Movies
[WTF] New Zealand Bans ‘Maniac,’ Stating That It’s “Potentially Dangerous”
In a decision revealed Wednesday, New Zealand’s censor, the Office of Film and Literature Classification, banned Franck Khalfoun’s Maniac (read our review), starring Elijah Wood, from general screening in New Zealand, saying it can’t be shown outside of film festivals. The ruling also means the movie can’t be distributed on DVD at a later date, reports THR.
A remake of William Lustig’s grindhouse cult classic from 1980, the film was directed by Khalfoun (P2). It opened in the U.S. last month courtesy of IFC Midnight and had its world premiere at Cannes in 2012. It’s due to screen next at the New Zealand International Film Festival, running July 26-Aug. 11.
Explaining the ruling, Ant Timpson, a programmer for the New Zealand fest said in a statement that the OFLC had declared that “the POV nature of the film mixed with the psychopathic behavior of actor Elijah Wood is more than disturbing, that it’s potentially dangerous in the hands of the wrong person — that is, a non-festival-goer.”
Neil Foley of Monster Pictures, the film’s Australia-based distributor, said in a post on the company’s website: “Banning the film beyond festival screenings is an insult to the intelligence of the adult population of New Zealand and does little more than to serve as an open invitation to illegally pirate the film.”
“We will explore every option to have the banning revoked, but at this stage it [isn’t] looking good,” he added.
Seriously, what an absolute insult to everyone. Who the FUCK do the Office of Film and Literature Classification think they are? By watching it themselves, they basically imply that they are “more stable” than the average Joe and can “handle it”. It’s nice to know they think society is filled with homicidal psychopaths who are going to be inspired to scalp, and murder woman after watching a MOVIE. They can go eat their fucking steaks and stick the fork up their asses…
In addition to Leigh Whannell’s upcoming Universal Monsters movie Wolf Man, Julia Garner (The Royal Hotel) has also joined the cast of Weapons, THR has announced tonight.
Weapons is the new horror movie from New Line Cinema and director Zach Cregger (Barbarian), with Julia Garner joining the previously announced Josh Brolin (Dune 2).
The upcoming Weapons is from writer/director Zach Cregger, who will also produce alongside his Barbarian producing team: Roy Lee of Vertigo and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules of BoulderLight Pictures. Vertigo’s Miri Yoon also produces.
The Hollywood Reporter teases, “Plot details for Weapons are being kept holstered but it is described as a multi and inter-related story horror epic that tonally is in the vein of Magnolia, the 1999 actor-crammed showcase from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson.”
Cregger was a founding member and writer for the New York comedy troupe “The Whitest Kids U’Know,” which he started while attending The School of Visual Arts. The award-winning group’s self-titled sketch comedy show ran for five seasons on IFC-TV and Fuse. He was also a series regular on Jimmy Fallon’s NBC series “Guys with Kids” and the TBS hit series “Wrecked,” and was featured in a recurring role on the NBC series “About a Boy.”
Weapons will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.
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