 When director Brian De Palma (qv) submitted the film to the MPAA  they gave it an "X rating". He then made some cuts and resubmitted  it a second time; again the film was given an "X rating" (one of the  reasons apparently being that Octavio the clown was shot too many  times). He yet again made some further cuts and submitted it a third  time; yet again it was given an "X". De Palma refused to cut the  film any further to qualify it for an R. He and producer  Martin Bregman (qv) arranged a hearing with the MPAA. They brought  in a panel of experts, including real narcotics officers, who stated  that the film was an accurate portrayal of real life in the drug  underworld and should be widely seen. This convinced the 20 members  of the ratings board to give the third submitted cut of the film an  "R rating" by a vote of 18