Film theaters refusing to screen "The Interview," Sony scrap it.

In one of many decisions that I've hated in the film industry, this is a big one.

Link to The Escapist article.

Talk about spineless. Imagine how many other films would have never been experienced were theaters and studios actually showing such cowardice as this. Why not just cancel every movie involving Batman because of the theater murders during the release of "The Dark Knight Rises"? Why not pull every film depicting terrorists in the middle-east?

Some on Reddit bring up the fact that Charlie Chaplin had to fund "The Great Dictator" on his own after the studio dropped out. Glad he had the integrity (though ironically Adolf Hitler reportedly enjoyed it.)

 

Very disappointed with Sony's decision on this. That statement alone is enough to show how terrorism is working. Even Homeland Security stated their threats held little to no potential of any sort of attack. If anything, the only thing you would have to fear when watching this movie is probably getting into the theaters and hoping you don't have to sit in the front row.

*Sigh*

So much for not backing down to threats like that, especially something so petty over a comedy movie.

 

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I have a hard time believing the movie will never ever be released. Too much free buzz going on right there.

 

I doubt anything of value was lost.

 

I love all the Franco+Seth movies since pineapple express all of them :(!

 

I'm not at all disappointed by this. True, the "threats" regarding the movie are probably spineless and we can't cancel every movie that deals with controversial topics, but this movie imo was just another trashy comedy that had no real reason to use Kim Jung Un in it. On top of that, it's gotten pretty abysmal reactions from those who have seen it (as in, "this is not even slightly funny"). North Korea is not a joke and treating it as such so that Americans can laugh at the horrific regime that its citizens live under is something I'd gladly not have to sell tickets to. Controversy and the big names involved with it would obviously draw a crowd, but as someone who works in a theater, I'm rather relieved that we're not getting the film. Before Sony decided to pull the plug completely they were actually going to send out guidelines on how we (theater employees) should pitch the movie to our customers for the least amount of offense possible.

There's plenty of other great stuff coming this holiday season (Annie!!) and I have no doubt this movie will leak onto the internet or eventually get released on DVD.

 

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But see, as I understand it (I obviously have not seen the movie), The Interview is as much "satire" as Family Guy is. The people behind it think that Kim Jung Un is a joke that we get to laugh about. I don't think that North Koreans are laughing about it, and I certainly don't think this movie is about to call its audience to really think about North Korean politics or oppression or the myriad of issues going on there -- it's going to reinforce this image of "haha what is crazy north korea up to today? nuclear threats lol." Like I said, before they pulled it entirely, Sony wanted audiences to be encouraged to look at Kim Jung Un in the movie as a comical figure... which again, he's not really a laughing matter. Satire and critique are beautiful things, but let's not overestimate The Interview.

The "we're letting the terrorists win!!!" argument doesn't sit well with me either for a variety reasons. Firstly, I'm not advocating pulling controversial things simply because they may incite a negative reaction, potentially from a dangerous person. The Interview is controversial for the sake of being controversial, not to create any real awareness or discourse or thought. Secondly, there comes a time when we have to consider people's safety, which to me is a hell of a lot more important than my supposed right to see a movie. To borrow from a tweet by Chris Rock, when we take off our shoes at the airport, are we letting the terrorists win? Or are we inconveniencing ourselves in a small way for the collective safety of ourself and others?

Of course we need to draw a line somewhere and decide whether or not to let a movie or a book or whatever run... but The Interview isn't, in my eyes, a strong cause to fight for. I'd place it on the other side of the line, in fact. And I'm not about to defend it on principle or pretend it's something it's not.

 

I underlined what I did because I don't Rogen or Franco EVER wanted to make this movie simply to piss people off or evoke controversy: from the first trailer I saw, I got nothing but the feeling of "Oh hey, this is funny looking and also pretty topical," not "Oh hey, this is a super touchy subject!" because, while you're right that North Korea's leaders aren't only a joking matter...that's just how a lot of people actually learn about these things. Again, I'd love for some serious films to tackle the subject, but...what is there in theaters?

Taking your shoes off is not the same as halting the screenings of a production that cost thousands of dollars and the time and effort of a large crew of people though, so I don't find the Chris Rock quote to fit this context at all. It's not just an inconvenience: it's an ideological embargo.

Honestly, I don't care how good or bad The Interview is at this point. I'm concerned about the precedents set by this situation. I'm concerned about what will end up next in subjects that we can no longer display in comedic light because of threats.

(Then again, I also think it's a great thing that Steam let the game Hatred become reinstated after its initial removal.)