Horror Certificate Ratings

The British Board of Film Classifications (BBFC) give films certificates in order to show the ages they are appropriate to be shown too. The different certificates that can be given are:

•   U – (universal) – All ages can view
•   PG – (Parental Guidance) – All ages admitted but cetain scenes may be unsuitable for young children
•   12A – Considered to be unsuitable for young children, those under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult
•    12 – No one under the age of 12 is permitted to view
•   15 – No one under the age of 15 is permitted to view
•   18 – No one under the age of 18 is permitted to view
•    18R – (18 Restricted) - Can only be shown at licensed adult cinemas or sold at licensed sex shops, and only to adults, those aged 18 or over

Most Horror Films are given a certificate rating of 15 or above due to the graphic violence and disturbing content. There are a few U rated horror films, however these are only very mild films such as The Ghost Train and The devil Bat, there are some PG rated horror films, again very mild but possibly disturbing to some young children. There are slightly more 12 rated horror films around, however again the numbers are low, as they are limited to a relatively child friendly plot. However the content deemed suitable for a 12 year old to watch has changed a lot over the past few years. Things before seen as completely unsuitable for a child of the age of 12 to view, such as bad language and mild sexual references, are now seen as the norm. 15 is the certificate rating where you start to get more stereotypical horror films. There can be a certain amount of gore and bad language used as children of this age are seen as capable of dealing with this. Overall though the vast majority of Horror Films are seen as only being suitable for adults, and therefore have a rating of 18.  They contain very disturbing content, and often extreme language and sexual scenes, meaning they are unsuitable for children to view. Many horror films are also very psychologically scary and could be seen as damaging to young children and possibly even dangerous. Some horror films are seen as unsuitable to pass a rating for and are therefore banned, This could be for a number of reasons. An example of this is ‘The Human Centipede 2’, this was banned in the UK as it was seen to be too disturbing, containing scenes of graphic rape, and grotesque surgical operations.