The “Barbie” film was pulled from theaters in Algeria this week nearly one month after its launch within the North African nation.
Online news outlet 24H Algerie mentioned Algeria’s Ministry of Culture and Arts notified cinemas in Algiers, Oran and Constantine to “immediately” pull the film.
Neither the ministry nor the Algerian Audiovisual Regulatory Authority commented on the reported directive or supplied a rationale for it.
“Barbie” opened in some some Algerian cinemas final month. The movie’s distributors eliminated the Hollywood blockbuster from their screening schedules beginning this week..
The transfer comes after authorities in Kuwait and Lebanon banned the stay motion film based mostly on the American trend dolls for allegedly threatening conservative values.
Some folks in Algeria protested the cancellation on social media, posting their complaints together with the hashtag “#IAmBarbie.” Others denounced it as “censorship” and “bigotry.”
“The ‘Barbie’ film ‘is a threat to morality,’ they say,” writer Leila Belkacem posted on her Facebook page. “What morality are they talking about when the censors gorge on porn films at home? Aren’t you tired of dragging the country into your dark delusions?”
Fatima Ait Kaci, a retired trainer, informed The Associated Press she had promised to take her two granddaughters, who have been visiting from Canada, to see the film. Ait Kaci mentioned she heard what had occurred to “Barbie” solely once they arrived on the Riadh El Feth cinema in Algiers and found one other movie exhibiting within the 3 p.m.-5 p.m. time slot.
Algerian authorities “don’t have the courage to take responsibility for this shameful act of censorship,” she mentioned.
Last week, the Audiovisual Regulatory Authority introduced its resolution to “temporarily” droop all programming by non-public TV channel Es Salam for allegedly broadcasting “in an irresponsible and unprofessional manner, a program containing scenes contrary to the precepts of Islam and the way of life of Algerian society.”
“Barbie” comprises no overt sexuality or references to LGBTQ+ rights. But it appears to have drawn fireplace due to its sheer flamboyance and broad message of inclusion and gender equality in a area the place homosexuality is extensively seen as taboo.
The Warner Bros. movie has grossed over $1 billion worldwide because it’s launch.
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