| Errors | Missing | Unverified | Supported |
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| 5 | 5 | 1 | 14 |
Because Ugetsu (1953) was released several years before the modern MPAA rating system was established (1968), it does not have an original theatrical rating like G, PG, or R. In modern home video releases (such as those by The Criterion Collection), it is typically listed as Unrated.
However, if Ugetsu were to be rated by modern standards, it would most likely receive a PG-13 rating. This classification is based on its depictions of wartime violence, mature thematic elements, and brief moments of horror.
The specific elements contributing to such a rating include:
The film is set during the Sengoku period (a time of civil war in Japan), and the brutality of war is a central theme.
The film deals with the harsh consequences of male ambition on women, including themes that are quite dark for a "General" audience.
Kenji Mizoguchi is famous for the eerie, ghostly atmosphere of Ugetsu, which falls into the "J-Horror" lineage.
While the film is a high-art masterpiece, its unflinching look at the casualty of war, the reality of sexual violence, and its haunting ghost story elements place it firmly in the territory of a mature drama, equivalent to a modern PG-13 or a TV-14 rating.
The AI Summary speculates about a hypothetical PG-13 rating without mentioning that actual international ratings exist. The UK's '12' rating provides real-world evidence of how modern rating boards view the film, which is more valuable than speculation.
The AI Summary doesn't acknowledge that the MPAA has been inconsistent in rating older foreign films, and that predictions about how they would rate a 1953 Japanese art film are highly uncertain.
While the AI Summary mentions the violence is 'not excessively gory by modern slasher-film standards,' it characterizes scenes as 'realistic, prolonged, and emotionally harrowing' without noting that IMDb's parental guide specifically states violence is 'implied' and gore is 'almost non-existent.' This is an important distinction for understanding content intensity.
The AI Summary incorrectly categorizes the film as part of the 'J-Horror lineage,' which is an anachronistic error. This misrepresents the film's genre and historical context. The film is properly classified as a jidaigeki (period drama) with supernatural elements based on traditional Japanese ghost stories, not as proto-J-Horror.
While the AI Summary mentions it's a 'high-art masterpiece,' it doesn't note that the film won the Silver Lion at the 1953 Venice Film Festival or that it helped introduce Japanese cinema to Western audiences alongside Rashomon.
The AI Summary emphasizes wartime violence as a primary element, but sources note that Mizoguchi's original intent was to capture the atmosphere of Ueda's stories, with the anti-war message being a secondary concern.
Ugetsu (1953) does not have an MPAA rating because it was released 15 years before the MPAA rating system was established on November 1, 1968. Modern home video releases by The Criterion Collection consistently list the film as 'Unrated' or 'NR (Not Rated),' which means it has not been submitted to the MPAA for rating.
The film's content includes depictions of wartime violence (soldiers raiding villages, Miyagi being stabbed with a spear), implied sexual violence (Ohama is raped by soldiers and subsequently forced into prostitution), supernatural/ghost story elements (Lady Wakasa is revealed to be a ghost, and Genjuro discovers the mansion is actually a burned ruin), and sensual scenes (a bathing scene between Genjuro and Lady Wakasa that is suggestive but not explicit). However, according to IMDb's parental guide, 'most of the violence is implied' and 'gore is almost non-existent.'
The UK Blu-ray release is rated '12' (suitable for 12 years and over), providing one concrete example of how a modern rating board has evaluated the film. However, predicting what MPAA rating the film would receive is highly speculative. While some might argue for PG-13 based on the implied nature of much of the content, the themes of sexual violence, rape, and prostitution could also warrant an R rating, depending on how the MPAA evaluates historical and artistic context versus content concerns. The MPAA has been historically inconsistent in rating older foreign art films.
Importantly, Ugetsu is a jidaigeki (period drama) with ghost story elements based on traditional Japanese folklore from Ueda Akinari's 1776 book. It is anachronistic and incorrect to describe it as part of the 'J-Horror lineage'—J-Horror is a genre term specifically referring to Japanese horror films from the late 1990s-2000s such as Ringu and Ju-on, emerging 45+ years after Ugetsu.
The film won the Silver Lion Award at the 1953 Venice Film Festival and, along with Kurosawa's Rashomon, helped introduce Japanese cinema to Western audiences.