Movie News

Dead Kids (aka Strange Behavior) is a 1981 Australia/USA/New Zealand Sci-Fi horror mystery by Michael Laughlin.
With Michael Murphy, Louise Fletcher and Dan Shor.

Released uncut on pre-cert VHS and was seized by the police during the Video Nasties Panic but did not make the Video Nasties list. Then released uncut on 1986 VHS. Cut by the BBFC for DVD. Uncut in the US

Powerhouse have lined up a release of Michael Laughlin's Strange Behaviour for March.

It hasn't gone through the BBFC just yet. They cut it for vertical wrist slicing in 1993, 2004 and 2008 after having passed it intact on video in 1986.

The BBFC seem to have had a rethink on that policy since the controversy when they cut Soulmate (2013) for similar reasons, and they passed a similar but much stronger scene in Lords of Chaos in 2019. So should be uncut this time. 

I just mention it because it would be quite notable and worth keeping an eye on. Not many films go from being passed intact to cut to uncut again.

Thriller: A Cruel Picture is a 1973 Sweden action thriller by Bo Arne Vibenius (as Alex Fridolinski).
Starring Christina Lindberg, Heinz Hopf and Despina Tomazani.

The Original/Festival Version including director approved hardcore inserts was banned by the Swedish films censors for cinema release and was subsequently significantly cut to obtain a cinema release. The film was also heavily cut in the US for an MPAA R rating. This US Version was banned by the BBFC from a 1974 cinema release. Heavy cuts were then made to obtain an X rated UK cinema release in 1976. The Original Version was submitted to the BBFC in 2026 but the BBFC cut the hardcore inserts for a cut 18 rated Blu-ray release. There are several other versions featuring a mix of material from the above versions.

UK: The Original Version was BBFC 18 rated for sexual violence for sexual violence after BBFC cuts:

• 2025 Screenbound Pictures Blu-ray (rated 28/07/2025)

The BBFC commented in board meeting minutes [pdf] from darkroom.bbfc.co.uk :

The Classifiers discussed Thriller: A Cruel Picture, a Swedish crime drama, from 1973, in which a woman is forced into prostitution and later seeks violent revenge against her abusers

The film was previously submitted to the BBFC, in a pre-cut version, for cinema release in 1974 and found unsuitable for classification. It was resubmitted in 1975 203 following a change in BBFC leadership 203 and classified X in 1976 after further cuts were made to scenes of violence and sexual violence. It has not previously been classified for home video release

The film has now been submitted for a video rating, in its original uncut version.

The Classifiers focused in particular on two scenes of sexual violence, which depict the protagonist participating in sex work with male and female clients while under the control of a pimp who has forcibly addicted her to heroin. The scenes include explicit images of unsimulated masturbation, vaginal and anal penetration, and ejaculation.

The BBFC supports adults' right to choose their own entertainment as long as it remains within the law and is not potentially harmful. However, where a film or video raises issues or concerns that cannot be addressed by classification at a particular category, we may require cuts or other changes as a condition of classification.

Our Classification Guidelines state that such cuts may be required to portrayals of sexual violence that make rape, other non-consensual sexually violent behaviour or sadistic violence look appealing.

The Classifiers noted that the volume and detail of the real sexual activity in Thriller: A Cruel Picture far exceeds previous, and very rare, precedents for unsimulated (or apparently unsimulated) sexual activity during scenes of sexual violence in films classified by the BBFC. They unanimously agreed that the nature and quantity of the explicit and unsimulated images, in the context of scenes of sexual violence, is such that their effect is to eroticise rape in a manner that poses a risk of harm to viewers under the Video Recordings Act 1984.

The Classifiers determined that the scenes breached the BBFC's Guidelines and policy on depictions of sexual violence, and that cuts were therefore required to remove all explicit imagery in order to make the film suitable for classification at 18.

 

Crocodile Dundee is a 1986 Australia comedy adventure by Peter Faiman.
Starring Paul Hogan, Linda Kozlowski and John Meillon.

The shortened International Version was cut for strong language. This was released in the UK without further cuts for a 15 rated cinema release in 1986. However BBFC category cuts were required for 15 rated VHS. These video cuts were waived for the DVD release of the International Version. In 2025 modern sensitivities resulted in transgender jokes being cut for a version entitled The Encore Cut.

Thanks to Jon who writes:

Channel Five broadcast without any announcements - CROCODILE DUNDEE: THE ENCORE CUT (this is now the main onscreen title) - at 3:10pm on Sunday 7th Sep 2025.

I thought it odd, when their version started with an on-screen notification about Rimfire Films (the production company of CRICODILE DUNDEE) paying homage to Australia's traditional custodians where the film was made, along with notes about the film containing scenes of deceased persons to Torres Strait Islanders. (That'll be referring to actor David Gulpilil who played Neville.) Such a note doesn't appear in any previous version if the film, and is a modern Australian trend, that only started about 5-8 years ago.

Five gave a brief verbal warning about the film containing mildly offensive language and mild violence, but that was it. I'm surprised Five were broadcasting this version when it's not been officially released to UK cinemas or home viewing formats.

P.S. No idea if more cuts were made to the film for content reasons, by Five for its Sunday afternoon time slot, but seeing as the controversial scenes involving the Trans actor have already been removed by Rimfire themselves, there shouldn't be too much other content (bar the brief misuse of drugs scene, and two f-words) that needed censoring. I did note that: the word bugger was cut from the audio in the post-opening-credits bar scene, but the word was left intact on the subtitles!

The new print looks stunning, even if it was only broadcast in HD, not 4K.