China Will Let New U.S. Films in Again -- Just in Time for '10,000 B.C.'! Whew!
Filed under: Distribution, Politics
Back in December, the Chinese government imposed a ban on American films, partly as a means of increasing the box office of home-grown product, and partly because China was just kind of steamed at the U.S. for various reasons. Kicking Yankee flicks out of the cineplexes is as good a method of saber-rattling as anything else, I guess.Chinese officials denied there even was a ban. To prove their point, they allowed screenings of The Pursuit of Happyness ... which was a year old and had gone through the Chinese censorship process before the ban was imposed. Then Atonement and The Water Horse (are they choosing these films at random?!) were permitted to open just last week. ("See? There's no ban!" "Then will you approve our other movies, too?" "No, sorry. We're not approving anything else. But it's not a ban!")
Well, nobody ever said it was going to be a permanent ban (or whatever it was); the general mood was that it would last a couple months. And sure enough, now it's been lifted. Variety reports that The Golden Compass, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, and 10,000 B.C. (pictured) will all screen in mainland China in March. Hollywood types seem to be breathing easier now, believing the not-a-ban is probably over.
Surely it was wise of the Chinese government to lift the ban in time for 10,000 B.C.; imagine how angry you'd be if you weren't able to see it. And imagine the furor if all of China were prevented from seeing the Oscar-winning special effects of The Golden Compass, where technical wizards achieved the near-impossible task of making Nicole Kidman seem lifelike. So if you find yourself in Beijing anytime soon, be sure to take in an American flick and show your support.
Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams Reunite for 'Mission Impossible 4'
'Big Top Pee-Wee': The Original Benicio Del Toro Wolfman
Spin-ematical: New on DVD and Blu-ray for 2/9
Watch This: Brilliant Oscar-Nominated Short 'Logorama'
Chris Nolan to Lead 'Superman' Reboot!?
_thumbnail.jpg)
_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-01-2008 @ 11:01PM
Tristan said...
haha, so funny... haha
Reply