone did to the MPAA on that film.

I think this is an amazing documentary, and really does a wonderful job of keeping the story interesting, and making it enjoyable to watch. The interviews are pretty good, and the facts that they give are interesting. It's definitely something that I recommend to anyone who is interested in filmmaking, or anyone who just enjoys documentaries.