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SALT LAKE CITY -- It seems there's at least one or two zombie movies that come out every year anymore, and some of them are big blockbusters.
The upcoming film, "World War Z" starring Brad Pitt is currently in production and has an estimated budget of $125 million. With that kind of budget, the production company hopes "WWZ" will be a huge hit. And there's one distinct difference with this zombie film as opposed to almost all others, it will be PG-13. So, the question is, can a zombie movie survive with anything but an R rating?
Big budget movies are often toned down to a PG-13 to attract a wider audience and pull in a massive amount of cash. That's why movies like "Transformers" and "Cowboys and Aliens" will almost never be rated R. An R rating will keep many teens and kids away from the theater, but zombie movies are different. Most people who go to zombie flicks want to see all the blood and gore, so it's possible the PG-13 rating could hurt "WWZ" in the long run.
When it was announced the Pitt film would not be rated R the web blew up with upset bloggers, critics and fans.
Uncle Creepy from DeadCentral.com thinks "WWZ" would be better off living in development limbo than ever reaching the silver screen with a PG-13 rating. "A PG-13 ‘World War Z?' Yes, pull the plug and sell it to Showtime or something. Please? "
Alex Katz with Flixist thinks a PG-13 film would be a slap in the face to the book which the film's based off and it's author Max Brooks. "Massive battles between the U.S. Army and the undead hordes? Siege after siege all over the country? Tell me how that's PG-13 without compromising any of the integrity of the ghoulish horror of the story."
Ammon Gilbert with joblo.com writes anything but an R "WWZ" would be a huge mistake. "There's 'hard R' written all over the zombie epic and the fact that PG-13 is seriously being considered is a travesty in itself. Zombie movies, by definition, need to be rated R and one set in a war zone should be a no-brainer."
It's now time to turn it over to you. I've just tried to give the facts and truth be told I looked for some positive feedback on the film getting a PG-13 rating, and I came up empty-handed. I want to know from all of you out there, can a good zombie flick be made with a PG-13 rating? Or will it fall short with anything but an R, and why? Is all of the gore necessary for a good zombie film? And since it's not geared or marketed to kids is it a bad choice to try and make the film more accessible to them?
I'm really curious to hear what you have to say, and I think there are a lot of people out there who would like to hear your two cents. Give us your take on the rating for "World War Z" on our comment boards and on Facebook.
E-mail: jclyde@ksl.com
