Certificate Research

The 'U' logo tells you that any age is allowed to see the movie which means even a baby can be a part of the audience and/or the much older generations. The movies that are rated a 'U' are very innocent and don't involve any violence, horror or intimate scenes, they are usually cartoons which intrigues the younger audience, for example 'The Princess and the Frog' created by Disney is rated a U making it suitable for any age group, Disney movies are well known to be enjoyable for kids and most of their parents probably grew up also watching them so they would feel reassured that the movies are good for a young age. The movie involves a princess and has a happy ending which means the younger viewers wont find it distressing to watch. 

'PG' stands for parental guidance, meaning you must be 8 years or older and have an adult with you to see the film, this is because the movies rated 'PG' involve  a bit more intense for the younger viewers but nothing dramatic as most the movies are still cartoon, again to intrigue children. Some 'PG' movies involve real actors but they still keep it innocent by adding humour that the younger generations will understand. A movie that has been extremely popular to the younger audience for many years is Shrek; again this movie is a cartoon and involves a princess and a happy ending, but it involves more action scenes that will excite the audience.

The rating '12' means you are able to watch the  movie without an adult if you are 12 or over, the storyline of the movies begin to get more complex and interesting for this age group as they would be able to understand it a lot better as they are more mature than someone under the age of 12. The difference between a PG film and a film rated a 12 is quite drastic as they are now allowed to watch horror movies such as The Woman in Black, which involves a lot of jumpy scenes even someone over the age of 18 would express fear from watching. 

A movie rated '12a' is similar to the 12 apart from you would only be able to watch the movie with a parent/guardian, this means the movie may involve more violence, horror and/or intimate scenes which aren't suitable to watch at a younger age so having an adult there as a form of protection and guidance if they feel the movie is too grownup for a child to watch.

A movie that is rated a '15' gives the movie a wider range of story lines they are able to use without being couscous of age; the movies almost always include swearing and can involve violence depending on the genre. Sexual relations are more open to the audience and they don't have to worry if the movie is too jumpy. A movie that is rated a '15' is Bridesmaids, this movie involves adult humour, swearing and sexual scenes. Many action movies are rated a 15 such as World War Z, this is because of the amount of violence and swearing which isn't acceptable for someone under the age of 15 to watch.

When you see the logo for an '18' movie, it means the film is strictly forbidden for people bellow the age of 18 to go and watch the film as it can involve a lot of scary, sexual and extremely violent scenes which younger viewers could find disturbing. They tend to use mundane realism to intrigue a wider audience into watching the film. They use '18' as the age to be able to go and watch the movie because you are expected to be a lot more mature when you reach that age and you will be old enough to decide if you want to go and see a particular because you are an adult.