4. When Harry Met Sally...(1989)
Few will argue that
When Harry Met Sally... is a fantastic comedy film, though many will wonder quite why it earned itself an R rating. Of course, we all remember Meg Ryan's infamous fake orgasm scene at a restaurant with Billy Crystal, but is this really enough to provide a frank comic drama about sex and relationships with an audience-limiting rating? Apparently yes, for writer Nora Ephron declared this classic scene to be the breaking point at which it went from PG-13 to R, which is ironic given that we can probably hear more boisterous fake orgasms in shampoo adverts these days. Nevertheless, for 1989, its whopping four F-bombs might have been too much, but if the film is to be re-certified for any upcoming home releases, it might be worth the MPAA considering whether that remains appropriate. The MPAA's objection often seems to be misguidedly "moral"; the use of the F-word here in a sexual context is the bigger problem for them, despite the film - in its own context - being among the most brilliantly honest dialogues about human relationships in the history of cinema. That this was closed off to such a large number of its audience - even if the film will unquestionably appeal more to adults than kids anyway - is a big shame, all for the sake of 4 or 5 words.