10 Apr 12 | China
Like the rest of the world, China’s gone Titanic crazy again. The 3D version of James Cameron’s Titanic hit cinemas here today but Chinese theatre-goers excited about the chance to see Kate Winslet’s nude scene in glorious 3D will be disappointed.
In 1997, Chinese censors left the nude scene intact, but this time around there’s no sign of Winslet’s breasts.
Chinese web users are up in arms. “I didn’t wait 15 years to see a three-dimensional iceberg,” said one microblog user called Cambrian, according the Ministry of Tofu, a blog on China written by a group of Chinese living in the U.S.
It’s hard to understand why Ms Winslet’s breasts were allowed back in 1997 and not in 2012, local media put the elevated prudeness down to the absence of a rating system. However China Daily did hint that it might have had something to do with China’s former president. “In early March 1998, then president Jiang Zemin, known for his passion for the arts, spoke highly of the film in a political meeting and the Chinese media reported his comment,” the English-language daily wrote.
It is a shame that Hu Jintao, the current leader, doesn’t appear enjoy Ms Winslet’s charms as much as his predecessor.
16 Sep 11 | Iran, Middle East and North Africa
With the strict supposedly “moral” codes imposed on Iranian society with increasing conservatism in recent times, this latest directive – banning ‘love triangles’ and ‘half naked men’ — issued to television programme directors this week, strikes me to be of little significance. It was more than 10 years ago that I reported in the Touch issue of COLORS magazine that even if married in the story, couples were not allowed to be filmed touching in any way. This distortion of every day living is pursued in all depictions of life in television and film and is known to be a distortion and deliberate by those imposing it. This was transparent in this latest ordinance because the wording was such:
“The unnecessary mingling of men and women in scenes including weddings, family parties, work situations and celebrations must also be strictly avoided.”
I use the word ordinance because such directives come from Iran’s Supreme Leader in however a round about way. It is Khamenei who carefully chooses the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcaster, and by law all channels are owned and controlled by the state.
This gross misrepresentation of us as a people, within a culture that celebrates community and family values, respect for elders and warmth and understanding in interpersonal relationships — now replaced by an imposed monstrous utopia — is a tragedy and consequential. In essence all it promotes is a parallel existence, lies and false conformity and very questionable moral codes. The fact that weddings and other family gatherings are as good as banned on television because men and women would necessarily be seen to be mingling, presents a view of society to a generation of children that does not match their daily experiences and therefore establishes the double life idea, instilling a sense of an unfamiliar model on-screen life and the other real one.
The Washington Times reports that this may all be a backlash to the popularity of an Iranian soap opera Forbidden Fruit that posed a threat to public morality. But given that half naked men amount to a fantasy concept on Iran’s state television, does this mean the directive could be aimed at sports too? The tradition of wrestling matches in Iran is normally broadcast despite the dominance of scantily-clad men. Watch this amazing clip for an insight:
Too Young The Hero
Entitled ‘Too Young The Hero’, it’s a primer for a proposed documentary following three young lads as they prepare for the World Wrestling Championships in Hungary. The project needs $4000 to go ahead and has opened up a fundraising initiative to the public, where a $10 donation will get you a 1000 Toman note with the film’s title stamped on it, and more for more. There are 9 days to pledge.
30 Mar 10 | Index Index, minipost, Uncategorized
The Malaysian Home Ministry website has just published new censorship guidelines for films this week. Restrictions around profanity and displays of intimacy between adults have been relaxed, if they are “appropriate” to the context of the film. However the Board still remains firm on nudity, sex and negative depictions of Muslims, unless the filmmaker is wishing to “depict a person’s transformation from being evil to good”.
09 Jun 09 | Index Index, minipost
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has described TV chef Gordon Ramsay as “a new form of low life” after the chef showed a food-fair audience a photo of a nude woman on all fours, with multiple breasts and a pig’s face, and said the image was of popular Australian television journalist Tracy Grimshaw. Read more here
Like the rest of the world, China’s gone Titanic crazy again. The 3D version of James Cameron’s Titanic hit cinemas here today but Chinese theatre-goers excited about the chance to see Kate Winslet’s nude scene in glorious 3D will be disappointed.