The PORKY'S Problem -- NSFW

So here's a question: how can the simple altering of a film's aspect ratio change its rating from an "R" to what should be classified as an "X" (or an "NC-17" today)? Such is the case with the 1981 cinema classic PORKY'S.



But before discussing this coming of age gem, it is imperative the reader gets a quick "Widescreen 101" lesson. Making a film widescreen can be done many ways but here are the most common three.

The most common piece of 35mm film is a square format. Anamorphic widescreen is squeezing a wider image onto a piece of square film using a magic camera lens, like this:



and then stretching it back out onto the screen using a projection lens that un-distorts it, as seen below with this Sound of Music example:



This was the original engineering of Cinemascope and today is most common with films shot in the wider 2.39:1 aspect ratio.

Another way of doing this is to shoot the film onto a square image with hard mattes inside of the lens. This way, when the film is shot, it comes onto the film in its widescreen ratio with black at the top and bottom of the image.

When it is projected onto the screen, the projectionist focuses the image to make sure the black at the top and bottom of the image does not come onto the screen and the image appears widescreen, as seen here:



Then comes the story of open matte filming and our film PORKY'S. Open matte filming is shooting a film in a square aspect ratio and knowing as a cinematographer that the top and bottom portion of the frame is going to be cut off by the projectionist when it hits the screen as only what can fit onto the widescreen is going to make it onto the screen of the theater. For example, by looking at the CBS/FOX laserdisc, here is what the camera captured of this frame of the film in the opening sequence of PORKY'S:

\

The red lines on the following image signify where the film gate would have cut off information above and below the projection screen:



And from the DVD screenshot below, you can see what that final image would have looked like on the projection screen:

''

Open matte filming was common in the days of film, and has its pros when it came to home video release. Because most VHS (and a number of laserdisc) releases in the United States were fullscreen to fit the square shape of TVs at the time, this meant if a studio shot a film open matte, as was the case with films like PORKY'S the film did not have to be cropped from its widescreen ratio (commonly referred to as "pan and scan") for home video release. However, the cons were if there was unnecessary artifacts that appeared in the frame, such as a boom mike, they would appear in the open matte home video release.

And then there is the magical case that is PORKY'S. A 1981 raunchy teen sex comedy, now available on DVD from FOX Home Video, PORKY'S was filmed open matte in such a way that in several shots its projection in a movie theater would cut off the male genitalia from the film gate right at the pubic region, bordering it from being an R-rated and X-rated in a few instances. Today, a glimpse of man-meat in an R-rated film is not uncommon. Films like FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL have now freely displayed up to 10 seconds of penis on screen, and the MPAA will allow it depending on their mood that day. In 1981, though, the rules were a little stricter, and seeing more than a flash of male genitals on screen in a theater would mark the film with an X rating immediately. PORKY'S pushed the envelope by revealing more of what was considered acceptable for male nudity in an R-rated film, but followed the MPAA rule for many shots when it is shown in its intended aspect ratio, matting the top and bottom of the image. Compare these shots from, first, the FOX DVD and then the CBS/FOX laserdisc, keeping in mind that until the film was released on DVD, this is how people saw the film on home video:





Clearly, more has been revealed. While PORKY'S does contain some male nudity in the "Cherry Forever" scene, revealed both on the matted DVD and on the open matte VHS and laserdisc, pushing the boundaries of its time, if you really want to see more revealed, check out the out-of-print VHS and laserdiscs. As a side note, by looking at the nudity that's both on the matted and open matte home video releases, it appears that the character "Meat" was given a nickname he may not have deserved.....