Here is an idea for you movie producers out there. (It's not technically an invention, so it probably can't be patented anyway. It's just an idea that I haven't seen anyone try yet. But if you do use it, you could give me a cut of your additional profits, or at least invite me to Hollywood or New York for an opening.)
There are a lot of us moviegoers who would love to watch a movie, but shy away from it because it is too violent (e.g. gets an "R" rating for violence -- whether gratuitous or not). Companies that make violent movies could offer a non-violent version, perhaps available on the same DVD disk as the original (in the same way that a "director's cut" or other version is often available on the same disk). At the points in the movie where violence occurs -- maybe anything worse than a slap on the face -- the screen would turn black (with no sound except maybe a voiceover) and a non-threatening message explaining the action would appear on the screen. An example would be "Mr. Smith fires a rifle at Mr. Jones at close range, killing Mr. Jones." When the content is again acceptable (i.e. less violent and less gory), the original movie would continue, possibly showing the dead Mr. Jones lying on the ground. . . . Similar "editing" could be used to eliminate bad language or sex scenes for young or sensitive viewers, but eliminating violent scenes would be what I could use most. I'll be waiting to see "Pulp Fiction" in this non-violent format.
