Tag Archives | censorship

I Can’t Believe MTV is Going This Low #el3ama3alMTV

I didn’t feel like I really have to comment on the MTV video that was making rounds on social media website because enough was already being said by the people, and I simply couldn’t have said it better than the video published by El 3ama which garnered hundreds of thousands of views.

The video is unfortunately no more available to view because it was apparently too hard for MTV to digest so they reported it to both Facebook and YouTube for copyright claims, and el3ama’s page on Facebook got consequently suspended for 3 days.

I think it is really a shame for such TV station that has already suffered from censorship by the authorities in the early 2000s when it was shut down for several years to actually do the same with a satirist such as Ghayd Chammas. And it isn’t like what he stated in his video was… MTV and other stations are all delivering very bad content most of the time, they all try to use the sex appeal to attract viewers, and their online presence with their clickbait articles is a complete disaster.

What MTV showed is that is that they are no better than the General Security who censor movies that eventually end up flooding DVD shops around the country. Regardless whether Ghayd is right or wrong in his claims, it is about time for everyone to understand that freedom of speech is a sacred right and fortunately for us there are tens of other websites to publish such content, and I guarantee you will see the video re-uploaded somewhere else with possibly double the views. They could’ve simply let it go but they’re giving it more exposure now that they want it to be taken offline!

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Why is Lebanon Acting Schizophrenic About Gal Gadot?

People at the censorship bureau don’t seem to be able to make up their mind about Gal Godot. Few years ago they had no problem with her appearing in movies like Fast & Furious, Batman v Superman, and Keeping up with the Joneses, until they suddenly decided to ban Wonder Woman back in May because she had the lead role in it.

Fast forward to nowadays, just as several magazines chose Godot to be on their cover for their December issues, the much anticipated “Justice League” also got banned two weeks ago because she was among its cast. I took the above photo for example at Librarie Antoine a few days ago and it’s obvious the authorities did not find anything wrong with a magazine having Gal Gadot as its main subject, so why not allow a movie starring her as well?

DVD rips of banned movies eventually end up flooding the market and it isn’t like superhero movie fans are going to miss seeing them, so it’s definitely about time the censorship bureau reconsider their role and the decisions they take.

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The Wolf of Wall Street no longer censored in Lebanon

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You probably already know that The Wolf of Wall Street has been censored in Lebanon since whoever imported it thought we will not have the attention span for a three hours movie, and therefore it was cut down to two hours and thirty minutes!

However, it was announced on Radio One Lebanon this morning that the movie will no longer be censored and the full version will start showing as of today. I really hope this will be true because I was preferring to wait for the DVD release to watch the full movie!

For more about The wolf of Wall Street, you can read Anis Tabet’s review about it here.

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Beirut Hotel banned in Lebanon?

Danielle Arbid just posted on her Facebook page that her new movie “Beirut Hotel“, which was scheduled to be released on January 19th 2011, will banned because it endangers Lebanon’s security!

I JUST BEEN NOTIFIED THAT MY LATEST FEATURE FILM BEIRUT HOTEL CANNOT BE SHOWN IN LEBANON ! ITS RELEASE IN BEIRUT, ORGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR 19 JANUARY 2012, HAS JUST BEEN CANCELLED. THE CENSORSHIP COMMITTEE ARGUED THAT : “THE FILM WOULD ENDANGER LEBANON’S SECURITY.”
PLEASE SPREAD THE NEWS AND MOBILISE AGAINST MIDDLE AGES CENSORSHIP. I NEED YOUR SUPPORT…

What a shame! As if the irresponsible statements (or farts?) our politicians make don’t endanger Lebanon’s security every single day!

Update (December 12, 2011):

The Daily Star published today that the movie was banned because it mentions the assassination of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri!

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Lebanese movie HELP banned

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Yet another movie ban, this time it is Marc Abi Rashed’s turn to have his movie “HELP” banned in Lebanon.

In brief, “Help” is the story of a teenager named Ali who lives in a van in Lebanon. His life suddenly turns upside down when he meets Thuraya, a prostitute living with a gay man. The movie has nudity and an excessive use of inappropriate words.

The reason of the ban is still not clear, at least to me. The movie was initially given the license to be shown in the Lebanese theaters on contdition that it will be restricted to viewers above 18 years old, later on he head of the censoring body was replaced and his successor withdrew the authorization! Some claim it is because the movie is too much for the Lebanese audience to accept, while others say that it is because the lead actress “Thuraya” who has appeared naked in the movie, and happens to be Joanna Andraos the daughter of the Lebanese MP Antoine Andraos, which might negatively affect his campaign in the upcoming election in June 2009.

In case authorities gace the license back to “HELP”, I believe it will make double the profits it was supposed to make before, becuase people will be eager to watch it after the fuss that the ban issue has created!

I leave you now with the movie trailer I found on YouTube.

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