If you are in Israel, and you are a Sex and the City fan, don’t worry. The film will be shown in theaters there – unedited. The sex scenes or blunt discussion thereof will still be intact. However, don’t expect to see a poster.
Israel has banned any promotion of this film that exposes the word SEX in it, however the film itself is not banned from theaters. A difficult feat considering the title of the movie.
Apparently the large religious population of both cities isn’t comfortable with the word appearing on ubiquitous billboards, which puts the Israeli distributor of this summer’s Sex and the City in a tough spot. Advertising that includes the film’s title is out.
Now as people get a knee jerk “thats just stupid” reaction, keep in mind the cultural differences that other areas are subject to.
Bollywood actors get obscenity charges for kissing on screen. Thats taboo. The term “Shag” is equivalent to our cultural reference of “Fuck” to people in the UK, so the “Spy who Shagged Me” Austin Powers sequel was met with raised eyebrow there. Japanese make some of the most hardcore of porn, but they have to pixelate genitalia. Gotta have your standards!
And the example given on the original article was the restriction of tobacco ads that we experience here in North America. No one thinks twice about the banning of cigarette ads, yet they are still publicly sold with very little limitations.
I wonder how many other films face this type of roadblock when carried over to other cultures. It isn’t something we think of here since just about anything can be used as a movie title. Title choices are often just to market as opposed to a legal consideration.
