The Human Centipede II - Finally Available To Purchase!

Hi,

It may have been cut by 2m 37s, but THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE II: FULL SEQUENCE can now be pre-ordered from Amazon.co.uk, on either Blu-Ray (£13-99) here or DVD (£12-70) here .

Extras will include:
- A deleted scene
- An audio commentary by Tom Six and Ilona Six
- Trailers
- Discussion on the censorship issues.

The film is out on Monday 21st November, just in time for Christmas!

Staying with THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE II, it has now also been announced that in Australia, the R18+ certificate that was awarded for the film's theatrical release, is under threat in New South Wales, from the local Attorney General. As such, a review will be considered on 4th November, by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC), as to whether the certificate shall remain, or whether the film is "RC" - Refused Classification.

There has been a lot of recent problems with controversial films being awarded certificates in Australian, only for a short time to pass, and then the certificates are revoked in full. A SERBIAN FILM fell in to the same problems last month, where the cut UK version was awarded an R18+ certificate, and then withdrawn just two days after the film's offical home viewing release. This meant that the Australian distributor was forced to recall all unsold copies of the film, for the forseeable future, and is unable to sell them. Owners of the film on DVD are now technically breaking the law, as the film is now no longer legal to own in most Australian terrirtories, despite it being legal just a short while previously!

Ultimately this leaves Austalian film distributors in a painful scenario. Where films are legal one minute, and then banned the next, is it worth independant distribution firms like Bounty Films, (the distributors of HUMAN CENTIPEDE II), paying for films to be classified, if the certificate can then be withdrawn at any moment thereafter, leaving them with theatrical prints that can't be shown, or the film on DVD and/or Blu-Ray's that can't be sold or exported abroad either? This kind of farce will only harm independant cinema in Australia, as companies will not want to risk spending time, effort and money in producing risky or provocative entertainment, if they hard work is likely to all be in vain.

How on earth Australian movie collector's cope with this bizarre system, I will never know! And to think that people moan about the BBFC's tactics of censoring material! At least once they award a certificate, it cannot be withdrawn, unless a change in law is passed to make the film illegal.

For now, though, the UK will be the only country where film fans can legally purchase and own a copy of this controversial flick. Irrespective of your thoughts on the film, sales should be pretty good, due to global demand from fans wanting to own one of the most talked-about movies in recent months! Until an uncut US release is decided upon - and this is not likely to occur until some time next year, and there's no guarantee that it even will be uncut - the Human Centipede will remain a distinctly British affair!

From One Extreme To Another!

Welcome Back,

What an interesting week it's been! The BBFC un-ban THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE II: FULL SEQUENCE, but now they have banned THE BUNNY GAME (2010, Adam Rehmeier)!

As discussed  here back at the beginning of July, it seems the BBFC didn't approve of the film's provocative, uncompromising content and amoral tone. Their Press Release, from 12th October 2011, says it all:

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has rejected the sexually violent DVD The Bunny Game. The film follows a female prostitute who hitches a lift with a truck driver. The truck driver kidnaps the woman, restrains and forcibly strips her, and proceeds to physically and sexually abuse and humiliate her. The abuse of the kidnapped woman takes up the greater part of the film.

The principal focus of The Bunny Game is the unremitting sexual and physical abuse of a helpless woman, as well as the sadistic and sexual pleasure the man derives from this. The emphasis on the woman’s nudity tends to eroticise what is shown, while aspects of the work such as the lack of explanation of the events depicted, and the stylistic treatment, may encourage some viewers to enjoy and share in the man’s callousness and the pleasure he takes in the woman’s pain and humiliation.

David Cooke, Director of the BBFC said: “It is the Board’s carefully considered view that to issue a certificate to this work, even if confined to adults, would be inconsistent with the Board’s Guidelines, would risk potential harm within the terms of the Video Recordings Act, and would accordingly be unacceptable to the public.”

The Board considered whether its concerns could be dealt with through cuts.  However, the pervasiveness of the abuse makes it very difficult to deal with The Bunny Game by means of cuts.  If the company would like to attempt to cut this work in order to submit it in a reduced form, they are entitled to do so, but the Board can offer no assurances that such re-editing would be successful.

The decision to reject The Bunny Game was taken by the Director, David Cooke and the Presidential Team of Sir Quentin Thomas, Alison Hastings and Gerard Lemos. The decision means that the film cannot be legally supplied anywhere in the UK.

Trinity Filmed Entertainment, who were the UK distributors, have not yet made any announcement, other than stating their extreme disappointment in the BBFC's decision. Admittedly, the film was only being submitted for a home viewing certificate - that is DVD and Blu-Ray release. As such, there's no telling whether or not the BBFC would have allowed a version of the film for theatrical release.

If the experience of Tom Six and Bounty Films are anything to go by, expect Trinity to appeal the decision, and try to see if a version of the film can be produced that the BBFC may approve of - if not for home viewing, at the very least for cinema release. It worked before!

Mark Sandell, co-director of Trinity, who acquired the film during Cannes this year, is quoted as saying:

We knew the film was challenging and confrontational, but also felt, as a independent filmmaker, Adam Rehmeir (the director), had a highly original filmic eye and had elicited powerful performances from the cast. We did imagine that the BBFC might ask for cuts but an outright ban gives the film a twisted notoriety that, quite frankly, it doesn't warrant.

Adam Rehmeier, the director commented:

Rodleen and I didn't make 'The Bunny Game' to glamorise prostitution. It is far from an erotic film. It is a modern cautionary tale grounded in reality.

Here's hoping the BBFC find some way to allow adults to view this film sooner, rather than later!

The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) - Finally Unleashed In The UK!

Hello Everyone,

I simply had to post this message, as the news was so important. On Thursday 6th October 2011, the British Board Of Film Classification finally rescinded the "Rejected" rating it imposed on Tom Six's THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE II (FINAL SEQUENCE) and awarded it an 18 certificate... with cuts!

Now, the cuts are extensive - around 2 minutes and 37 seconds worth, but at least the film has finally been given legal status in the UK, and cinemas and a DVD/Blu-Ray release can now proceed.

According to the BBFC's site , the cuts were mandatory:

This work was cut. The cut(s) were Compulsory. To obtain this category cuts of 2m 37s were required. Company was required to make 32 individual cuts to scenes of sexual and sexualised violence, sadistic violence and humiliation, and a child presented in an abusive and violent context. In this case, cuts included: a man masturbating with sandpaper around his penis; graphic sight of a man's teeth being removed with a hammer; graphic sight of lips being stapled to naked buttocks; graphic sight of forced defecation into and around other people's mouths; a man with barbed wire wrapped around his penis raping a woman; a newborn baby being killed; graphic sight of injury as staples are torn away from individuals' mouth and buttocks. Cuts required in accordance with BBFC Guidelines, policy and the Video Recordings Act 1984.

Now, whilst I am genuinely anti-censorship, if it's a choice between seeing a cut version or no version at all, a cut version is certainly the lesser of the two evils. It remains to be seen when the film will be shown in cinemas, and more to the point, in which cinemas, as I'm certain some chains will ban it due to its notoriety. (Odeon has famously banned some films from being shown in their chain.)


As for a DVD and Blu-Ray release, well Eureka Entertainment who are the parent company of Bounty Films, the distributor's of HUMAN CENTIPEDE II, have yet to make any official announcement. In the US, the film has been released Unrated, as like the BBFC, there's a high chance that the MPAA would either have banned the film or cut it even more than in the UK. (Just look at the way SRPSKI FILM / A SERBIAN FILM (2010, Srdjan Spasojevic) was treated in the USA.) In Australia, HUMAN CENTIPEDE II has been given an uncut R18+ certificate for theatrical release only, and they had originally released a heavily-cut version of A SERBIAN FILM for home viewing, but that certification was rescinded just 48 hours later, effectively banning the film outright!

We live in very interesting times, and it seems that depending on where you live in the world, will depend on what version of a film you see. Still, I look forward to seeing HUMAN CENTIPEDE II, cut or uncut!

And lastly, here's the US Trailer! Enjoy!

See you back here soon!