# Would you laugh at somebody who bought and employed a self-censoring DVD player? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 11, 2004, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512 "2004-04-11T23:32:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2004, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/21 "2004-04-12T18:41:36Z")
> [@Johnny Bravo](#): > > So do you guys all have moral objections to movies on TBS or Comedy Central that have been edited for content? Dunno if I have a _moral_ objection (hey, it’s their network), but I certainly don’t turn to network television when I’m looking for that authentic movie-watching experience. “Hey, it’s a mangled version of **The Truman Show** on ABC. Eh, this will kill time for twenty minutes…” ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/22 "2004-04-12T18:42:52Z")
Wow! You can get throught _Scarface_ in under 10 minutes! Think of the time savings! ---
**Author:** ![Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tastes_of_chocolate/32/3232_2.png) [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2004, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/23 "2004-04-12T18:58:48Z")
> [@pizzabrat](#): > > I would. In fact, I can’t imagine anyone being able to use one without being ridiculed. I don’t laugh at people who chose not to drink, who chose not to swear, who chose not to be violent or who chose not to have sex outside of marriage. Why would I laugh at or ridicule someone that choses not to watch these things in a movie? Now if they tried to force ME to live by their choices, it’s a totally different story. ---
**Author:** ![Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tastes_of_chocolate/32/3232_2.png) [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2004, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/24 "2004-04-12T19:02:36Z")
> [@Tastes of Chocolate](#): > > Why would I laugh at or ridicule someone that choses not to watch these things in a movie? Chooses, chooses. Gah ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2004, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/25 "2004-04-12T23:11:25Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > I think it’d be even MORE fun to watch movies at his house. You could be the official DVD compensator, shouting “PENIS!!!” or “This is the part when he fucks her in the ass and she begs for more!” at the moments when that word or those scenes are cut out. Have you been watching The Little Mermaid again? Naughty **Snooooopy**! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/26 "2004-04-13T12:39:47Z")
It should be noted that the “ClearPlay” DVD player downloads a database of movies (and appropriate edits) - it does not have some new “CussDetector tm” technology built in that works on any movie. Fairly obviously, they would not bother with many movies - they are too adult to filter. However, there are plenty of movies on the margins ie - I won’t let my 13 yo watch “Billy Elliot” yet - it’s just a bit too crude language-wise , but the rest is fine, and I think she would enjoy it. A filtered version would be great. My 2p Simon ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/27 "2004-04-13T13:05:51Z")
> [@Tastes of Chocolate](#): > > I don’t laugh at people who chose not to drink, who chose not to swear, who chose not to be violent or who chose not to have sex outside of marriage. Why would I laugh at or ridicule someone that choses not to watch these things in a movie? > > Now if they tried to force ME to live by their choices, it’s a totally different story. And I wouldn’t laugh at someone who chose not to rent “The Redeadening” or “Teen Sex Wager”. I would mock someone who chose to watch a sanitized version of those films. Sure, most films aren’t high art that has some absolute reason to show sex, violence or cussing. But fewer still are absolutely required watching. If you’re offended by the content of a movie, just don’t watch it. Getting it censored by a third party is just pathetic. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/28 "2004-04-13T20:43:56Z")
> [@FilmGeek](#): > > Have you been watching The Little Mermaid again? Naughty **Snooooopy**! 😃 “Oh, Ariel, you horny _BITCH!_ You’ve got such a tight ass! Or whatever mermaids have instead of an ass! Whatever you got, I love humpin’ it!” ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/29 "2004-04-13T21:05:27Z")
Personally, I think it’s a silly idea. I’m perfectly capable of making my _own_ decisions about what to watch and not to watch, thank you; I don’t need any decisions made for me by some database somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/30 "2004-04-13T21:15:49Z")
> [@Menocchio](#): > > If you’re offended by the content of a movie, just don’t watch it. Or they could choose to watch the parts that aren’t so offensive. Who are you to insist that they skip the entire movie? > [@](#): > > Getting it censored by a third party is just pathetic. No more pathetic than ridiculing these people for choosing not to view the scenes in question, or to skip over those parts of the dialogue. ---
**Author:** ![LVgeogeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b19c9b/32.png) [@LVgeogeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVgeogeek)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/31 "2004-04-13T21:45:01Z")
I will first state that I am against censorship\*, mainly for adults. But a parent has the right to monitor what thier children do and don’t watch. I do, however, think that buying a special DVD player and pre-edited movies is ridiculous, as **Zap\_Rowsdower** said: > [@](#): > > I would more likely roll my eyes because it would appear to be another instance of parents neglecting there role. Rather than monitoring what their children see they would rather some technology to become the “parent”. If parents don’t want their kids to see certain parts of movies, they should watch the movie themselves first then decide what should be “edited” out for thier kids, then skip that part of the movie when it comes up. There is such a thing as a fast forward/ skip button. I don’t think there should be a machine making that decision for me big brother is watching- to make sure I see nothing _offensive_ On this machine, can you choose what you want censored… like a menu?? I want blood and gore cut out but cuss words are ok, or both, or none etc (insert your own combination here) But then again, I find this sort of product very fitting with walmart and their customer base. \*For example, when they (Paramount) re-released ET, I was so excited to go and see it in the theater to relieve some sort of childish experience, but when I found out that “they” digitally edited _cough **sensor** cough_ parts of the movie by changing guns to walkie-talkies in certain scenes, I refused to go see it. Ill just watch the **original** non-tampered with version on the old VHS at home thankyewverymuch!! ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2004, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/32 "2004-04-13T23:40:03Z")
> [@Tastes of Chocolate](#): > > I don’t laugh at people who chose not to drink, who chose not to swear, who chose not to be violent or who chose not to have sex outside of marriage. Why would I laugh at or ridicule someone that choses not to watch these things in a movie? You _might_, however, laugh at a person who cultivated a secret liaison with a person of the opposite sex and met secretly in a motel room to hold hands. ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/33 "2004-04-14T01:28:09Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > Or they could choose to watch the parts that aren’t so offensive. Who are you to insist that they skip the entire movie? > No more pathetic than ridiculing these people for choosing not to view the scenes in question, or to skip over those parts of the dialogue. Nope, sorry. Art, even popular commercial art, even _bad_ art, is an all-or-nothing deal. You accept it (or not) for what it is. Asking a third party (who had no input or financial interest in the initial making of the film) to re-edit the film is silly, and IMHO, morally questionable. Vote with your feet and wallet if you want cleaner movies, don’t demand that other movies be made clean. Besides, you realize what will happen if this catches on, right? They’ll stop making cleaner fare since the ClearPlay will make it safe for the kiddies anyway. Having one’s confectionary desert and consuming it as well, as it were. That, or they’ll (shudder) conform to ClearPlay’s standards. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/34 "2004-04-14T03:30:59Z")
> [@Menocchio](#): > > Nope, sorry. Art, even popular commercial art, even _bad_ art, is an all-or-nothing deal. You accept it (or not) for what it is. Asking a third party (who had no input or financial interest in the initial making of the film) to re-edit the film is silly, and IMHO, morally questionable. What about movies with subtitles? What about books that have been translated after the death of the author? Is it ‘morally questionable’ for me to read The Last Temptation of Christ because I don’t know modern Greek? By your standards, it would seem so. Or is it moral if the third party has financial interest in the project? Hell, are you an immoral person if you go to the bathroom during a movie and miss out on a scene? What about turning your head or covering your eyes during a scary part? Does your “all-or-nothing deal” apply there? I know the last example is stretching, but I feel it applies anyway. Now, I prefer to see movies in their original format, but saying that watching a movie with the naughty bits is immoral seems absurd. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/35 "2004-04-14T04:59:26Z")
It makes sense to me. I mean, I see why some people would want it (although I wouldn’t pay for it). I think some of the humor and violence in films is gratuitous. It doesn’t necessarily offend me personally, but I think there are films out there that really wouldn’t lose much if you cut some out, and if it makes a movie a better family watching opportunity, good. Even a lot of kids’ movies have violence that bothers me and which I think is unnecessary–I otherwise think the movies are good films (and no, I’m not neglecting my role as a parent. It ain’t easy to lunge for the remote in time, and I doubt I could, on the fly, edit a movie and have it still make sense). A Bugs Life has some great messages, but I still think the scene where Hopper kicks the sh\*t out of Flick is over the top for my son. I don’t expect to utterly shelter him from all this stuff, but I’d like him to see less of it. Laugh away; I bought a clean version of an eminem album so I could listen to it in the car (he’s often with me). Not that I think swearing is evil, but I can’t trust that a 4-year-old won’t repeat lyrics in places where he’d possibly upset other listeners. ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/36 "2004-04-14T13:42:50Z")
I can’t say I’d laugh at them, I just wouldn’t want to watch movies there. I can see it if you buy it for the kids to watch movies, I wouldn’t do it myself but I can understand the reasoning. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/37 "2004-04-14T14:17:59Z")
> [@Menocchio](#): > > Nope, sorry. Art, even popular commercial art, even _bad_ art, is an all-or-nothing deal. You accept it (or not) for what it is. Asking a third party (who had no input or financial interest in the initial making of the film) to re-edit the film is silly, and IMHO, morally questionable. First of all, not all consider movies to be art. Some consider them to be entertainment. The “morally questionable” argument falls flat with me. By your standards, it’s also “morally questionable” for me, the viewer, to close my eyes during a scary part or fast forward over something that grosses me out. Do you truly believe this? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/38 "2004-04-15T00:15:13Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > “Oh, Ariel, you horny _BITCH!_ You’ve got such a tight ass! Or whatever mermaids have instead of an ass! Whatever you got, I love humpin’ it!” Scale scars. Ouch. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/39 "2004-04-15T00:44:18Z")
> [@HPL](#): > > If I recall, the scene at the dinner table, the chunk of eddie looks esstinally like a giant chicken mcnugget. I didn’t remember it being particulary disgusting looking. I’m not talking about ON the table…I’m thinking of the scene where Frankie pulls the tablecloth off, to reveal a halfway-dissected Eddie. And I still contend that most movies would be just as good if not better if about 80% of the graphic violence was toned down or omitted entirely. I think that the violence is put in as a substitute for good acting, or advancing the story, or just plain making sense. I think most of the violence and some of the sex is the lazy fimlmaker’s way out of working. I have similar objections to special effects that are not advancing the story, I think that they are put in so that the filmmaker doesn’t have to strain his/her already burdened brain to come up with a GOOD movie. ---
**Author:** ![stochastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19b73/32.png) [@stochastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stochastic)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512/40 "2004-04-15T02:35:58Z")
For personal use, no way in Hell would I buy such a DVD player. HOWEVER…I’m a 10th grade biology teacher and there are couple of films that I showed last year that were very relevant to the subject I was teaching but just happened to contain a trivial amount of adult language (“GATTACA” and “And the Band Played On”) . I had no qualms showing them, as I figured it’s not like they’re words the kids have not heard before…one can’t go across campus during lunch without hearing the work “fuck” at least 50 times. (and my response when I hear the word in my classroom is to scream at the offending student: “What the fuck? There’ll be no fucking saying fuck in my fucking classroom!”…always leaves 'em speechless :D) Well…after showing the second film, I get called into the principal’s office for a little discussion. Seems some of the uber-uptight christian-fundie types objected to the language I was subjecting their children’s virgin ears to. So now this year, I have to provide an alternative assignment for those precious darlings whose sensibilities are shaken by a half-dozen swear words uttered through a television speaker. But, if I had this filtering DVD player, I could show these movies to even these fragile souls. (on reflection, I suspect that fundies real objection was the fact that “And the Band Played On” portrays gays in a sympathetic light. They knew they couldn’t come right out and admit that, so they used the swearing as an excuse for their objection.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-laugh-at-somebody-who-bought-and-employed-a-self-censoring-dvd-player/239512.md?page=3)