Out of the 2,311 pictures examined last year by the British Board of Film Censors, 1,454 were passed for "Universal exhibition." In arriving at this result, the Ceasors dutifully sat through the unwiading of 6,933,155 feet of "Romance." According to their report, the cinema is heading for an extremely bad reputation, producers of "feature" filus showing a" great liking for inhuman monsters, using all kinds of mysterious methods of assassination," their exploits running into serials of extraordinary length. Exception was taken to films for the following (among other) reasons:
Bedroom and bathroom scenes of an equivocal nature, Holding up the King's uniform to ridicule or contempt.
Antagonistic relations between Capital and Labour, and scenes conflict between the protagonists.
Doubtful characters exalted to heroes, Inflammatory political sub-titles.
Salacions wit.
It is particularly interesting te note that films were entirely rejected for "insistence on the inferiority of coloured races," The film has many faults. At present its finance is higher than its art. But when sensationalism has been exploited to the dregs, a process now being rapidly accomplished, we may hope for productions to which the words "art" and "drama" may be applied without prejudice to the dictionary.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.