Banned historical movies

"The Ministry of Culture bans the film 'Egyptians: Gods and Kings' for historical inaccuracies," the Egyptian agency said in a statement.

I initially thought, yet another case of censorship by a country that feels its people can't tell truth from fiction.

But as I thought about it more, movies have been banned for a number of reasons by a number of countries since movies have been invented.

Movies from "Birth of a Nation" to "Monty Python the Life of Brian" have been banned in towns and cities throughout the U.S.

"Alexander", "Ben Hur", "The Last Temptation of Christ", 'Noah", and many others have all been banned by one country or another for a multitude of reasons. "Battleship Potemkin" was banned in France and Germany for fear it could incite a revolution in the 1930's and 40's.

"'(Egyptians: Gods and Kings)' shows history from a Zionist viewpoint," according to state news agency EGY in explaining why the film was banned.

Movies are a powerful way to send a message. A movie has an audience's undivided attention for two hours to deliver its story, lessons, point of view, etc. It may be about a subject your audience knows little about, thereby becoming their sole reference point for making all judgments on that topic about the past and the future.

If there is a movie that lambastes a government program the government is trying to gain support for or if it might cause serious dissension within the community that could lead to violence, I can see why a government would ban a movie.

I am not saying that it is right, just that I can see why it might be done.


*Quotes from Susanna Capelouto's article, Egypt Bans Movie 'Exodus'.