Jet Li Upsets over China Ban

Li upset over China bans

Hong Kong –
Jet Li is frustrated that his Hollywood made movies have not been able to clear Chinese censors.

The Chinese native said on his official website on Monday that his 2000 movie, Romeo Must Die, was not shown in China because it involved Chinese gangsters; his 2001 film Kiss of the Dragon was banned because it featured Chinese police killing on foreign soil.
He said film-makers were careful in handling his 2003 Cradle 2 the Grave. Wary of a Chinese backlash, they changed the character of a Chinese police officer, who steals nuclear material, to that of a Taiwanese police officer, but the movie still did not clear the censors.
Li said Chinese censors objected because Li, a Chinese martial arts champion, played a Taiwanese person. China and Taiwan split amid civil war in 1949, but Beijing still views the self-ruled island as its territory and has threatened to retake it by force.
With his 2005 movie, Danny The Dog, also known as Unleashed, Li said he tried to convey an anti-violence message but still could not win over Chinese censors who raised concerns about racism. He played an animal-like assassin who tries to break away from his criminal life.
“Many foreign film-makers wonder how you can make an action movie that can be shown in China,” the actor said.
China carefully controls media content and allows in only 20 foreign movies a year. The Chinese government often edits or bans foreign films it considers insulting to China’s reputation.

In a recent example, censors cut scenes of Chow Yun Fat depicted as a bald, scarred pirate in Pirates Of the Caribbean: At World’s End, saying the images insulted Chinese people, state media reported.
Li said he respects Chinese movie regulations, but added that “films don’t always have to be realistic. In films, there are many unrealistic things…It is my hope that audiences can mature and develop to see the difference between a movie and real life”.
The former national gongfu champion in China recently shot the Chinese historical epic The Warlords. He is currently shooting Hollywood movie The Forbidden Kingdom, which marks his first pairing with Jackie Chan

AP

Similar Posts:

• Jackie and Jet’s movie “isn’t great”
• Fearless (Huo Yuen Jia)
• The Protege
• Shade of Truth
• Breaking News (HK Movie)

Tagged with: Ban Li • China Ban • Chinese Censors • Chinese Government • Chinese Martial Arts • Chinese Police • Chow Yun Fat • Cradle 2 The Grave • Danny The Dog • Film Makers • Foreign Film • Foreign Films • Gangsters • Jet Li • Kiss Of The Dragon • Media Content • Nuclear Material • Pirates Of The Caribbean • Pirates Of The Caribbean At World S End • Romeo Must Die

Filed under: Blog

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!

Possibly related posts