Ban on the movie Da Vinci Code?

[CtrlAltDel]

The much awaited film "Da Vinci Code" is about to be released worlwide and Catholic bodies in india are calling for a ban on its release in India.



Is it justified?



The demand makes no sense considering that the novel is freely available in India and the movie would soon be out on DVD (illegally) too.



Even the catholics in christian countries havent asked for a ban on this film.



why are the indian catholics goping overboard asking for a ban? cant they copy their western counterparts who just appeal to fellow catholics not to watch the movie and also lead peaceful protests outside the cinemas? looks like a case of converts being holier than the pope himself.



how will non-christians (or even christians) watching the film affect the church? let them ask their congregation not to watch the film. period.

[SMACK]

I was one of the firsts to read the book. Found it very interesting. But also knew controversies are gonna happen.



Nothing but over-zealous guys trying to get themselves on tube.



Me awaiting the release of the movie.



Voted for No, let is release

[betty]

Thanks for starting the topic, I was planning to do so myself.

I read this in today's newspaper, and it spoilt my weekend plans. And to think, people who are protesting may not have even read the book. If they had, they would have known that this is fiction to some and facts to others.

Why should I be stopped from watching something jsut because some people don't like what they see? Hell, if that could be done, we could have banned so many horrible movies to which the Indian junta ahd been subjected so far.

I have started to feel that we Indians are too reactive and touchy when it comes to religion.

[CtrlAltDel]

the plot thickens...



Muslim groups want Da Vinci Code banned



now that the muslims have spoken, the now silent political parties from the Congress to the Left and everyone in between wud want it to be banned too



i think i will have to commit the blasphemy by seeing the film at home.

[smack]

I still think it will not be banned

[gyanster]

Da Vinci misses mark at Cannes- http://www.theage.com.au/news/film/crit ... 67061.html

[betty]

Da Vinci misses mark at Cannes- http://www.theage.com.au/news/film/crit ... 67061.html

Liked what I read about the reaction, esp this:

--

"Maybe the next day I'll forget about it," said Igor Soukmanov of Unistar Radio in Belarus. "But today for two hours it was good entertainment. ... As a Hollywood movie, it's a very nice picture."

--



which means the movie is paisa vasool and not arty .....am optimistic...

[gyanster]

He was just trying to be nice.

[CtrlAltDel]

from the article, it seems like an average thriller to me. this controversy will definitely make it a box office success.



i pray its not banned in india



i wish the indian politicians, catholics and muslims show the maturity of the phillipine movie censors. Phillipines is a catholic majority country and some top cardinals have denounced the film (not called for a ban tho')

Philippine movie censor Marissa Laguardia said was important to preserve free speech. She said opponents of the film can discourage friends from watching it, but that it "has to be shown."

"Otherwise we will be the only country that will not show this film. Thirty-six countries have already reviewed this film and they have not banned it. So are we just out of the Stone Age?" Laguardia said.

"If Christians know their own faith, they will be strong enough. We can leave it to their discretion as to whether they would rather watch the movie or not. That is their free choice,"

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/2006 ... 54000.html

[Vishrasayan]

IMO the novel itself is overhyped - its almost like a sequel to the 70s novel 'The Word' ....Cynic turning religious by the end and thereby canning the project expose'...huh?!



Film now ? - Why not !!



Langdon's quite a colorful character, I am not sure if good ol' Tom Hanks will look the role?...



It's so bloody irritating, someone needs to protest against these protestors, jus like the pro-reservationists counter-checking the anti-reservationists....



all in all we're all just 'nother brick in the wall...

Hey T(Pr)eacher...jus leave 'em alone...

(yup... Pink Floyd)

[DaVinci-RS]

I think it is going to be released this week?? can someone lemme know what theatres is that going to b released

[The Jackal]

Wanted to start this topic.Hope its not banned.Am coming to India for a vacation and my schedule is busy in US and hoped to see it there.

[mango]

ah.. makes me glad i live in california. im so used to the concept of free speech that the ban upon a movie seems alien and scary. one day, hopefully, india will also develop a free speech concept that will eliminate threads such as this.

[Lucifer]

ah.. makes me glad i live in california. im so used to the concept of free speech that the ban upon a movie seems alien and scary. one day, hopefully, india will also develop a free speech concept that will eliminate threads such as this.

Slightly off topic, but I cannot let statements like these be blatantly made.



I believe we have more free speech in India than most countries, including the US, can ever dream of having. I remember quite clearly how after the 9/11 in a press conference when a journalist asked Bush a question he was not comfortable with, the journalist was shown the door by the security guards - basically he was handcuffed and led out. And why? Just because he asked a question.



When Advani visited Gujarat after the riots, there was an angry father who called him a murderer. A commoner called the Deputy Prime Minister of a country a murderer. And what happenned to him? Nothing. Yes, nothing. That, to me, is more important - being able to say what you want to without fear - than whether a movie or a book is banned or not.

[Reality]

ah.. makes me glad i live in california. im so used to the concept of free speech that the ban upon a movie seems alien and scary. one day, hopefully, india will also develop a free speech concept that will eliminate threads such as this.

Slightly off topic, but I cannot let statements like these be blatantly made.

I believe we have more free speech in India than most countries, including the US, can ever dream of having. I remember quite clearly how after the 9/11 in a press conference when a journalist asked Bush a question he was not comfortable with, the journalist was shown the door by the security guards - basically he was handcuffed and led out. And why? Just because he asked a question.

When Advani visited Gujarat after the riots, there was an angry father who called him a murderer. A commoner called the Deputy Prime Minister of a country a murderer. And what happenned to him? Nothing. Yes, nothing. That, to me, is more important - being able to say what you want to without fear - than whether a movie or a book is banned or not.

Well maybe it was one instance, recently Donald Rumsfeld was asked very embarassing questions by an ex-cia official in a public meet and he wasnt arrested.

And you need to watch "South Park", Family Guy and all the other night talk shows to understand the level of "free speech" in the US.

[CtrlAltDel]

things look somewhat brighter, but not really reassuring. many catholic leaders who viewed the film yesterday were ok with the film's release provided it carried a disclaimer in the beginning.



but still some nutcases want a ban and are threatening to go to "any lengths" to stop any screening.



Arch Bishop of Hyderabad Marampudi Joji went as far as to say:

...the christians were ready to shed blood if the film was released in the country...

and

...the state and central governments will responsible for any eventuality...

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.as ... ad&Topic=0



sheeeesh...

[Fun Kay]

you can say that again...

arre, it's just a movie ya...

y do ppl have to create such a fuss abt a MOVIE for god's sake??!!



and abt the "other" post....do ppl get sued left, right n centre in India like they do in the US for just things they've said?



I think not!!



Even tho' the concept of free speech was probably introduced by US, i doubt they're still following the same rules they started off with!

[Portuguese Man-Of-War]

Well, to understand the sentiments of those who want it banned, let's assume the same happened with my own religion.



I'm a Hindu. If a book came out tomorrow that said Krishna was no god, that the Gita and the scriptures were all written just by some mis-motivated humans trying to make their clan powerful, and that all my religious leaders down the ages were murderers, then it is not going to be easy for me to digest it, even if compelling evidence were offered.



Different Hindus will then have different ways of dealing with it.



The hardliners, who are usually the ones who claim to represent the entire religion simply since the others, even if in a majority, are not that vocal or organized, will call for a ban.



The thinking ones will decide that there is no reason to expose these even if they are truths, since it may affect the world order in unfavourable ways, and also since it might make life difficult for several ordinary people who feel lost when everything that forms the bedrock of their lives turns out to be a fraud.



That is, I guess, what is happening.



If God did not have a problem with 2,000 years of generations being misled in His name (assuming Dan Brown's claims are right), I do not think we should.



As far as India is concerned, 99.9% of India will anyway not understand the accent and dialogues .

[CtrlAltDel]

what i had said abt the politicians' reactions has just begun as i had predicted:



Congress MP wants ban on Da Vinci Code



anyway, this is the status as of now:



Release Da Vinci Code with cuts, disclaimer: Christians



i hope the censors dont go berserk with the scissors.

[Moviebuff HP]

I just hope that the expectations of all you folks are not shattered by the movie. The initial response of critics from cannes is not very encouraging.

[PWOW]

I think the movie should be banned!!! I dont like Tom Hanks...



And I am also out of my MIND...



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Hee hee hee!! The movie should be banned but later unbanned.. That would give the movie too much publicity and will go on to become top gorssers in the history of english movies.. And I guess thats what is the movie worthy of!! Good idea nai...



I LOVE TOM HANKS.. AND I AM A RED SOX FAN TOO



AND OFCOURSE I LOVE TOM HANKS...



What is happening to me!!!



_____________________________________

[smack]

LMAO



ROFL



What pricks man......



Just check out what world Catholics are thinking of Indians protesting DVC

Poles jeer Indian Code ruckus


Warsaw, May 18: In Poland, where 95 per cent of the population is Catholic and three ultra-rightist Catholic parties are part of the ruling coalition, people are amused at the demand in India to ban The Da Vinci Code. “This film is going to be shown on Friday throughout Poland and the Pope is going to visit Poland next Thursday. Still there are no protests to ban the film here,” Jerzy Zdanowski, director of Non-European Studies at the Polish Academy of Sciences, said. “When my wife heard this news on Polish Radio and told me on phone that Christians and Muslims had come out on the streets in Mumbai to protest against the release of The Da Vinci Code, I was taken back and asked myself if I was not a good Christian?”

Christian leaders in India — where just over two per cent of the population of over a billion is Christian but at 26 million still has a significant political say in some States — say the film presents a distorted picture of their faith and would hurt religious sentiments. But Poles are wondering what the fuss is all about. Mr Zdanowski’s colleague Stanslaw Tokarski quipped: “Perhaps converts are better Christians than we the originals.

“It will be a sad day if the Indian government plays into the hands of narrow-minded people, the way they did it in the past when they banned Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses, which also caused religious frenzy in the whole of the Middle East.” The media here is also debating the Indian response to the film.

[lonewolf]

[quote="smack"]What pricks man......



Just check out what world Catholics are thinking of Indians protesting DVC[quote]



Since when did Poles become the standard for Catholics or Christians anywhere? They don't represent Catholics or Christians anywhere. The same Poles laugh at Hindus for their religious beliefs. Will you change your beliefs just to get their approval?



Many Britishers used similar terms like "what pricks" when the Hindus in London protested against the pictures of Hindu deities on bathroom tiles and underwear.



It is a fashion in the west to play with religious beliefs by coming up with new theories and hateful depiction in the name of art. It is sensible to show disapproval in the form of non-violent protests or boycott.



I haven't read the book, I don't intend to, and I won't watch the movie because the central theme goes outright against my Christian beliefs. Let the censor board decide whether to ban or allow it. I think the Philippines has shown maturity regarding the movie. Let those who want to watch it watch it.

[CtrlAltDel]

Let those who want to watch it watch it.

exactly! i know many christians wud not like the storyline, but like the Vatican suggests, the believers can boycott the film and protest against its message. the demand for a ban would only draw more viewership and make it an undeserving box office hit.



anyway the good news is, the film was okayed without cuts and wud be shown with a prominent disclaimer in the beginning and in posters.



i wanna see it at the earliest before some lunatic fringe calls for a ban again!



and another big advantage of not banning this movie is that the expected demand from the khaki-chaddi wallas to ban "Water" in India would be resisted! no precedence has been set - this was what i was worried of.

[lonewolf]

Saying the Christians were ready to shed blood if the film was released in the country, Bishop Joji warned the state and Central governments will responsible for any eventuality.

Shed blood?