2023-07-03 20:09:54
Vietnam has banned the upcoming “Barbie” movie from cinemas because of scenes including a map showing areas over which China asserts sovereignty in the South China Sea, state media announced Monday.
This fantasy comedy about the famous doll, directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, was scheduled to be shown nationwide in Vietnam from July 21.
However, state media reported that the film’s showtimes were withdrawn from the websites of the country’s major cinema chains, after a government decision to ban the film due to scenes showing the so-called nine-sector line.
China has long used the so-called nine-sector line to outline its vast claims over most of the resource-rich sea, which has continually angered Hanoi, which also claims parts of the waterway.
“The film review board saw this film and made a decision to ban it from being shown in Vietnam due to a violation related to” the nine-sector line, Phi Kin Thanh, director of the Vietnamese cinema department, told Dan Tre News.
Another state-run media outlet, Tien Phuong, reported that the scene showing the line of nine sectors appeared several times in the film.
In Vietnam, all films must be approved by censors, which prohibit scenes containing gratuitous violence, sexual suggestiveness or politically sensitive material.
Last year, the action-adventure film Uncharted, starring Tom Holland, was banned in Vietnamese cinemas due to scenes involving the nine-sector line.
And in 2018, Vietnam cut a scene from the romantic comedy “Crazy Rich Ages” in which a luxury briefcase appeared with a map of the world showing the disputed South China Sea islands under Beijing’s control.
The South China Sea contains large reserves of oil and gas and shipping lanes, and Beijing’s neighbors have often expressed fear that the giant neighbor is seeking to expand its control over the sea.
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