Guy Makes Film Censors Watch Paint Dry for 10 Hours

The British Board of Film Classification describes Charlie Lyne's Paint Drying as "a film showing paint drying on a wall. It contains no material likely to offend or harm" and "should be suitable for audiences aged 4 years and over." The cost of that classification: more than $6,000. But hey, it was money "well spent," says Lyne, who created the 10-hour movie—which indeed shows nothing but paint drying on a brick wall—with the sole intention of sticking it to the man, per Sky News. Basically any film aiming for a UK release has to be reviewed by the BBFC, which charges $145 per review, plus an additional $10 and change for each minute the film runs, per the International Business Times. Because Lyne knew examiners would have to watch an entire flick to review it, he started a Kickstarter campaign with the goal of creating the longest and most boring movie possible.

"About a year ago, I went to a filmmaker open day held by the BBFC," Lyne writes in a Reddit AMA. "I'd expected to see quite a lot of conflict between the BBFC examiners and the visiting filmmakers whose work was at the mercy of the board, but … most of the filmmakers—even those who'd had trouble with the BBFC in the past—seemed totally resigned to the censorship imposed by the board, even supportive of it," he says. "I think that shocked me into action." In the end, Lyne raised about $8,500 and submitted a 607-minute film for review. Two examiners had to watch the film over two days. But "examiners are required to watch a very wide variety of content every day, so this didn't phase them," a BBFC rep tells Mashable. (Boring, sure, but is it better than Fifty Shades?)