After viewing a strangely familiar video nasty, Enid, a film censor, sets out to solve the past mystery of her sister's disappearance, embarking on a quest that dissolves the line between fi... Read allAfter viewing a strangely familiar video nasty, Enid, a film censor, sets out to solve the past mystery of her sister's disappearance, embarking on a quest that dissolves the line between fiction and reality.After viewing a strangely familiar video nasty, Enid, a film censor, sets out to solve the past mystery of her sister's disappearance, embarking on a quest that dissolves the line between fiction and reality.
- Awards
- 5 wins & 31 nominations
Amelie Child Villiers
- Nina
- (as Amelie Child-Villiers)
Ric Renton
- Frank
- (as Richard Renton)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaPrano Bailey-Bond said in an interview that she had the idea for Censor around 2012. "I was reading an article about Hammer Horror [the British studio that made the likes of Dracula, The Mummy and Curse of the Wolfman] which looked at how film censors worked in that period. It made me think, 'If violent images are meant to make us lose control, what prevents the censor from doing that?' It was that hypocrisy of thinking, 'I can watch this, but if you watch it you're going to go out and shoot someone'."
- Crazy creditsAt the beginning, the BFI and Film4 logos were from their movies in the 80s.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Chris Stuckmann Movie Reviews: Censor (2021)
- SoundtracksChernobyl
Written by Blanck Mass (as Benjamin John Power)
Performed by Blanck Mass
Courtesy of Sacred Bones Records
Published By BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, a BMG Company
Featured review
Prano Bailey-Bond's visual style is splendid; the plot feels half-baked! [+59%]
Censor is set in the UK during the '80s video nasties era and primarily revolves around Enid (Niamh Algar), a video censor. Enid starts to connect the exploitation films she works on with her own tragedy (involving her sister who went missing), eventually unable to distinguish between reality and hallucination. The first act really caught my interest - co-writer/director Prano Bailey-Bond acknowledges the era for its crime boom (which was wildly attributed to the rise of violent, low-budget horror films), and recreates the appropriate aesthetics.
The tone is seriously bleak and accentuated by the right colour grading. Seeing VHS tapes, VCRs, picture-tube TVs on one side and a deteriorating mind on the other - that's how I would sum it up. While Enid seeking closure regarding her sister is an intriguing direction that the makers went in, I'd have loved to see more meta-references to film-making and film-censoring in those times. That's what the first act, in fact, sets up. Enid's descent into mental chaos becomes the film's focus in the second act, and the meta elements only serve as background noise from that point on. The slick production aside, both the social commentary and the completion of Enid's character arc come off as relatively underdeveloped.
The final act goes bonkers. I like how the skewed aspect ratio offers a different visual perspective. The way the Welsh director uses VHS fuzziness to enhance the horror quotient is also quite impressive. Now, whether the writers' decision to take the film in a 'psychologically affecting' route instead of the 'investigative mystery' route excites you (or not) will ultimately determine your amusement levels. I did like Censor to a fair extent, and will definitely be looking forward to the director's next.
The tone is seriously bleak and accentuated by the right colour grading. Seeing VHS tapes, VCRs, picture-tube TVs on one side and a deteriorating mind on the other - that's how I would sum it up. While Enid seeking closure regarding her sister is an intriguing direction that the makers went in, I'd have loved to see more meta-references to film-making and film-censoring in those times. That's what the first act, in fact, sets up. Enid's descent into mental chaos becomes the film's focus in the second act, and the meta elements only serve as background noise from that point on. The slick production aside, both the social commentary and the completion of Enid's character arc come off as relatively underdeveloped.
The final act goes bonkers. I like how the skewed aspect ratio offers a different visual perspective. The way the Welsh director uses VHS fuzziness to enhance the horror quotient is also quite impressive. Now, whether the writers' decision to take the film in a 'psychologically affecting' route instead of the 'investigative mystery' route excites you (or not) will ultimately determine your amusement levels. I did like Censor to a fair extent, and will definitely be looking forward to the director's next.
helpful•4516
- arungeorge13
- Jun 19, 2021
- How long is Censor?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Sansür
- Filming locations
- Tong, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, UK(on location)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $90,050
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $34,299
- Jun 13, 2021
- Gross worldwide
- $361,699
- Runtime1 hour 24 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
- 2.39 : 1
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