The National Broadcasting Council (Krajowa Rada Radiofonii i Telewizji, KRRiT) has decided to punish Polish TV station Puls for streaming one of the last Oliver Stone’s movies – Savages.
There is nothing that deserves a reprimand, perhaps apart from the fact that the director has made some better stuff. Nothing, if it wasn’t for the release time. The film was categorised as appropriate for viewers of 16 years and older and it was shown as early as 8 o’clock in the evening.
Shown so early that kids could have watched the movie
The station’s decision to release a movie with such amount of brutal scenes that early was unfortunate, to say the least. Savages contains, among others, a torture scene of one of the drug cartel’s members – something that might as well occur in a gore film production. In addition, the image is filled with sex scenes that are complete opposite of prudish.
Justification
The movie was streamed on November 15th 2015, but only now has KRRiT decided to fine TV Puls – the station has now to pay 50,000 zloty for its mistake. The council has supported its decision pointing out scenes showing slitting someone’s throat, shooting them on the back of their head, brain leaking out of a skull, people burning alive, beheaded bodies, as well as raping an intoxicated victim and group sex.
TV Puls has defended the fact that there is not all that much violence on the screen and it appears inevitably, given the fact that criminal groups settling a score with each other constitute the leading plot. The broadcaster has also explained that the sex scenes are not that complex (KRRiT calculated those lasting approximately for 6 minutes), the genitals are not shown at all, and those acts take place between people who – according to the story line – have feelings for each other. The council has, however, rejected this argument, though partially agreed with one of the points:
Indeed, these images do not show genitals, but in such case we would have to deal with pornography, showing which on television is entirely prohibited.
By determining the fine KRRiT has taken into account, inter alia, the takings of TV Puls that in 2015 had arisen to 180.6 million zloty.
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