Lebanese movie "HELP" banned!!!
 

Yet another movie ban, this time it is Marc Abi Rashed’s turn to have his movie “HELP” banned in Lebanon.

In brief, “Help” is the story of a teenager named Ali who lives in a van in Lebanon. His life suddenly turns upside down when he meets Thuraya, a prostitute living with a gay man. The movie has nudity and an excessive use of inappropriate words.

The reason of the ban is still not clear, at least to me. The movie was initially given the license to be shown in the Lebanese theaters on contdition that it will be restricted to viewers above 18 years old, later on he head of the censoring body was replaced and his successor withdrew the authorization! Some claim it is because the movie is too much for the Lebanese audience to accept, while others say that it is because the lead actress “Thuraya” who has appeared naked in the movie, and happens to be Joanna Andraos the daughter of the Lebanese MP Antoine Andraos, which might negatively affect his campaign in the upcoming election in June 2009.

In case authorities gace the license back to “HELP”, I believe it will make double the profits it was supposed to make before, becuase people will be eager to watch it after the fuss that the ban issue has created!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb7F_5VhGHg


So guys are you with banning such kind of movies, share your opinion. And if you got a chance to watch it before the ban, or u got a leaked version, tell us your review about it!!!

“Help, Help, Help” You’ve probably seen the posters and wondered what all the fuss is about. As it turns out, Help is a movie but you won’t be able to watch it anytime soon. After granting permission to show the movie, the state’s censorship departments revoked the license.

“We did everything according to the law” stresses director Marc Abi Rached. The producers got permission for the script first. Then, after one month of shooting and six month of editing, the movie was presented to General Security. Abi Rached explains that the only demand made by the state’s censorship department prior to granting a license was that he darkened an image showing a v*gina. He complied with the demand. On July 10, 2008, permission was granted to show the movie Help in Lebanon under the license serial number 1460. The film got the rating: suitable for viewers over 18.

With the movie scheduled to hit the big screen in February 2009, the production team organized a promotional campaign and looked for distributors. The preview screening took place on February 12 in cinema Empire and just three days before the release date, surprise! The license for public projection is revoked. “This is the first time in the history of Lebanese cinema that a license is granted then revoked, and we still don’t know why it happened.” “We went through all the procedures insists executive producer Bakhos Alwan, we were able to hold the preview screening because we had the license. Even our posters were okayed; they are the ones who broke the law, not us.”

Abi Rached and Bakhos believe the movie was banned based on personal opinions, “After taking away the license, they asked us to cut about twenty minutes from the movie, we managed to negotiate and now they want us to cut 8 minutes. If we edit the movie properly, to remove those 8 minutes, we’ll also have to cut 25 minutes and the movie will only be one hour long.” The director is determined not to yield and said he will not remove one second. “Nothing in my movie is against the law,” he says.

The affair sparked the interest of local and international media and helped generate a buzz that could serve the movie if it ever does play in Lebanon. The team is also in contact with distributors in Europe and the United States. So apart from nudity scenes and language, what’s Help about? The synopsis describes a story about outcasts and the underground: Ali, a 14 years old delinquent, is living a chaotic life. Everything changes when he meets Souraya, a prostitute threatened by Jacques, a mob guy who is having problems at home. Maroun a poor taxi driver, while driving Jacques in his cab to his office, Maroun notices their extreme resemblance. The choices of some and the destinies of others meet and change their existences.

http://www.iloubnan.info/en/article/id/32284

well i just got the movie from the soure yeler 7ad bayter:p i haven't watche it yet i hope it's good

la2eno in lebanon a 16 year old kid can look like an 18 year old w yfout :D sha3eb az3ar :huh:

well simply they can use the "hawiyet" w if the security man 7ass eno l hawieh mzawra or he is lying, he can keep him outside :) not a big deal

yeah iza 3andik shi 50 wa7ad jeyeh yo7daro lezem el security yshouf lal 50 wa7ad? :p ino 7aram wlo shu asas :p