[Red Moon]

BBFC try to secure Manhunt 2 ban

The British Board of Film Classification is seeking a judicial review in the latest move in this long-running saga over the controversial computer game, writes Claudine Beaumont

The British Board of Film Classification will seek a judicial review of a decision to overturn its ban on controversial video game Manhunt 2.

Just last week, the Video Appeals Committee ruled that the BBFC's decision not to award Manhunt 2 an age rating, and therefore a UK release, was not justified.

The Committee's recommendation effectively meant that the game could be sold in the UK with an 18+ age certificate, unless the BBFC mounted a further legal protest.

David Cooke, director of the BBFC, said that Manhunt 2 featured "unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone", and singled out its "casual sadism" and focus on "brutal slaying" for the ban, arguing that it "constantly encourages visceral killing".

The BBFC has claimed that the Video Appeals Committee's recent judgement is "based on an approach to harm which is an incorrect interpretation of the Video Recordings Act".

"The Video Appeals Committee judgement, if allowed to stand, would have fundamental implications with regard to all the Board's decisions, including those turning upon questions of unacceptable levels of violence," said the BBFC in a statement.

"If the VAC's decision is suspended, then the game will not be classified before the outcome of the judicial review."

It marks another twist in the long-running saga of Manhunt 2. It was first refused a UK release certificate by the BBFC in June, and then again after an appeal.

A censored, edited version of the game went on sale in the US in October, with an M rating for mature audiences. Rockstar Games, the maker of Manhunt 2, was not immediately available for comment.

Source: Daily Telegraph