Dangerous Precedent: My take on Sony’s decision to drop ‘The Interview’
“It was a pleasure to burn.”
Some of you may recognize this line. It’s from Ray Bradbury’s classic novel Fahrenheit 451 and happens to be my favorite opening line to any novel. For those not familiar with the plot, it centers around a dystopian future where freedom of expression, specifically the arts, such as paintings, literature, and films are either banned or severely censored. Ironically, Bradbury’s novel was itself banned in many libraries and schools when it was first released.
Up until today I liked to think that the majority of the civilized world had evolved beyond blatant and egregious censorship. As the creators of “South Park” Trey Parker and Matt Stone are fond of saying, it’s either all fair game or none of it. Like the movie obsessed geek that I am, I’ve been familiar with the content of the Seth Rogen/James Franco film The Interview for months. Just in case you live under a rock and haven’t been on Facebook, Twitter, the Internet, or television in the last day, the film revolves around a talk show host and his producer scoring an interview with North Korea’s leader Kim-Jong Un. However, when the CIA recruits the duo to assassinate the titular head of North Korea comedy allegedly ensures. I say allegedly because the film has been officially scrapped by Sony due to cyberterrorist threats from the group “Guardians of Peace.” These are the same asshats who hacked Sony a couple of weeks ago releasing internal emails, Sony employee records, and upcoming film projects. These same said asshats released threats of violence to Sony and any theaters that dared to show The Interview in their cinemas, including the movie premiere in New York City. Yet surely I thought that neither Sony or the major cinemas of the world would give into these bullies’ demands.
Maybe I was naïve, or just blindly optimistic but regardless I was wrong. Dead wrong.
First the NYC premiere was canceled, then Rogen and Franco decided to stop publicity for the film. I watched in mounting horror as the issue escalated from there. Carmike theaters dropped the film, then all major theaters such a AMC, Regal, and Cinemark followed suit, resulting finally in Sony completely pulling the plug on the movie. US officials are now even saying that North Korea themselves are responsible for this debacle, specifically a special unit in the North Korean military called “Bureau 21,” a group whose sole purpose is to carry out cyber attacks.
To say I was horrified is like saying Guardians of the Galaxy was moderately successful this summer. I couldn’t fathom it. Here I am living in the United States, a place that’s supposed to be the bastion of free speech, and brazen mass censorship had just been declared at the point of gun disguised as a keyboard. To hear Sony’s response was even more baffling:
“…we respect and understand our partners’ decision and, of course, completely share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theater-goers”, and that “we are deeply saddened at this brazen effort to suppress the distribution of a movie, and in the process do damage to our company, our employees, and the American public. We stand by our filmmakers and their right to free expression and are extremely disappointed by this outcome.”
Um what?
How can you say that you stand by your filmmakers and support their right to free expression and then completely pull the movie? That’s the epitome of duplicity and hypocrisy. If Sony really possessed the courage of their convictions, they would have released the film as scheduled and told Kim Jong-Un and his atrocious haircut to go take a flying fuck at a bowl of rice! And the fact that major theaters like AMC, Regal, and Cinemark pulled the plug is just as egregious. How can they play controversial films like Obama’s America and The Passion of the Christ but completely lose their spine when it comes to The Interview? You’re telling me that Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 is okay but this is where you draw the line? Look I understand that a film with both Guy Fieri AND Nicki Minaj could drive anybody to violence, but to give into these guys? There’s just no excuse.
Before you think I’m just a callous asshole who isn’t thinking about the threat to people’s lives in this situation, hear me out. Listen I get it. Threats of violence against civilians is serious business and not to be taken lightly. If anyone got hurt or killed it would be tragic. But make no mistake either, as much as Sony and the major movie chains claim to care about the innocent blood of human lives (and I’m sure there are some executives who do) they are also concerned with the color green not just red. Aside from the Summer, holiday season is where studios and movie theaters make the most box office. People are not going to go to theaters if there’s the threat of bodily harm, especially with all the streaming and illegal download options available. When you weigh the cost of the opening weekend of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies against the $44 million budget of The Interview…well you do the math. Like the old adage says, at the end of the day money talks and bullshit walks. And in a place like Hollywood, studios will take bucks over bullshit every time. That may sound harsh but it’s the truth.
In spite of the risk to human lives, I am completely against Sony and the major theater chains’ decision because it sets a dangerous precedent. This is a slippery slope. What happens the next time a situation like this arises? Do we give in again? How many times do we back down before we are standing at the precipice of total censorship? Too much blood has been shed over the decades in my country and in others for the right to the freedom of expression. If not for the actions of multiple countries in WWII, I might be speaking German right now and watching films only the Reich deemed appropriate. Fuck that noise. What good is it to give in over the threat of possible human casualties if ultimately you lose your soul? I love my newborn son Quentyn with all my heart, and I will be goddamned if I’m going to let a bunch of North Korean cyberterrorists living in their parents’ basements, jacking off to Sailor Moon anime dictate what movies my son and I can watch in the theater.
So congratulations Sony, AMC, Regal, Cinemark, et al. You let the terrorists win this round, you pandering, craven, mouth-breathing sycophants. Unfortunately, my anti-censorship sisters and brothers are legion and the cyberterrorists just brought a knife to a gun fight. If you think me or any of my kind are going to go away, you couldn’t be more abysmally wrong than the plot to Caddyshack 2. I’ll be at the frontlines you cowardly bitches and to quote Kurt Russell in Tombstone, “Hell’s comin’ with me.”
I really wanted to see that too. Though the decision was rational, the reason to do so is not.
LikeLike
I saw the original scoffs and laughs at the threats and wondered what they were thinking. I’m not surprised the movie was pulled. I’m surprised how late they were with pulling it!
LikeLike
I agree and it also angers me to hear this. But i am also reminded that when this is released, because it will be, certain people will have calmed down. there will be a huge turnout. like the saying goes, even bad publicity is good publicity.
LikeLike
While well written, you fail to acknowledge the potential risk, this is an easy air on the side safety decision and postpone the release which therefore makes you….. an idiot.
LikeLike
If I’m an idiot what does that make a person who uses air when they should have used err?
LikeLike
Bonzer uses “air” as opposed to “err”. Who is the idiot? Yeah….
LikeLike
Aside from the entire paragraph where he did exactly what you say he didn’t do…yeah, you’re right.
LikeLike
The movie itself needs to be “leaked” and torrented so it can get the highest distribution possible. The decision was fear induced and rational to legal teams and stockholders. I’m actually surprised Franco and Rogen stopped doing promos for the movie but i’m sure Sony has thier contract in hand. I have friends that worked for sony and had thier info leaked. This decision also makes the crap they have to go through just more pointless
LikeLike
Oh also i forgot how long before a threat will make it ok for the government or law enforcement mandate a movie not be shown for “public safety”
LikeLike
Like I said a slippery slope. I get both sides but I’ll take freedom over fear any day.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve heard about this film on the news, I get it that the film is about a Korean Dictator with a deplorable reputation but why are there “people living in basements” (by the way hilarious metaphor in that sentence) causing such a tremendous fuss? Expressing one’s Opinions is not a terrorist action.
LikeLike
I totally understand why sony and theaters made the decision to shelve it, I don’t think it’s about not having freedom to say or do what we want here. Or about terrorists “winning” it’s more about keeping people safe and theaters & sony taking the risks of lawsuits, or being blamed for any act of violence that might occur.Lets face it if you are going to make films that taunt potentially dangerous shady world dictators you better be ready for any repercussions that may come from it. to me none of this is really funny and the movie itself doesn’t do much good to help ease any tensions.
LikeLike
I don’t understand how anyone could blame Sony. If I got a random call from someone and they said if you show your movie we’ll kill a bunch of people, I’m gonna pick the people. I’m willing to bet a lot of things that this is an empty threat. $5. $10. Lunch. Loser buys the next round. Not willing to bet the lives of anyone. This isn’t a freedom vs security moment. There is a literal threat. This is not the same as you being groped in line at the airport because of what happened over a decade ago. Handle it and get back to the regularly schedule program. This isn’t a free expression issue. In the US, you are allowed to express yourself free of prosecution, not of ALL consequences. Sony was not forced to cancel the release. The FBI even said it wasn’t a credible threat. They made their own decision. Sad? yes. But what could they do? If they released it and even one person ended up getting killed over it that would look pretty stupid in my opinion.
LikeLike
I just wish they hadn’t. It makes countries like that believe that they can control what happens in other countries by threatening others.
LikeLike
If I was Sony I’d release ‘The Interview’ for free online and make 5 more small indie films for next year all about Kim Jong-Un. Never give into “do it or else” demands, your right the precedent it sets is horrifying 😦
LikeLike
Wondering where all the outrage was when MGM changed the Red Dawn remake villian from China to North Korea. Horrible remake either way but it isn’t like Sony is the first to basically scrap a movie because someone else didn’t like it.
Good article. I think both studios should of released their movies as planned.
LikeLike