Portsmouth horror film earns 18 rating due to 'bucketloads' of gore

Anthology movie I Am an Addict will headline the Pastel Wasteland Film Festival in Portsmouth's historic dockyards on November 16.

During a licensing sub-committee today councillors approved an 18 restriction for the film, in line with British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) guidelines to ensure it could be shown to the public.

Speaking at the meeting chairman, Councillor Tom Coles, said: 'We were unanimous.

'It has been rated an 18 because there's some quite graphic self-harm and asphyxiation as well.'

Cllr Dave Ashmore agreed. He said: 'It's a horror film so there's going to be horror and gore. And it had it in bucketloads.

'While some horror films can be rated 15 we believed the depiction of self-harm was very detailed and also the violent sexual assault - it showed someone was being strangled and it went on for about 15 seconds.'

Cllr Coles added: 'We were looking at 15 but the classification says sexual violence that is prolonged makes it an 18.'

Horror and sci-fi films from around the world, as well as those shot in the city, will also be shown at the festival, which is for those aged 18 and over.

For the producer of I Am an Addict, Rob Ulitski, the rating was not a surprise.

'An 18 classification is what we were expecting,' the 27-year-old said.

'I think we dealt with some really tough issues and we wanted to be realistic about those issues. We didn't want to shy away from these things.'

North End resident Rob encouraged people to come along to the event at Boathouse No. 6 in the dockyards.

He said: 'Excitement for the festival is growing, it's only a week away now. People will still be able to buy tickets on the door so we hope to see lots there.

'If you're a horror fan, even if it's the older style of horror you prefer, there's something for everyone.'

The festival will take place at 1pm on Saturday, November 16. Tickets are available on the Boathouse No. 6 website.