Flesh and Blood: The National Society of Film Critics on Sex, Violence, and Censorship

When it comes to films such as Reservoir Dogs and Blue Velvet, we've all heard the opinions of politicians eager for easy publicity. But what, asks this entertaining fifth collection from the National Society of Film Critics, do the medium's experts have to say? Editor and critic Keough includes everyone from Judith Crist to Roger Ebert commenting on films that touch upon controversy or censorship. Interpreting the art instead of counting the bodies, Morris Dickstein reads passion into the blood spatters of Raging Bull and Dave Kehr gracefully dissects George Romero's quest for the human soul. Many question the priorities of a rating board that finds films containing complex depictions of sexuality and violence, for example Henry and June and Bad Lieutenant, more censurable than blatantly exploitive ones such as Basic Instinct. Peter Travers and Andy Klein each explain the problematic politics of Motion Pictures Association of America and of the self-censoring production code, while Stuart Klawans identifies the economic motivations behind these cyclical campaigns for moral decency. Well intentioned but poorly executed, Keough's scattershot approach results in too much padding between direct hits. Articles on Orlando and The Piano are, strangely, grouped with reviews of woman-as-killer films in a section titled ``Women on Top.'' Most effective are the longer pieces that reassess such milestones in the art/free speech debate as A Clockwork Orange, Midnight Cowboy and The Wild Bunch. (Nov.)