Will Lust, Caution Break NC-17 Taboo?

Producer lobbies theaters to show it despite kiss-of-death rating
By Asta Hostetter,  Newser User
Posted Sep 29, 2007 5:56 PM CDT
Will Lust, Caution Break NC-17 Taboo?
Actress Tang Wei, left, and director Ang Lee attend special screening of "Lust, Caution" at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007 in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini)   (Associated Press)

Ang Lee, who turned taboo into gold with Brokeback Mountain, hopes theaters will show his new flick despite its NC-17 rating. And Hollywood is watching to see if the film — Lust, Caution, an erotic spy thriller — jumps hurdles for other filmmakers. NC-17 has been box office death for movies ever since it replaced the "X" rating in 1990, the Los Angeles Times reports.
 

Film lovers remember X-rated pics that grabbed Oscar gold in the 1970s, but today studios are afraid to offend. So the producer that backed Lust, Caution is lobbying cinemas to give it a chance. Says its writer, "I don't want my film rejected on moral grounds by people who are willing to show movies where women's breasts are literally ripped off. That is just hypocritical." (More movies stories.)

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