Film censorship in China involves the banning of films deemed unsuitable for release or the editing of such films to remove objected content by the governments in both Republic of China (ROC) and People's Republic of China (PRC). In mainland China starting April 2018, films are reviewed by the China Film Administration (CFA, Chinese: 国家电影局) under the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) which dictates whether, when, and how a movie gets released.[1] The CFA is separate from the NRTA (Chinese: 广电总局) under the State Council (Chinese: 国务院).
The long history of film censorship in the ROC is a prelude to that of the PRC. However, the exhaustive list of films in this article focuses on the PRC, which remains an authoritarian one-party state and took control of mainland China from the ROC after the Chinese Civil War. The ROC has attempted to instate an age-based rating system as early as November 1948, progressed into a democracy since the 1980s, and technically dropped censorship requirements in its film law in 2015; the ROC still occasionally issues the 'Restricted' rating for a number of scenarios noted below.
In 1911, under the Qing dynasty, the Shanghai Autonomous Bureau issued the first regulation on film content, disallowing "obscene content". Violations of the regulation were punishable by revocation of a theater's license to screen films.[2]
Under the Kuomintang (KMT), the government banned foreign films for promoting Christianity, cited as negativity affecting Chinese society, and for including kidnapping and love stories with "carnal desire". Wuxia and shengui films were banned for promoting "superstition and unscientific thinking", and wuxia was felt to be spreading anarchy and instilling rebellion.[3]
In November 1930, the Legislative Yuan promulgated a Film Censorship Law (Chinese: 電影檢查法-中華民國19年), requiring four types of motion picture contents be edited, removed or banned:[4]
In January 1931, the Executive Yuan formally established the Film Censorship Committee, putting the control of censorship in the hands of the central government for the first time. The committee was tasked with reviewing locally produced films and international films distributed in China.[5] In March 1934, the government amended The Film Censorship Law, restructuring the Committee to include members from the film industry appointed by the Executive Yuan and renamed it to the Central Film Censorship Committee.[6] The law got amended four more times before the KMT lost the civil war and fled to Taiwan in 1949. In November 1948 (Chinese: 電影檢查法-中華民國37年), the reference to the "Three Principles of the People" was dropped and "the interests of the ROC could not be offended" was added in an amendment. Article 10 of the 1948 law also gave birth to a very early-stage motion picture rating system, using age 12 as the cutoff line for content restriction.[7]
The ROC regained its footing in Taiwan. In 1955 (Chinese: 電影檢查法-中華民國44年),[8] 1956 (Chinese: 電影檢查法-中華民國45年),[9][10] and 1958 (Chinese: 電影檢查法-中華民國47年),[11] four more amendments to the law ensued without revising the main criteria. The law was renamed the Motion Picture Act (Chinese: 電影法-中華民國72年)[12] in November 1983, and expanded the censorship criteria to include the following:
Article 30 of the 1983 law lowered the age cutoff line from 12 to 6 to dictate whether the viewing should be restricted or not.
KMT practiced martial law until July 1987. After lifting it, the Executive Yuan, or through its now dissolved Government Information Office (GIO), promulgated regulations to carry out the said revised law starting in 1987 (Chinese: 中華民國七十六年八月三十一日行政院臺七十六聞字第二○二○八號函核定)[13] and 1988 (Chinese: 中華民國七十七年一月一日行政院新聞局(77)銘影二字第○○○○二號令發布).[14] The then regulations revised the motion picture rating system, classifying films into three categories (General Audience/Parental Guidance/Restricted) based on age.[14][15] The categories were expanded into four (General Audience/Protected/Parental Guidance/Restricted) in 1994 (Chinese: 中華民國八十三年四月一日行政院新聞局(83)強影二字第○四一五八號令發布修正第二條、第三條、第五條至第十一條條文).[16]
The film law rephrased the censorship requirement in June 2015. To control the rating system requirement from a legislative perspective, article 9 of the new Motion Picture Act (Chinese: 電影法-中華民國104年), promulgated by the Legislative Yuan, maintains that motion pictures and their advertisements shall not be screened if not granted a rating by the central competent authority which shall convene a rating commission to rate films. Members of the commission shall be representatives of government agencies, and scholars and experts having academic or practical experience in related fields. The commission's conclusions shall be made public and clear rationales for ratings given be listed.[17][18] Article 10 maintains if motion pictures and their advertisements violate restrictions or prohibitions laid out in law, the central competent authority shall not grant a rating. The Ministry of Culture established by the Executive Yuan further specifies that not more than one third of the committee members can come from the Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development.[19]
The rating system was expanded into five categories on October 16, 2015 per regulations (Chinese: 中華民國104年10月16日文影字第10420350091號令修正發布) drawn up in accordance with the Motion Picture Act.[20]
Article 9 of the regulations specifically mentions the Restricted rating will be issued under the following scenario:
Where the sale or use of illegal drugs, robbery, kidnapping, killing, or other illegal activities are detailed in the plot; where there is concern that such activity could be mimicked; where terrorism, bloody events, violence, or perversion are particularly vivid and could still be acceptable to persons over age 18; where sexual imagery or innuendo is portrayed vividly in animation, images, language, text, dialogue, or sound, but does not elicit feelings of shame or disgust in persons over the age of 18.
Article 235 of ROC's Criminal Code also penalizes the distribution, broadcasts, sale, publicly displays of obscene video record.[21][22]
The earliest predecessor to the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT, 2013–2018) was founded in June 1949.[23] Chinese Communist Party (CCP) won the civil war and founded the new republic on October 1, 1949.
With the ten-year Cultural Revolution, film industry was singled out as a target for public criticism. Mao's wife Jiang Qing blacklisted 54 films.[24]
From the beginning of the Chinese economic reform (1978 onward), the PRC film industry has undertaken a series of decentralizing and privatizing reforms. In January 1986, SAPPRFT's predecessor is finally known as the Administrative Department of Radio, Film and Television (ADRFT) (Chinese: 广播电影电视部).[23]
The ADRFT published its departmental-level film censorship regulation one after another in 1988 (Chinese: 电影审查条例(修改稿)),[25] in 1993 (Chinese: 电影审查暂行规定) and in 1997 (Chinese: 电影审查规定).[26]
The basic principles of the 1993 document were reaffirmed in July 1996, when the State Council of the People's Republic of China promulgated Regulations on the Administration of Movies (Chinese: 1996年电影管理条例) at a higher executive level. Its article 23 & 24 gave executive authority in stipulating that the country shall adopt a film examination system: "films that have not (been) examined and approved by the film examination organ of the administrative department of radio, film and television of the State Council may not be distributed, projected, imported or exported."[27][28]
In March 1998, the ADRFT was renamed State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) (Chinese: 国家广播电影电视总局).[23]
In February 2002, the State Council replaced the 1996 regulations with new ones (Chinese: 2002年电影管理条例).[29][30][31] Article 24 & 25 of the new regulations reiterates the censorship system and remains in effect despite what follows next.
In December 2003, SARFT also issued departmental-level regulation titled Interim Provisions on Project Initiation of Film Scripts (Abstracts) and on the Examination of Films (Chinese: 电影剧本(梗概)立项、电影片审查暂行规定).[32] This soon got updated in July 2004.[33][34] Both the 1997 and 2004 regulations were later replaced by Provisions on the Archival Filing of Film Scripts (Abstracts) and the Administration of Films in June 2006 (Chinese: 电影剧本(梗概)备案、电影片管理规定).[35][36]
In March 2013, the State Council merged SARFT with the General Administration of Press and Publication to form the SAPPRFT (Chinese: 国家新闻出版广电总局).
On November 7, 2016, The 12th Standing Committee of the National People's Congress at its 24th session passed the new PRC Film Industry Promotion Law (Chinese: 中国电影产业促进法) from a legislative point of view. The law became effective on March 1, 2017.[37][38][39] Although the country lacks of a rating system like that of the ROC or the Motion Picture Association of America film rating system, according to an unofficial translation of the new law, article 16 stipulates that films must not contain the following content:[40]
Article 20 of the law stipulates that films for which there is no release license cannot be transmitted over the Internet, telecommunications networks, or radio and television networks, or recorded as audio or video products, except for under other stipulations. If the film could make minors (Chinese: 未成年人) and other audiences feel uncomfortable either physically or psychologically, there should be a reminder.[41] However, in a March 2017 interview with China Central Television (CCTV), SAPPRFT's film chief Mr. Zhang Hongsen (Chinese: 张宏森)[42] said it was inaccurate for the media to label the guideline for minors as manual/euphemistic classification and it was a misinterpretation or over-interpretation of the new law.[43][44]
Article 21 further stipulates that only films with the release license can be submitted for film festival or exhibition consideration. There have been circumstances where a film appears to be trimmed for commercial reasons, but on June 1, 2017, the SAPPRFT issued a notice, forbidding any spread of so-called "complete version", "uncut version", and "deleted scenes", etc. on any platform, including but not limited to online, mobile Internet, broadcast TV.[45][46][47]
On June 30, 2017, the China Netcasting Services Association, an online broadcasting industry body subject to SAPPRFT and Ministry of Civil Affairs,[48] issued a set of guidelines, signaling detailed control on all forms of audiovisual web content, including films.[49] They explicitly prohibit the websites of the association's 600+ members, which include CCTV, Phoenix Television, Hunan Television, Dragon Television, Jiangsu Television, Zhejiang Television, Tencent, Youku, IQiyi, Sohu, etc.,[50] from displaying many things, including but not limited to the following:
In March 2018, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party decided its publicity department would centralize the film management, taking that responsibility away from SAPPRFT,[51] the latter of which was renamed National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) (Chinese: 广电总局).[52][53] In April 2018, the department formally put up a China Film Administration sign.[54] In May 2018, Wang Xiaohui (Chinese: 王晓晖) was named as the new chief.[55][56]
Indian films were de-facto banned from theatrical release in China in 2020 and 2021 due to border skirmishes in addition to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.[57]
On June 11, 2021, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region announced that effective that day that it would begin censoring films according to the requirements from Hong Kong national security law, bringing itself more in line with the rest of the country.[58][59]
In 2022, Fight Club was issued in China with an altered ending. Lord of War's Chinese release has 30 minutes or removed footage, and ends with Nicholas Cage's character getting life imprisonment. Even films from Hong Kong are censored by the mainland government. [60]
In 2022 censors working on the TV show Hannibal (TV series) replaced the word "kill" with the word "suck" in the subtitles which attracted attention for introducing sexual suggestively in a number of scenes for instance “When you killed Randall, did you fantasize you were killing me?” was rendered as “When you sucked Randall, did you fantasize you were sucking me?” This attracted derision and mocking from social media commentators. The swapping out of negative words is a common tactic used by Chinese censors.[61]
Title | Original release year | Country of origin | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
The Ten Commandments | 1923 | United States | Banned in the 1930s under a category of "superstitious films" due to its religious subject matter involving gods and deities.[62] |
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ | 1925 | United States | Banned in the 1930s under a category of "superstitious films" due to its religious subject matter involving gods and deities.[62] |
Frankenstein | 1931 | United States | Banned under a category of "superstitious films" due to its "strangeness" and unscientific elements.[62] |
Alice in Wonderland | 1933 | United States | Banned under a category of "superstitious films" due to its "strangeness" and unscientific elements.[62] |
The Life of Wu Xun | 1950 | China | After initial release and despite praise from other Communist Party leaders, CCP Chairman Mao Zedong published an editorial that criticized the film as "fanatically publicising feudal culture" and for its "tolerance for slandering the peasant revolutionary" and described the lead character as "reactionary feudalist ruler". Mao also denounced praise of the film. The film became known as "the first banned film of New China". It was shown in a private showing in 2005 and was released on DVD in 2012.[63] |
All pre-1949 Chinese films | China | CCP Chairman Mao Zedong banned all pre-1949 Chinese films in 1951 on the grounds that they contained "imperialist propaganda". | |
All Hong Kong films | Hong Kong | CCP Chairman Mao Zedong banned all Hong Kong films in 1951 on the grounds that they contained "imperialist propaganda". | |
The Unfinished Comedy | 1957 | China | Banned for undermining socialist morality and attacking the Party.[64][65] |
Ben-Hur | 1959 | United States | Banned under the regime of Mao Zedong for containing "propaganda of superstitious beliefs, namely Christianity."[66][67] |
Chung Kuo, Cina | 1972 | Italy | Banned for 32 years for "anti-Chinese."[68] |
Boat People | 1982 | Hong Kong | The film was banned in mainland China due to violence against Vietnamese refugees and its anti-Communist sentiments.[69] It was also banned in Taiwan because it was filmed on Hainan, an island in the People's Republic of China.[70] |
Yellow Earth | 1984 | China | Banned then released.[71] |
Back to the Future | 1985 | United States | The film was banned because of time travel.[72] |
The Horse Thief | 1986 | China | The film waited eight months for approval for public release. Ultimately, director Tian Zhuangzhuang told officials that he would re-edit the film to their specifications, and he worked under the close supervision of two censors to cut footage, including portions of a sky burial.[73][74] Tian felt the process was an "insult" and turned temporarily to commercial filmmaking out of frustration with the censors.[73][75] The released film was later withdrawn.[71] |
Ju Dou | 1990 | China | Banned upon initial release, but lifted in 1992.[71][76] The Chinese government gave permission for its viewing in July 1992.[77] |
Mama | 1990 | China | Released in China after a two-year ban.[78] |
Life on a String | 1991 | China | Banned altogether.[71] |
Raise the Red Lantern | 1991 | China | Banned upon initial release, released three years later.[71] |
I Have Graduated | 1992 | China | A documentary about some university students who experienced the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.[79] |
The Blue Kite | 1993 | China | The Beijing Film Studio refused to submit the raw footage to the Central Film Bureau for post-production approval outside the country, and the film was smuggled to Japan for editing. The film showed at international film festivals without the Central Film Bureau's approval, causing the Chinese delegation to withdraw from the Tokyo International Film Festival, and was not approved for showing in China.[73] Because the film overtly criticized government policies, director Tian Zhuangzhuang was subsequently banned in 1994 from filmmaking; the ban was lifted in 1996.[80][81] |
Beijing Bastards | 1993 | China | Banned due to subjects involving homosexuality and alienated young people.[82] |
Farewell My Concubine | 1993 | China | The film was objected to for its portrayal of homosexuality, suicide, and violence perpetrated under Mao Zedong's Communist government during the Cultural Revolution. It premiered in Shanghai in July 1993 but was removed from theatres after two weeks for further censorial review and subsequently banned in August. Because the film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, the ban was met with international outcry.[83] Feeling there was "no choice" and fearing it hurt China's bid for the 2000 Summer Olympics, officials allowed the film to resume public showings in September. This release featured a censored version; scenes dealing with the Cultural Revolution and homosexuality were cut, and the final scene was revised to "soften the blow of the suicide".[84] |
To Live | 1994 | China | Banned due to its critical portrayal of various policies and campaigns of the Communist government. In addition, its director Zhang Yimou was banned from filmmaking for two years.[71][85][86] The ban on the film was lifted only in September 2008 after Zhang directed the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony.[87] |
The Square | 1994 | China | The director was banned on all film-making earlier in the year.[88] |
Weekend Lover | 1995 | China | Banned for two years and then released.[89] |
Father | 1996 | China | Also known as Baba/Babu,[71] it was banned, but took home the top prize Golden Leopard at the Locarno Festival in 2000.[90] |
The Emperor's Shadow | 1996 | China | The film, which depicts the relationship between the government and the arts through a fictionalized relationship of China's first emperor and a court musician, was banned without stated reason after initial release. The film was allowed to show again eight months later.[91] |
Kundun | 1997 | United States | The film was banned for depicting China negatively in relation to its incorporation of Tibet into China.[92] The Dalai Lama is considered by China a separatist leader and a threat to Chinese control on the Himalayan region,[93][94] and officials objected to a positive portrayal of the Dalai Lama.[95] Disney produced and distributed the film despite objections China voiced during production, causing China to issue a temporary ban on all Disney films.[96] The ban ended in 1999 with the release of Mulan, and the studio issued an apology during the early negotiation process to build Shanghai Disney Resort.[97][93][98] |
East Palace, West Palace | 1997 | China | Banned due to subjects involving homosexuality and alienated young people.[82] |
Red Corner | 1997 | United States | The film, about an American man in China falsely accused of murder by corrupt police and facing an unjust judicial system, was banned for an anti-China bias.[99] Officials also made an unsuccessful attempt to postpone the film's opening in the United States, which occurred during a visit by CCP General Secretary Jiang Zemin.[96] Actress Bai Ling was also barred from visiting her family in China shortly after the film's release,[100] and Chinese officials issued a memo temporarily ending the business operations in China of the film's production studio and distributor Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer.[96] |
Seven Years in Tibet | 1997 | United States | The film was banned for depicting China negatively in relation to its incorporation of Tibet into China.[92] Officials objected to a positive portrayal of the Dalai Lama.[95] A memo was issued by Chinese officials temporarily ending the business operations in China of the film's distributor Columbia TriStar.[96] |
Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl | 1998 | China | Banned.[71] due to criticizing the Cultural Revolution.[101] |
Babe: Pig in the City | 1998 | United States | Censor had a policy that live-action animals with the speech ability was not allowed to be depicted.[102] |
Devils on the Doorstep | 2000 | China | Banned[71] partly due to an unpatriotic portrayal of the Chinese in the Second Sino-Japanese War.[87] SAPPRFT was also upset that the director Jiang Wen had submitted it to Cannes Film Festival without its approval.[103] The film is now available on CCTV.com.[104] |
Suzhou River | 2000 | China | Director Lou Ye let his 2000 film screen in International Film Festival Rotterdam without official approval and received a two-year ban.[105] |
Kiss of the Dragon | 2001 | France | The main character killed people abroad.[106] |
Lan Yu | 2001 | China | The film was banned for homosexuality, references to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre, and depiction of corruption in Beijing entrepreneurs.[107][108] |
Conjugation | 2001 | China | Directed by Emily Tang, it is a fictional film about the challenges faced by a young couple in the post-1989 Tiananmen Square protests era.[79] |
Shaolin Soccer | 2001 | Hong Kong
China |
Banned after the Hong Kong partners in the joint production reportedly opened it in HK without permission from mainland officials.[109] |
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life | 2003 | Multinational coproduction | The film was banned for its unflattering depiction of China, which was felt to suggest the country had an absent government and was controlled by secret societies.[110] |
Brokeback Mountain | 2005 | United States | The film was banned for homosexuality, a "sensitive topic". China even censored Ang Lee's Academy Award for Best Director acceptance speech for references to homosexuality.[111] |
Memoirs of a Geisha | 2005 | United States | Though it was originally approved for distribution in China,[112] senior government officials reversed the decision because ethnic Chinese actors played Japanese characters was feared to provoke anti-Japanese sentiments and, because geisha are viewed as prostitutes in China, evoke the Rape of Nanking.[111] |
King and the Clown | 2005 | South Korea | The film was not shown in theaters due to "subtle gay themes" and sexually explicit language. It was given permission for distribution on DVD.[113] |
Summer Palace | 2006 | China | The film was banned for sexually explicit scenes and for depicting the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. Director Lou Ye and producer Nai An received five-year bans.[114][115] |
The Da Vinci Code | 2006 | United States | It was withdrawn from cinemas even though it had been on release for three weeks. Some said it was because of political reasons, for example, upsetting Catholics in China.[116] The direct-to-video somehow got approval.[117] |
V for Vendetta | 2005 | United States | Starting in Aug 2020, the movie has been removed from China’s major online video platforms, such as iQiyi, Tencent Video, Sohu, Douban, and Maoyan, because of anti-government themes. The Guy Fawkes mask worn by the film character V has been used as a symbol in anti-extradition bill protests in Hong Kong.[118] The movie was never shown in Chinese theaters, but it was unclear whether it had ever been banned prior to 2020. State-owned China Movie Channel surprised viewers back in 2012 by airing it, leading to false hopes about censorship reform.[119] An article on the Communist party's China Youth Daily website said it was previously prohibited from broadcast,[120] but the Associated Press quoted the then censors's spokesman Wu Baoan (吴保安) who said he was not aware of any ban. |
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | 2006 | United States | Banned in China because it had spirits swarming around as well as depictions of cannibalism.[121] |
Lost in Beijing | 2007 | China | A heavily edited version of the film began showing in China. Fifteen minutes of content was removed because censors felt that dirty streets, prostitutes, and gambling portrayed China as plagued by greed and sexual temptation. Cuts were made shortly before the Berlin Film Festival, too late for the version to be subtitled in German and English, and an unauthorized version screen instead. As a result, the film was banned in China and the writer-producer Fang Li and the production company Beijing Laurel Films were banned from filmmaking for two years. The censors also stated that the film's marketing included "unhealthy and inappropriate promotional materials" and that Fang illegally distributed "unapproved and pornographic clips" through the internet.[122] |
The Dark Knight | 2008 | United States | Warner Bros. did not submit the film to censors for approval, citing "pre-release conditions" and "cultural sensitivities".[123] |
Petition | 2009 | China | The documentary depicts brutalization, harassment, and arrest of people who travel to Beijing to ask that wrongdoing by local officials be amended. The film was banned in China immediately following its premiere at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.[124][125] |
Shinjuku Incident | 2009 | Hong Kong | Banned for being "too violent" when director Derek Yee refused to edit this content down.[126] |
Spring Fever | 2009 | Hong Kong
France |
The film was created during a five-year ban instituted on director Lou Ye and producer Nai An, and it showed at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival and in international theaters without permission. It portrays a gay romance, explicit sexual scenes and full-frontal nudity.[127] |
The Lady | 2011 | France | Uncertain if it would be shown in mainland China which was an ally of Myanmar's military junta which banned the film as of Feb 2012.[128] |
Red Dawn | 2012 | United States | The film was not released in China, despite changing the invading antagonist from China to North Korea.[129] |
A Touch of Sin | 2013 | China | The film depicts "shocking" violence in China caused by economic inequality and political corruption, including the shooting of local officials. During development of the film, censors asked director Jia Zhangke to revise dialogue and seemed generally unconcerned by violence. Censors did recommend Jia decrease the number of killings but allowed it when Jia refused. The film was cleared for foreign distribution and showed at international festivals. Although the film was initially cleared for local distribution, the film did not open in China on its release date and a directive was given telling journalists not to write about the film. The distributor Xstream Pictures released a statement saying it did not receive a notice the film was banned and that it was continuing to work on local distribution.[130] |
World War Z | 2013 | United Kingdom, United States | The movie contains zombies and has a lead role featuring Brad Pitt, whose films and entry to the country were disallowed after he starred in Seven Years in Tibet.[131] |
Top Gun 3D | 2013 | United States | The re-release got silent treatment by the censor.[132] The congressional United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission concluded it portrayed U.S. military dominance.[129] |
Captain Phillips | 2013 | United States | In hacked emails, Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution at Sony Pictures, wrote that the plot of American military saving Chinese citizen would make Chinese censor uncomfortable.[133] The direct-to-video somehow got approval.[134] |
Noah | 2014 | United States | Banned for the depiction of prophets.[135] |
Under the Dome | 2015 | China | First allowed but then removed per order from Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China.[136] An employee of China Business News may have been fired for leaking the order.[137] |
Behemoth | 2015 | China | The documentary portrays the health and environmental effects of coal mining and iron smelting in China. After the film opened in a small venue in China, it was banned from commercial theaters due to early miscommunications about its content.[125] Mentions of the film were removed from the internet, and journalists were directed not to report on the film.[138] |
Crimson Peak | 2015 | United States | It was reported that the film may be banned because it contained ghosts and supernatural elements.[139][140] However, Chinese artist and social commentator Aowen Jin believed it more likely that the film was banned due to sexual content and incest.[141] |
Mad Max: Fury Road | 2015 | Australia,
United States |
Submitted and rejected by censors, possibly due to its dystopian themes.[142] The direct-to-video somehow got approval.[143] |
Ten Years | 2015 | Hong Kong | Depicting a bleak future for Hong Kong under Beijing's control, the film's makers have never sought distribution in mainland China.[144] The broadcast of the 35th Hong Kong Film Award, in which this film was honored for best film,[145] was banned.[146] |
Trivisa | 2016 | Hong Kong | The film is believed to be banned in part because Jevons Au, blacklisted after directing a short in Ten Years, is one of its three directors. Mentions of the film at the Hong Kong Film Awards, at which it won five awards including Best Picture, were removed.[147] |
Suicide Squad | 2016 | United States | Aynne Kokas, author of the book Hollywood in China, explained that removing violence from the film would make it difficult to be released.[148] |
Deadpool | 2016 | United States | The film was banned due to violence, nudity, and graphic language. Officials determined that it was not possible to remove the content without affecting the plot.[149] It was finally shown uncensored with the full 108-min runtime in seven screenings in June 2017 during the 20th Shanghai International Film Festival.[150][151] |
Call Me by Your Name | 2017 | United States | Due to homosexuality,[152][153] the film was pulled from the Beijing International Film Festival.[154] |
Christopher Robin | 2018 | United States | While no official reason was given for denying the film's release, images of Winnie-the-Pooh were previously censored and banned since 2017 after social media users compared Pooh to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, causing the character to become associated with political resistance. However, an alternative theory suggested the film was denied because a number of Hollywood tentpole films were competing for space in the limited foreign film quota.[155] |
Berlin, I Love You | 2019 | Germany | Ai Weiwei claimed that the producers were politically pressured to cut the segment he directed because distributors fears his involvement would hurt the film in China. He directed the segment remotely while under house arrest in China for his political activism.[156][157] |
Joker | 2019 | United States | Not cleared for release.[158][58] |
Monster Hunter | 2020 | Japan | Soon after the release in China on Dec 3, the film was pulled from theaters because a scene featuring a banter between MC Jin's character and his military comrade was considered racially offensive by local audience, despite the Chinese subtitles interpreted it differently. Jin jokingly said: "Look at my knees!" which is followed by the question "What kind of knees are these?" He then answered, "Chi-knees!" Some Chinese viewers interpreted this as a reference to the racist playground chant "Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees", and therefore as an insult to China. The subtitles, however, interpreted as there is gold under a man's knees, so man should not easily kneel. The film was removed from circulation, and Chinese authorities censored references to it online. Tencent Pictures, which is handling local distribution and is an equity partner in the film, is reported to be remedying the situation, but it remains unclear if the movie would then be re-released.[159] |
Do Not Split | 2020 | Norway, United States | A politically-themed documentary about the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests. It also led to the cancellation of the broadcast of the 93rd Academy Awards.[58][160] |
Nomadland | 2020 | United States | The censorship efforts appear linked to comments made by Chloé Zhao in 2013 interview with Filmmaker magazine, in which she described being a teenager in China as a “a place where there are lies everywhere”. Later in the day, certain key search topics related the film were blocked on China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform. Searches for the hashtags “#Nomadland” and “#Nomadland Release Date” currently yield the message that “The topic’s page cannot be shown due to related laws, regulations and policies.” [161] |
Inside the Red Brick Wall | 2021 | Hong Kong | A sold-out theatrical premiere of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests documentary featuring the siege of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University was canceled.[162] |
Where the Wind Blows | 2021 | Hong Kong | Its world premiere at the 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival was pulled for “technical reasons”.[162][163][164] |
Title | Release year in mainland China | Country of origin | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Titanic | 1998 | United States | The scene in which Rose (Kate Winslet) poses nude for a painting is altered to show her from the neck up, removing her breasts from the shot.[165] |
Infernal Affairs | 2002 | Hong Kong | The ending sees a triad member who has infiltrated the police shoot a member of his gang to prevent becoming exposed. It was unacceptable in China for a criminal to avoid justice, and three endings were shot for censors to approve. In the chosen ending, the mole is confronted by police and he voluntarily gives up his police badge.[166][167] |
Running on Karma | 2003 | Hong Kong | It ran afoul of Beijing censors for depicting a Chinese protagonist (Cecilia Cheung) reincarnated from a Japanese soldier. Such a premise, though overtly comedic, offends a Chinese government to whom Sino-Japanese relations remain fractious. According to the film's co-writer Au Kin-yee, SAPPRFT – ever vigilant against superstition – also objected to the male hero's preternatural ability to perceive the past lives of others. Consequently, the Milkyway Image creative team excised the male hero's extrasensory 'visions' from the mainland release, resulting in nonsensical stretches of action.[168] |
Mission: Impossible III | 2006 | United States | Censors felt that the film's establishing shot of Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) walking past underwear hung from a clothesline was a negative portrayal of Shanghai.[169] |
Babel | 2006 | Multinational coproduction | Censors cut five minutes of nudity scenes.[170] |
Casino Royale | 2006 | Multinational coproduction | Judi Dench as M said she had to substitute the line "'God, I miss the old times" for "[Expletive], I miss the Cold War" for release to be allowed in China.[171] |
The Departed | 2006 | United States | Banned from movie theaters for suggesting that the Chinese government might use nuclear weapons against Taiwan,[72] but the direct-to-video got approval (after cutting a few minutes).[172] |
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End | 2007 | United States | Captain Sao Feng, played by Chow Yun-fat, demonizes the Chinese and Singapore.[173][174] |
Lust, Caution | 2007 | Multinational coproduction | Censors objected to the film's "political and sexually provocative content" and criticized the film as a "glorification of traitors and insulting to patriots". Seven minutes of sexually graphic scenes were cut by director Ang Lee. Actress Tang Wei was subsequently banned from Chinese media, and award shows were advised to remove her and the film's producers from guest lists. Online mentions of the film and Tang were removed.[175] |
Iron Man 2 | 2010 | United States | Words for "Russia" and "Russian" were left untranslated in the subtitles, and the spoken words were muffled.[176] |
Titanic 3D | 2012 | United States | The film is again altered to remove Rose's breasts from the scene in which she poses nude for a painting.[165] Satirical jokes attributed the following explanation for the cuts to an SAPPRFT official: 3D effects would cause audiences to "reach out their hands for a touch and thus interrupt other people’s viewing".[177] |
Mystery | 2012 | China | The film was edited for release in China. In response, director Lou Ye removed his name from the film and published his negotiations with the censorship bureau onto Weibo.[115] |
Men in Black 3 | 2012 | United States | An alien disguised as a Chinese restaurant worker was offensive for the screen. 13 minutes were claimed to be cut.[citation needed] |
Looper | 2012 | United States | Despite the added Chinese element, the deputy head from SAPPRFT criticized a string of films for not obeying the co-production rules.[178] |
Skyfall | 2013 | United Kingdom | A scene in which James Bond (Daniel Craig) kills a security guard in Shanghai was cut for referencing prostitution in Macau, which was felt to be "morally or politically damaging" and because it was felt to suggest China cannot defend itself.[169][179] |
Cloud Atlas | 2013 | Germany, United States | Scenes with sexual content involving straight and gay couples were cut. Thirty-eight minutes, roughly twenty percent of the film's original runtime, was removed.[180][181] |
Iron Man 3 | 2013 | United States | Four minutes of Chinese scenes were added to the local version for "an easier ride with Chinese film censors". They include a product placement from Mengniu Dairy, claiming the milk is good for Iron Man, and additions of Chinese doctors into a surgery scene in order to "court Chinese censors".[169][182] |
Django Unchained | 2013 | United States | Violent scenes were altered.[183][184] |
No Man's Land | 2013 | China | The film, completed in 2010, underwent a three and a half-year approval process.[185] It experienced two major revisions to reduce violent content and clarify thematic intention, and it was reported that the film was removed from release schedules six times.[186] |
Parasyte: Part 1 and Parasyte: Part 2 | 2014 & 2015 | Japan | The 2-part film from 2014 and 2015 was merged into one single release in China in 2016, cutting more than 100 minutes of bloody and violent scenes.[citation needed] |
Kingsman: The Secret Service | 2015 | United Kingdom | Scenes were cut due to violent and sexual content.[187] |
Love | 2015 | France, Belgium | Taiwan's Ministry of Culture refused to issue the Restricted rating in December 2015, citing article 9 of the 2015 regulations and article 235 of the Criminal Code.[21] After the distributor cut 170 seconds of close-ups on physical intimacy, including sexual intercourse, fingering, ejaculation, fellatio, and similar, the film was released in April 2016.[188] |
The Revenant | 2016 | United States | Thirty seconds are rumored to have been cut.[189] |
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children | 2016 | United States | A scene in which the characters enjoy an "eyeball feast" was cut.[190] |
Hacksaw Ridge | 2016 | Australia, United States | Fewer than thirty seconds of graphic violence were cut.[191] |
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter | 2017 | Multinational coproduction | Seven or eight minutes[131] were cut due to graphic violence and blood.[192] |
Logan | 2017 | United States | Scenes were removed for violence and "brief nudity". The film was also the first affected by the PRC Film Industry Promotion Law effective on March 1, 2017, which requires the film to include a warning for minors in marketing materials.[193] |
Love Off the Cuff | 2017 | Hong Kong | Crude jokes were removed from the film.[194] |
Alien: Covenant | 2017 | United States | Six minutes is scenes which titular aliens covered in blood were cut, leaving "one to two minutes" of the creatures in the film. Other scenes involving violence were also altered.[195] The gay kiss scene between two androids David and Walter was also cut.[192] |
Bohemian Rhapsody | 2019 | United Kingdom, United States | The film was approved for a limited release after one minute of content was cut. This content involved drug use and the male lead character Freddie Mercury kissing other men. The approval follows public outcry over a local streaming company censoring the phrase "gay man" from Rami Malek's acceptance speech for Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Mercury in the film.[196] |
Better Days | 2019 | Hong Kong, China | The original version that was submitted to 69th Berlin International Film Festival ran 138 minutes, while the version theatrically released in China stood at 135 minutes. The various changes that were made intended to, "blunt the most scathing aspects of Tsang's social critique, while simultaneously communicating that the wisdom of China's party leaders has already righted many of the ills the film presents."[197] |
The Eight Hundred | 2020 | China | The film was pulled from the 2019 release slate to please censors. The approved version that premiered on Aug 21, 2020 is reported to be 13 minutes shorter than the one that would have screened in 2019.[198] |
One Second | 2020 | China | Though finally released in Nov 2020,[199] the Cultural Revolution-backdropped film was abruptly pulled from the 69th Berlin International Film Festival for "technical reasons".[163][200][201][202][203] |
Friends: The Reunion | 2021 | United States | Chinese streaming sites Youku, iQIYI, and Tencent Video have removed scenes featuring Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, and BTS.[204] While it's unclear who had ordered the cut, Lady Gaga has been banned following her 2016 meeting with Dalai Lama.[205] Justin Bieber was also banned from performing in China, with authorities blaming his “bad behavior” in 2017.[206] BTS faced boycott calls in China in 2020 after band member RM endorsed the alliance between the United States and South Korea during Korean War.[207] |
Title | Release year in mainland China | Country of origin | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
The Matrix Reloaded[208] | 2003 | Australia, United States | |
Resident Evil: Afterlife[208] | 2010 | Multinational coproduction | |
Prometheus[208] | 2012 | United Kingdom, United States | |
The Company You Keep | 2012 | United States | Mr. Jiao, a publicist for the film's Chinese distributor, told Xiaoxiang Morning Newspaper that 23 minutes were cut for commercial reasons. Despite that, the scheduling for the film in Changsha was not satisfactory.[209] Subsequently, the June 2017 notice from SAPPRFT banned the spread of so-called complete or uncut versions.[210] |
Dhoom 3 | 2013 | India | Mr. Peng, a manager of a local cinema in Changsha, told Xiaoxiang Morning News that the three-hour film was too long for Chinese audiences.[209] Subsequently, the June 2017 notice from SAPPRFT banned the spread of so-called complete or uncut versions. |
Resident Evil: Retribution[208] | 2013 | Multinational coproduction | |
American Hustle | 2014 | United States | It was reported that local distributors, not SAPPRFT, were behind the trimming of 30 minutes.[208] Subsequently, the June 2017 notice from SAPPRFT banned the spread of so-called complete or uncut versions. |
Fury[208] | 2014 | United States | |
Rush[208] | 2015 | Multinational coproduction | |
Allied[208] | 2016 | United Kingdom, United States | |
Dangal | 2017 | India | Although China Film Insider reported that the 20+ minute cut was not forced by the censor,[211] the June 2017 notice from SAPPRFT banned the spread of so-called complete or uncut versions. |
The Lost City of Z | 2017 | United States | It was reported that unnamed sources claimed the 37-minute trimmings were made by the film's producers, not by SAPPRFT.[211] Subsequently, the June 2017 notice from SAPPRFT banned the spread of so-called complete or uncut versions. |