Dark Knight Can't Climb Great Wall

The Batman is bowing out of China.

In a move based more on political considerations than financial ones, Warner Bros. has opted not to release The Dark Knight in the Chinese market.

"Based on a number of prerelease conditions that are being attached to The Dark Knight as well as cultural sensitivities to some elements of the film, we have opted to forego a theatrical release of the film in China," the studio says in a statement.

Since most Batfans on the Mainland have likely seen the film on a pirated DVD, the move is unlikely to hurt the film's ticket sales ($996 million so far), but will keep Dark Knight from creeping closer to Titanic's all-time record $1.8 billion.

Studio execs were undoubtedly wary of offending the communist government's touchy Ministry of Culture, which has to approve all films for release in the country.

In particular, The Dark Knight features some pretty intense action sequences set in Hong Kong—the Caped Crusader kidnaps a Chinese executive to circumvent extradition laws and hauls him back for a little Gotham City justice.

There's no word exactly what "prerelease conditions" Chinese censors demanded from the studio. But it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to suggest they wanted Warners to dramatically alter the sequence, which could be deemed an affront to national pride in suggesting that Batman operates above Chinese law.

And that would have been a nonstarter, since the studio and director Christopher Nolan felt the rendition scenes are integral to the film's plot.

Those Chinese censors are more daunting than the Joker and Two-Face combined.

http://movies.yahoo.com/news/movies.eonline.com/74901-

Well that's China's loss, no big deal.

China produces billions of dollars in bootleg movies and other merchandise, but they have a problem with western movies.

Yeah, that makes sense.

;)

remember the furore surrounding kung fu panda earlier this year, because the po, the main character's father was a duck, instead of a panda? well, it seems like the chinese have a problem with any film that mocks their 'culture' and have taken a much harsher line with the dark knight. typical commie attitude. :rolleyes:

Warner Bros blacks out "Dark Knight" from China

Today, 01:36 am
Reuters

The Warner Bros studio said on Wednesday it has cancelled plans to release its blockbuster Batman movie "The Dark Knight" in China, citing "cultural sensitivities" surrounding the film.

The studio, a unit of Time Warner Inc, did not specify what Chinese audiences or censors might find objectionable about the movie.

"Based on a number of pre-release conditions that are being attached to 'The Dark Knight,' as well as cultural sensitivities to some elements of the film, we have opted to forego a theatrical release of the film in China," Warner Bros said in a statement.

The film includes a sequence in which Batman, the movie's comic book superhero played by Christian Bale, penetrates a criminal mastermind's skyscraper redoubt in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong.

"The Dark Knight," which was released in July, is the top-grossing film of the year with more than $996 million (675 million pounds) in worldwide ticket sales, including over $7.5 million (5 million pounds) in Hong Kong, according to the website Box Office Mojo.

The film also has earned the late Australian actor Heath Ledger a Golden Globe nomination for his final role as Batman's maniacally evil foe, the Joker.

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Steve Gorman)

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20081225/ten-uk-batman-3334b85.html

^ Sounds like they have a problem with the fact that a Chinese citizen plays a bad guy in the story.

I hope Warner Brothers remembers this the next time they want to film on location in China.
If they're not going to approve of our movies, don't film there.