CLASH OF THE CENSORS

Blood! Nudity! Maggots!

The Harryhausen brand hardly reeks of sex and violence, but Clash Of The Titans proved he was willing to test some big-screen boundaries. In September 1978 Andor Films Limited submitted the screenplay for approval by the British Board of Film Classification. “We make our pictures for world audiences and have always been able to secure a general audience certificate,” they wrote in an accompanying letter.

James Ferman of the BBFC replied on 2 October, saying, “As the script stands, I cannot see that the film will receive a U certificate, and in fact certain scenes would appear to be unacceptable for the A category [the equivalent of today’s PG], although of course treatment is all important in this type of film.” Ferman’s objections included shots of a burning man, the decapitation of

Medusa, the spilt Gorgon’s blood which became a “writhing, squirming pool of blood-bloated maggots” and Andromeda’s nudity. Even “the description of Calibos” was problematic.

A wounded Andor Films replied on 5 October: “We just do not know what to say about this as we are endeavouring to put on the screen the classic Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda.” Seeking advice on how they could “at least ensure an A”, they were advised to lose Andromeda’s nudity (originally she was naked throughout the entire sacrificial climax) and the image of a man’s head as “a raw bloody pulp”. Medusa’s decapitation, among other shots, would be deemed acceptable if “carefully handled”.

Ultimately the BBFC made two cuts to the final film: a close-up shot of a three-pronged fork embedded in a man’s back and “all sight of Calibos writhing in agony with [a] sword in his stomach.”