American movie rating system...

slapnutz

Regular
In my country we have stuff like...

No age restrictions...
G, PG, M

Restricted
R13, R16, R18

Question is, why does america just have R and no other (younger aged) restrictions?

I mean, you can see how certain movies could fall into one of the other ratings which means studios dont have to edit/waterdown movies from a R straight to an M/AO in order to get a wider audience.

E.g. Saving Private Ryan was R in the US which I guess means no one under 17 could see it unless an "adult" was with them. In New Zealand, the movie got an R15 which meant more people could see it and not necssarily young kids.

I guess I trying to say the whole 17 years or nothing system is too simple and cuts out a lot of the potential audience?
 
In Ontario, Canada we have the G, PG, 13A, 18A, R system. It's basically the same as the US, except everything is dropped down a rating. Only very extreme violence and near pornographic sexuality get an R rating. That is G=G, PG=PG, PG13=13A, R=18A, NC-17=R more or less. However, having worked at a movie theatre, I can assure you, no one gives a damn about ratings.

Also, every province here has slightly to totally different rating systems, so it can get confusing.
 
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