![]() ![]() Reviews were mixed, with many commenting on the movie’s non-stop thrills which felt somehow empty and unsatisfying. Little did they know, their kids were in for nearly two hours of monkey brain buffets, child beatings and people falling into rock crushers, not to mention the infamous sacrifice scene wherein an evil sorcerer reaches into a guy’s chest, pulls out his beating heart and lowers the screaming victim into a lava pit. Despite that grisly scene, parents still trusted Spielberg enough to drop their kids off at Temple of Doom. Take Poltergeist (1982), a PG film co-written and produced by Steven Spielberg in which a guy tears off his own face. And some of their decisions were, well, questionable. Since there was no middle ground between PG and R, the MPAA often had a hard time deciding which rating an edgy film might earn. Parents assumed PG meant a movie was appropriate for children, but, unfortunately for a generation of traumatized kiddos, that wasn’t always the case. In the early 80s, there were only four ratings in existence: G, PG, R and X. After all, the Indiana Jones prequel was billed as “suitable for kids” and “a triumph of escapist entertainment for all ages.” Parents brought their kids to theaters hoping for wholesome family entertainment. The PG-13’s origin story began in 1984 when Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom (1984) hit the big screens. It had more to do with Steven Spielberg and a weird combination of still-beating hearts and exploding monsters. It seems clear that this particular mix of consonants and odd numbers is a studio’s golden ticket to box office success.īut how did the PG-13 rating come about? It didn’t have anything to do with superheroes or teen-friendly action movies. In fact, eight of the 10 highest-grossing films of the last 10 years were all rated PG-13. If you pay attention to the beginnings of movie trailers, you probably know each of these flicks is rated PG-13 in the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) rating system. ![]() ![]() In recent decades, PG-13 has become the target for studio blockbusters that aim to reach wide audiences and earn high box office returns.Ī quick glance at the list of highest-grossing films in recent years reveals well-known titles like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire(2013), The Avengers (2012) series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2(2011), The Dark Knight(2008) and, of course, Avatar (2009). Steven Spielberg, director of Temple of Doom, claimed in 2004 that “I created the problem, and I also supplied the solution… I invented the rating.” Spielberg also likened the PG-13 rating to putting “hot sauce” on a movie to entice teenage audiences. The PG-13 rating came about in response to parents’ outrage over movies like Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Gremlins (1984), which were misleadlingly marketed as tame, kid-friendly entertainment. Quick Answer: In the early 1980s, the MPAA ratings were G, PG, R and X. ![]()
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