The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has given 50 Shades of Grey an 18 certificate for its UK release (due on 13 February), and passed the film uncut. This means that no one under 18 will be allowed to watch the film in cinemas.

The adaptation of EL James’ best-selling novel, directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, was described by the BBFC as containing “strong sex and nudity, along with the portrayal of erotic role play based on domination, submission and sado-masochistic practices” as the reason behind its decision. The BBFC adds: “There are also strong verbal references to such practices and the instruments used”. This contrasts with the Motion Picture Association of America’s (MPAA) mention of “unusual behavior” in its determination on giving the film an “R” rating in January.

In a lengthy interview in the Guardian’s Weekend magazine, Taylor-Johnson said: “The film is hardcore in places, there’s dominance in places – but at no point did I feel like it had crossed a boundary. I didn’t want it to be graphically explicit, and I know that’s going to be disappointing to some people ... I don’t think it goes into the realm of porn.” She also mentioned the “constraints” imposed by the studio. “It was always going to be R-rated ... You can’t show full frontal… a certain amount of thrusts.”

The BBFC’s ruling also revealed the full length of the film is 125 minutes – hence implying the 20-minutes-worth of sex scenes the film is supposed to contain adds up to less than a sixth of its running time, rather than the fifth than has been widely reported.

In the last calendar year 31 18-certificate films were released in the UK, ranging from domestic abuse thriller Gone Girl to Peter Greenaway’s Goltzius and the Pelican Company.

Fifty shades of momentary sensuality: match the rating to the movie – quiz