The film tells the story of an English teacher, John Keating (Robin Williams), who inspires his pupils through his teaching of poetry, encouraging them to look at life in a different way. When his students discover their teacher was previously a student at the same school and part of an unofficial club called ‘The Dead Poets Society’, they reinstate the club, using it to read famous poetry and their own work. But their liberation comes at a cost and drives one student to take his own life.
Classification Issues
- Suicide and self-harm
- A character’s suicide by gunshot is discreetly portrayed.
- Nudity
- There is a brief image of a topless woman in a magazine
- Language
- Mild bad language includes occasional uses of 'shit' and 'bullshit'.
- Sex
- Sex references include a mention of masturbation.
Classification history
Dead Poets Society came to the BBFC for classification in July 1989 and was classified PG.
An examiner involved in the classification process wrote that: "This brilliant and profoundly moving screenplay about the permission to break out of the mould of traditional thinking and exult in the meaning of life had four hardened examiners variously sobbing and weeping at different stages."
The suicide scene was noted as the defining classification issue, though the depiction is very discreet. The boy is seen to take a gun from his father's desk, after which his father enters the room to see a puff of smoke rising from behind a desk, followed by sight of the boy’s hand and the pistol lying on the floor. The suicide is implied rather than shown, and is neither glamorised nor endorsed as an appropriate solution to the boy's problems.
Given the brevity and discretion of the scene, the BBFC at the time considered it suitable for classification at PG. It is important to note that in 1989 the 12 certificate had not yet been introduced for theatrical or video works, so available classifications were PG or 15.
Dead Poets Society was most recently classified on video in 1999 and retained its PG certificate.
