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Wise Kwai's Bangkok Cinema Scene
What's playing in Bangkok cinemas?
Permalink : http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/wisekwai
Monday , February 18 , 2008
Censorship Watch: Charlie Wilson's War, American Gangster, Sweeney Todd
Posted by wisekwai , Reader : 716 , 23:47:29   | Category : Censorship Watch  
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Censorship Watch is a new effort to track known instances of censorship of films being shown in Thailand's cinemas.

If audiences realize that the films are censored, they might think twice about seeing them. Once the cinema chains and film distributors realize they are loosing money, then they will be the ones to call for a change in the way films are treated in Thailand, hold the Ministry of Culture accountable and end this thoughtless, needless mutilation of films.

Films censored for January 31-February 14:

  • American Gangster: Foggy blurring of guns and drugs.
  • Charlie Wilson's War: Flesh colored blurring of nipples, possibly some other scenes involving sexual acts cut.
  • Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street: Foggy blurring of razor-blade cuts to throats.

Readers are encouraged to submit other known instances of censorship of current films, by either leaving comments here are sending an e-mail to wisekwai [at] gmail dot com.

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comment 7
khun_k date : 25/02/2008 time : 17.04

I've been reading up on movie censorship here, and I heard that 300 was also censored here. When I saw it at Siam Paragon, I don't remember it being censored. Does any know if it was in fact censored?
comment 6
wisekwai date : 20/02/2008 time : 23.16
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/wisekwai

Sometimes the prints do vary from cinema chain to cinema chain.

There were three versions of Lust Caution when it played in Bangkok - the complete version at little out-of-the-way House, a slightly trimmed version at Apex in Siam Square and a really butchered one for the shopping mall multiplex masses.
comment 5
narcisuss date : 20/02/2008 time : 15.27
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/narcisuss
I  come in peace :)

haha Veen, I guess they weren't breast fed as babies.

Wisekwai, do you know if the censorship varies from theatre to theatre? My friend told me that he viewed the uncensored version of Crank at Emporium. When I saw it at the Major Bangkapi I saw a censored version.
comment 4
veen date : 20/02/2008 time : 00.43
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/veen

good point Nar. I guess in the eyes of authorities, many pairs are not obscene since you aren't able to focus on even one. On the other hand, one pair is very obscene because it can make you focus and focus and you're lured to obscenity.. funny, isn't it?

Have you ever seen a blurred breastfeeding scene? I've seen it during my student day. In blurring the film, they suggest breastfeeding is obscene. How about that?
comment 3
wisekwai date : 19/02/2008 time : 18.44
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/wisekwai

Yeah, Narcissus, there's never any consistency. In Charlie Wilson's War, I caught them only blurring out one pair of nipples one time, when they were particularly prominent, and easy to deal with. I think the technicians working for the censors are overworked. They don't have time to pixellate three or 10 pairs of bare breasts. The rest of the hot-tub scene in Charlie Wilson, there are nipples bouncing around willy nilly. I'm not sure if there are other cuts to the film.

Lalida: Be careful with buying pirated DVDs. They are illegal. And the the quality is not so good, since they have been captured from a pirate's camera in the cinema. Usually, the legal versions of the DVDs will be uncensored. But you have to wait for several months, and it's not the same as viewing it in the cinema.

Also, don't buy DVDs released by Rose, which crops the letterbox framing to full screen and adds annoying text warnings to say "smoking is bad", "guns kill people", "drug use is harmful", etc.
comment 2
narcisuss date : 19/02/2008 time : 12.40
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/narcisuss
I  come in peace :)

The funny thing about American gangster is that they allow you to see at least 20 breasts with nipples attached, but in Hitman they blur the only set of nipples that appear.

It seems that 10 pairs are ok, but if they only show 1 pair it gets too intimate?
comment 1
Lalida date : 19/02/2008 time : 00.41
http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/Real

American Gangster, saw that even before it went on the cinema.....(I guess you know why, ha ha ha I'm stealing but what to do with new censorship law. Please for give me..) The film so, so not what I expected.

Charlie Wilson's War, other then the Da da da, it's a good movie. I enjoyed cos it said's it's a true story. Does congressmen in US really do have such power?

Sweeny Todd....have no interest at all, personally I don't like films as such.

Sorry to say that but have to steal nowadays after the censor law taw took effect, went to see hit man and starting seeing blurry shots, it makes the film unreal. Turn to stealing since then...
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