How Judi Dench became a thorn in the side of film censors: “Expect a number of complaints”
Film censorship has been a hot topic of debate ever since the MPAA and BBFC were established in the United States and the United Kingdom, respectively. However, nobody expected Judi Dench to become one of the most prominent thorns in each organisation’s side.
For the most part, Dench hasn’t sworn up a storm or indulged in any X-rated activities onscreen, although her life away from the cameras is an entirely different story. The legendary actor is famous for her wicked, mischievous, and foul-mouthed sense of humour, but it’s not exactly reflected in her work.
Even though she hates being called a national treasure because it makes her think of a relic left on a shelf to gather dust, she is. When people see Dench in a movie or TV show, they expect dignity, gravitas, and presence. They get all that and more, but what the public doesn’t care for, apparently, is her potty mouth.
Most cinemagoers are aware that in order to secure a PG-13 or 12A rating in the States or Britain, each film is allowed a solitary utterance of the word “fuck.” It’s a loophole that the James Bond franchise has never felt obligated to exploit, but Dench’s M got the honours in Sam Mendes’ Skyfall.
Reflecting on her stewardship of MI6 yielding disastrous results with countless agents dead, her methods coming under scrutiny in a public inquiry, and an attempt having been made on her life, M asks Daniel Craig’s 007 an entirely rhetorical question: “I’ve really fucked this up, haven’t I?”
It’s an innocuous line of dialogue in microcosm, but because it came from the mouth of a beloved veteran, the BBFC was forced to acknowledge a recurring trend. “Almost every time Dame Judi swears in a film, regardless of its category, we can expect a number of complaints,” the censors shared in a statement.
The BBFC received six complaints about Marc Foster’s Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, four of which were because Dench, in character, said, “I don’t give a shit about the CIA.” Would anyone have bothered to bring it up had any other member of the ensemble spouted the line? According to the organisation, nope.
“This may be attributed to the ‘Judi Dench factor,'” the report surmised. “This beloved actress plays M, Bond’s tough-talking boss. However, it was her tough talking which upset the viewers.” It’s an utterly banal thing to moan about, and it’s enough to make anyone wonder how these folks would react if they found out about Dench’s habit of weaving swear-studded embroidery in her spare time.
Audiences have become so accustomed, or conditioned, to Dench playing upstanding beacons of morality that whenever a script requires her to turn the air blue, pearls are apparently clutched. It’s endearing to a certain extent, with her undiminished status as a legend of stage and screen ensuring she’s placed on a higher pedestal than most, but it’s not as if a director is holding her at gunpoint telling her to say damn, shit, fuck, bastard, or whatever else the BBFC is getting moaned at for.
