Why I Don't Watch R-Rated Movies

I wasn’t raised to avoid R-rated movies like many Mormons are.  There are a fair few that I watched growing up with my parents, but only if they had historical/moral merit—meaning they were typically rated R for war violence.

I get jested a lot for avoiding rated R movies.  People are always telling me that such and such film is good except for the swearing or for that “one” scene. Well, to them I say this:

1.)  Rated R for Language: This is typically code for profuse use of the F-word.  The F-word is vile.  (Vile: loathsome, disturbing, abhorrent, hateful, and despicable—and may I add, wholly unnecessary.) I was raised on the phrase that “Swearing is just a weak, uneducated mind attempting to express itself forcefully.” That saying has burrowed deep into my psyche and has always stuck with me; the older I get and the more I live the more I find that to be absolutely the case.

I am a wordy person; I like to understand the heritage of a word. Do you know where the F-word came from? Its original meaning was to thrust upward violently. The original colloquial/slang use of the word was the nickname given to receiving the legal and lawful right to rape someone.   

People try to excuse themselves by saying that it doesn’t mean that anymore.  Well, last time I checked, it hasn’t changed meaning.  It’s still the cruelest word associated with sex, used with the intention of being vulgar and demeaning. You can’t deny that.

So you tell me why I should put down my hard earned money to be spiritually and intellectually insulted over and over again by people who have the nerve to say that they are being artistic.

2.)  Rated R for Sexuality/Nudity: What ever happened to the art of suggestion? I have a deep and passionate love for storytelling and I’ve spent a fair few years studying it, both formally and informally.  One of the most powerful tools in storytelling is suggestion.

Art used to be about inspiring people to feel and think, to walk away with a sense of truth that was theirs to untangle and learn for themselves.  It inspired individualism and encouraged freedom.  Film, which historically may be one of the most powerful and influential forms of art, is now telling people what to think, feel and do. 

Overtly sexualized images feed into our subconscious and define what we think and feel about ourselves, our loved ones, and the world around us.  Countless research has proven how detrimental overly sexualized images and themes are to individuals and families. Now, don’t get me wrong, sex is a big part of reality and I’m not trying to be a prude here, but once again I ask you, why should I put down money to see images that I don’t want to see, won’t be able to get out of my head, and may hinder my personal and familial happiness? Especially considering that they in no way, add to the story line and more often than not are merely added for a sense of defiance or cheap entertainment.

3.)  Rated R for Crudity: Real art inspires and enlightens, not dims our intelligence with over-simplified stimulus that ensures mindless entertainment that only proves that we have made no progress, if not full out reverted in our storytelling and imagination innovations. How embarrassing.

I didn’t think the 9 year-old boy sticking his hand in his armpit to make farting sounds was funny in the third grade, I certainly don’t think the man-boys making boob jokes in run-of-the-mill male comedies of the 21^st century are funny either. What disturbs me further is that women are starting to make these comedies now days as well, and for what, to impress the man-boys? Please, I’ve got better things to do with my time.

4.)  Rated R for Violence: Maybe it’s strange that I see this as the most forgivable of rated R offenses, but it is a double-edged sword.  There are two kinds of films that have violence that warrants an R rating: 1. The Saving Private Ryan type and 2. The Rambo type.

I grew up watching the Saving Private Ryan type.  In fact I’ve seen Saving Private Ryan a couple of times, and I have to admit I like it. If it has moral/historical merit I don’t mind it.  War is reality, and one that needs to be faced, not glorified (Rambo).  You may say that this doesn’t add up because sex is a reality too, so why be so opinionated about one and so lax on the other?  Well, call me crazy, but I don’t enjoy watching other people have sex.  That’s creepy and wrong, even in the world of fiction.

5.)  Rated R for Gore: Okay, this is the horror film side of things. This past Friday the 13^th I got talked into watching the movie Friday the 13^th. This movie is rated R, but I rolled with it, against my own better judgment.  Not only was that movie a GIGANTIC waste of time, but also just kinda gross.

Will someone please explain to me the urge people have to watch other people get hacked up?  I watched Kevin Bacon get an arrow shoved through his throat from behind (which reeked havoc with my overly logical brain because of its impossibility).  There is not one single moment of entertainment for me in watching people get beheaded, maimed, skinned, sliced and whatever else.  It’s morbid and weird.  Once again, why would I use my precious money and time and waste it on something gory?