Many countries have government-appointed or private commissions to censor and rate productions for film and television exhibition. While it is common for films to be edited to fall into certain rating classifications, this list includes only films that have been explicitly prohibited from public screening. In some countries, films are banned on a wide scale; these are not listed in this table.
Afghanistan
Date
Title
Notes
1996–2001
All
During the five-year reign of the Islamic Emirate government in Afghanistan, watching film or television was prohibited.
On August 13, 2023, just three weeks after its release on July 19, the screenings of Barbie were halted in film theaters in Algeria. According to Reuters, the official source was quoted as saying that the film "promotes homosexuality and other Western deviances" and that it "does not comply with Algeria's religious and cultural beliefs."[5]
This film, based on the stageplay of the same name, had to insert a disclaimer at the start that the action of the film does not take place in Argentina, due to the pressure from the censors at the time.
This comedy film had its screening forbidden in Buenos Aires by the Municipal Censorship Commission due to the conservative public criticising it as "condoning immorality". As a result, the film could be only screened in an ephemeral and circumstantial way in some points of the interior of the country.
This film, based on the work of the same name written by Florencio Sánchez about the encounter of a woman known as "the Tigress" and a student of fine arts, was banned by the administrative authority after rating it as "not suitable for ages under 18", alleging "low quality" and covert moralism, excluded the film from the regime of compulsory screening with which the domestic film industry was protected. It was shown edited in Canal 9 Sábados circulares show on 17 March 1962 and debuted commercially in an edited form on 10 September 1964. After 30 years when the film was thought to be lost, a copy from a Santa Fe film archive was found, being screened on Cine Club Núcleo in 1994.[7]
Banned under Juan Carlos Ongania's regime during the self-styled "Argentine Revolution" dictatorship (1966–1973), for "violating morality standards". The film was later screened in 2007.[9]
This film about a psychoanalyst whose only goal is to impress the women who attend his group therapies, which was originally shot in 1969, was banned by the classification board, which was in charge of censoring films. The film underwent several cuts to submit it again in order to receive classification, but in September, the censors maintained their decision. After several cuts and a new ratification in October, the film was finally authorized to be released in November 1971.
This documentary was banned by the Argentinian embassador of Mexico, at behest of the President of Mexico Luis Echeverria, who warned that the film was a fierce criticism of a betrayed ideal rather than a praise of the "revolution made institution".
This documentary film did not see a commercial debut and was banned in the Valle Fértil Department by the de facto comptroller Luis Martínez, who supposed that it was due to the comment on Revista Clarín magazine titled "Valle Fértil: un pueblo que se extingue" (Valle Fertil: A people in extinction").[10] The film would later be screened in 2014.
This film, produced by Bill Susmann and based on Víctor Proncet's story La víctima, which was based on the self-kidnapping of a Peronist labor leader, was banned during the self-styled "Argentine Revolution" dictatorship (1966–1973) for its controversial themes (which was about a Peronist labor leader who becomes a corrupt functionary after years of militancy until the presidency of Campora).
Banned during the self-styled "Argentine Revolution" dictatorship (1966–1973), due to its controversial storyline and themes.[11] Its release was put "on hold" by the dictatorship until the democratically elected constitutional government of Héctor José Cámpora came to power, which allowed its distribution.[11]
Banned under Videla's regime during Argentina's last-civil military dictatorship (1976–1983) due to its "innmoral content", "attacks on family, religion, morals, the distinct social classes, tradition and the basic values of the Argentinian system of life, by the perverted and negative spirit which rings throughout the film, through its absurde themes and various outrageous situations"[12]
Banned under Videla's regime during Argentina's last-civil military dictatorship (1976–1983), because it depicts the hunt for Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann.[8]
This documentary about six fathers estranged from their children after conflictive divorces and hardships to keep their bonds with their children was scheduled to be premiered in 2014, but due to a court measure, it could not be commercially premiered and thus, was uploaded on YouTube.[22][23]
Banned because of obscenity, though a censored version was made available in 1977. Only in 2000 did it finally become available in its complete cut.[26][27]
Temporarily banned for cruel, disturbing, and sexually explicit content. A censored DVD version was later released on February 23, 2012.[29][30][31][32][33][34]
This documentary by Tareque Masud and Catherine Masud was objected by the Censor Board out of concern that the songs featured in it were pro-Awami League. Overturned in 1996.[44]
2005
Teardrops of Karnaphuli
This documentary by Tanvir Mokammel about the effects of Kaptai Dam on the indigenous community in Chittagong Hill Tracts was banned in Bangladesh.[44]
2009
Nomuna
This satirical film by Enamul Karim Nirjhar had its release refused by the Censor Board for its satire of political figures of Bangladesh.[44]
2011
Hridoy Bhanga Dheu
This film was banned because the main villain in the movie wore a Mujib Coat, a coat worn by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh.[44]
This Chakma language film (which was the first of its kind) was refused certification by the Censor Board as the Bangladesh Army lodged a complaint that the film showed the activities of the army in the Chittagong Hill Tracts which is a sensitive issue,[45] as well for their negative portrayal (along with the police forces') during the Chittagong Hill Tracts conflict.[46] The Ministry of Information in a letter to the Censor board objecting to some scenes of the film, requesting their deletion. The director, Aung Rakhine, withdrew the film rather than cut it,[44] accusing the Censor Board of violating human rights.[47]
2016
Rana Plaza
This film about a garment factory worker's 17-day fight to survive under the debris of Rana Plaza, a building that collapsed on 24 April 2013, was banned by the Bangladesh Film Censor Board due to a petition from the Bangladesh National Garment Workers League chief Sirajul Islam, as the movie featured scenes considered "frightening" as well the names of security forces, which is considered a breach of the law.[48]
Faraaz, directed by Hansal Mehta, was released on February 3, 2023, in India and received mixed reviews from critics. This film is based on the 2016 Dhaka attack wherein 29 people were killed, including 20 hostages (17 foreigners and 3 locals), two police officers, five gunmen, and two bakery staff. Ruba Ahmed, the mother of Abinta Kabir, who was killed by militants in the Holey Artisan Attack on July 1, 2016, filed the writ on February 12, 2023. After hearing that writ petition, the High Court bench of Md. Khasruzzaman and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir delivered this order to ban this misleading film.
Banned on its initial release because of its graphic sex scenes, being the last film subject to censorship in the country.[50] It was the only European country at that time where the film was banned.[51][52] Since 1994[53] the ban is no longer in effect.[54]
Banned for being "communist propaganda" and for presenting negative facts of Brazil.[56] Trying to justify the ban, the Brazilian government alleged that "In Rio de Janeiro, the temperature did not reach over 39.6 °C".[57]
Banned for being a "manifesto of communism". During production, in 1964, the plot, the photographer and other material were seized and crew members were arrested.[58] The film tells the story of João Pedro Teixeira, a union leader from Paraíba murdered in 1962.[59] Ban overturned in 1984.[60]
1969–2017
El Justicero
Film banned in 1969 for criticizing the ruling military dictatorship. The original 35mm film was seized by the authorities and later destroyed.[61][62] For these reasons, the film was lost until 2017, when a 16mm copy was restored and re-released in DVD in Brazil.[63][64][65]
Banned during the military dictatorship for containing obscenity and "promiscuous content". A censored version of black polka dots covering the breasts and genitals of the actors in the nude scenes became available in the country in 1978.[66][67]
Banned during the military dictatorship for containing obscene scenes that were considered by the government as an "attempt against morality and good habits". Ban lifted in 1979.[68][69]
Banned during the military dictatorship for containing violent scenes that were considered by the government as an "attempt against morality and good habits". Ban lifted in the early 1980s.[71][72]
Banned due to a court decision obtained by the adopted daughter of the painter Di Cavalcanti, Elizabeth Di Cavalcanti, alleging that her father's image was violated due to the film containing scenes from the painter's funeral and burial.[75][76] However, in 2004, members of the family of the filmmaker Glauber Rocha, made the work available in full version on a server outside Brazil, to circumvent the film's ban.[77]
Banned due to a lawsuit filed by Xuxa, one of the actresses in the film's cast.[79] Ban lifted in 2018. Brazilian television showed the film on February 12, 2021, on Canal Brasil.[80]
Banned during the government of president José Sarney for containing blasphemy against the Christian faith.[81][82] Ban lifted after the promulgation of the new Brazilian Constitution in 1988.[83]
Banned due to it being an "apology for pedophilia" and extreme violence.[85] The film was shown at the VII Fantastic Film Festival in Porto Alegre and was selected for the Fantastic Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro.[86][87] However, it was removed from the event's schedule by order of Caixa, the festival's sponsor. A new screening of the film was scheduled by the organizers of the event outside the festival,[88] but the copy of the film was seized by a court order, due to a lawsuit filed by the regional office of the Democrats party.[89] Ban lifted in July 2012.[90]
Two Tom and Jerry short films, released respectively in 1949 and 1952, were confiscated "by editorial issues and appropriateness of the content to the target audience—children of 7 to 11 years".[91]
Banned during the Communist era for criticizing the communist leaders during World War II.[92][93][94] After Bulgaria became a democratic nation in 1990, the ban was lifted.[92][94]
Cambodia
Date
Title
Notes
2014
Who Killed Chea Vichea?
Banned for investigating the mysterious 2004 assassination of Chea Vichea, one of Cambodia's most influential union leaders who spent years fighting for increased wages and improved working conditions for the nation's 300,000 garment workers.[95]
Banned for "insane romance, numerous sex sequence, the use of violence during sex" and for being "entirely related to sexual matters that are too extreme for Khmer society".[96][97]
Banned since 15 April 2015, when the Russian film distributor Central Partnership announced that the film would be withdrawn from cinemas in Russia, although some media stated that screening of the film was blocked by the Russian Ministry of Culture.[105][106][107] The decision was made following the press screening the day before. The Ministry of Culture and the Central Partnership issued a joint press release stating that the screening of the film before the 70th anniversary of the Victory Day was unacceptable.[108] The Ministry of Culture claimed that it received several questions on the film's contents, primarily concerning "distortion of historical facts, peculiar treatment of events before, during and after the Great Patriotic War and images and characters of Soviet people of that era".[108] Russian minister of culture Vladimir Medinsky welcomed the decision, but stressed that it was made solely by the Central Partnership. However, in his personal statement Medinsky complained that the film depicts Russians as "physically and morally base sub-humans", and compared the depiction of Soviet Union in the film with J. R. R. Tolkien's Mordor, and wished that such films should be screened neither before the 70th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War, nor any other time.[109] However, he also stated that the film would be available in Russia on DVD and online.[110]
As a result of the decision the film was also withdrawn from cinemas in Belarus,[111] Ukraine,[112] Kazakhstan,[113] and Kyrgyzstan, while release of the film has been postponed until October in Georgia.[114] Ukrainian film director and producer Alexander Rodnyansky criticised the decision not to release Child 44 as bad for the country's film industry. "Before, films where Soviet and Russian heroes were presented not in the best way have been released in Russia, but nothing similar happened. Now everything to do with history should clearly fit into a kind of framework set by the culture ministry."[115]
Banned under the Communist regime for "depicting the wanton".[117][118] The film's director, Věra Chytilová, was forbidden from working again until 1975.[118][119]
Banned from 1966 to 1968 because of its political satire. After a short release during the Prague Spring, it was banned again for the next twenty years. In 1974, director Jan Němec emigrated.[120]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government in 1968 for "mocking the working class".[120][121][better source needed] Director Miloš Forman relocated to the United States.
1968
Deserters and Pilgrims (also known as The Deserters and the Nomads)
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government.[120]
1969
Funeral Ceremonies (Smuteční slavnost)
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government.[120]
1969
The Seventh Day, The Eighth Night (Den sedmý, osmá noc)
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government.[120][122]
1969–1989
Squandered Sunday (Zabitá neděle)
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government for twenty years, with its director, Drahomíra Vihanová, being banned from making new films until 1977.[120]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government from 1969 until 1989 because this black comedy depicts a crematorium director who enjoys burning people and sides with the Nazis during the Holocaust.[123][124][125]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government for depicting three people orphaned by political violence and trying to mentally survive, despite not being free.[120]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government for its shocking content. Its director, Věra Chytilová, was forbidden from making new films for eight years.[120][128]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government for its satirical depiction of Czech society, which meant the end of the director Pavel Juráček's career.[120][129]
Banned by the Communist government for depicting life in Czechoslovakia in a critical light. Its director, Jan Švankmajer, was banned from working for five years.[130]
1975
The Apple Game
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government. The director, Věra Chytilová, personally asked for more information at the censor board and heard that the Soviet embassy felt the subject matter was "too heavy-duty".[120]
Banned by the Czechoslovak Communist government after its director, Jan Švankmajer, refused to change anything about the film. Government censors objected to its mockumentary tone, which could undermine peoples' faith in the TV news. Švankmajer himself was banned from making films for eight years.[131]
Banned because the Communist government censors didn't like its criticism of consumerism. The ban was more than likely also a result of its director, Jan Švankmajer, having been banned twice before in the past.[130]
1983–1989
Straka v hrsti (A Magpie in the Hand)
Banned by the Communist government because the film was based on a script by Antonín Přidal, an author who was banned by the government, and because it featured the subversive rock band Pražský výběr.[125]
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Date
Title
Notes
2015
L'Homme Qui Repare Les Femmes (The Man Who Mends Women)
Banned without a reason given. The documentary is about Congolese gynaecologist Denis Mukwege, whose hospital treats rape victims.[132]
Banned because the Egyptian Muslim lead (Omar Sharif) is portrayed in a romantic storyline with Jewish actress Barbra Streisand. Streisand's political support for Israel at the height of military tensions between Egypt and Israel was also a factor.[134][135]
This film, which is loosely based on the story of the Biblical character Joseph, raised several protests, since Islam forbids the visual depiction of religious figures.[136] After achieving all necessary approvals from the censors, the film ran successfully in Egyptian cinema until a lawsuit initiated by a fundamentalist Islamist lawyer caused a temporary ban. After a year-long court battle, the director Youssef Chahine won the case, only to face a second ban resulting from a lawsuit initiated by a Christian lawyer who objected to the movie's deviations from the Biblical account.[137]
Banned right after screening the film in cinemas, after criticism over scenes deemed sexually provocative. The movie was criticized for copying Giuseppe Tornatore's movie Malèna (2000) starring Italian actress Monica Bellucci.[142][143]
Banned for its depiction of cracking security safes. The government feared it might inspire copycat crimes. The ban was lifted after five years.[17][better source needed]
Banned for 24 years due to its political satire, which could offend their ally and neighbouring country, the Soviet Union. (Finland had a policy of Finlandization).[151][152]
Banned by the Finnish Board of Film in June 1969 for violence.[153] Ban was lifted in February 1989 after several minutes of cuts. The film was still rated as K18 (suitable for adults only) and as such VHS versions of the film were also not allowed. The film has never received a proper premier in Finland although it has been aired three times in television (1994, 1999 and 2009).[154]
Banned on its initial release in 1971 for violence and content which could potentially be hazardous to mental health. The decision to ban was ultimately taken to highest available court which did not lift the ban. A second round of banning was then seen in 1985 and the government officials used the same exact phrasing in their decision to ban as was done 14 years earlier. The ban was finally automatically lifted after a law change in 2001.[155]
Banned by the Finnish Board of Film. In 1972 and 1974 Swedish television showed the film, resulting in the Swedish television mast on Åland being shut down during the movie because Finns were banned from seeing the film. Director of the Finnish Board of Film, Jerker Eriksson, said that the banning of the film was political because it harmed the Finnish-Soviet relationship. Finnish television showed the film in 1996 on the TV1 YLE channel.[156][157]
Banned in February 1972 for violence and mental health reasons. The distributor challenged the banning and took the decision to ban to Finnish Supreme administrative Court which ruled against banning. After minor cuts, it was banned again. A second round of court cases (again, won by the distributor) forced the banning authorities to allow the film to be distributed. They did so but only after mandatory cuts of over three minutes. Finally in January 1973 the cut film premiered in Finland.[158]
Banned in 1976 for moral, mental health and appropriateness reasons. The banning renewed again in 1984 with the defined exception of two specific screenings by the Finnish Film Archive. Finally a law change in 2001 removed the ban.[161]
Banned on each films' initial release until a law change in 2001 when all films in the franchise automatically reverted to a K18 (adults only) classification.[162]
Banned on its initial release. A considerably shortened version was allowed in 1991 with a K16 classification (allowed for persons over the age of 16).[163]
Banned in January 1986 for its violence and for political reasons.[165] The political reasons were that the movie was "potentially harmful to international relations". A court appeal to Finnish Supreme administrative Court decided against the banning (after some cuts would be made) and authorities were forced to dismantle the ban (with more cuts) and the movie premiered in late December 1986 after a struggle of almost a year. 20 years after the movie was banned, it was revealed (by a politics researcher and academic Juhani Suomi in his book "Kohti sinipunaa") that the authorities were in fact "instructed" to ban the film and that the banning was dictated by the Soviet Union's ambassador Vladimir Sobolev.[166]Born American was the last movie in Finland to suffer banning for political reasons.
Banned for violence in 1986; it took six years after the film's release for any distributor to even try to get a classification. A law change in 2001 finally lifted the ban.[167]
Banned from 1945 until 1947, because the film was produced under the Nazi regime with financial support too. It was also seen as a negative portrayal of French people and accused of harboring sympathies for the Vichy regime. After two years, however, the ban was lifted again.[17][better source needed][174]
Banned due to a technicality in copyright laws on order of the estate of composer Georges Bizet (on whose opera Carmen the film was based).[178][179][180]
Banned from French cinema screens in 2000 after being given an X-rating.[190][191] Eventually, in August 2001, it was reclassified from age bracket 16 to 18.[192]
Banned on February 3, 2016, over sexual and violent content, despite being allowed on its initial release in 2009. The ban was a result of the Catholic traditionalist pressure group Promouvoir who wanted the 16 rating to be reclassified to prevent minors from seeing it. A French court ruled in their favor. As a new certificate is being decided the film is now banned from all cinemas, TV broadcast and video release.[193] The movie was released uncut in 2023 with an 18 certificate, the highest in the country.
A documentary about the religious rituals of the Hauka tribe. Banned in Ghana and several other French and English colonies in Africa at the time because of the Africans' blatant attempts to mimic and mock the "white oppressors". On the other hand, African students, teachers, and directors found the film to perpetrate an "exotic racism" of the African people.[194][195]
Banned under the Communist government for almost a decade, because it satirized the regime.[202][203] Was later banned again in 1998 for containing an explicit depiction of animal abuse. This scene was later cut, resulting in the film being unbanned in 2010 and released with a 12 rating.[citation needed]
"Bebukottak" (Hungarian slang word, meaning approximately "they failed")
This documentary film presented the life of the juvenile prison in Tököl was banned due to its brutality – with only acted scenes in the film. It was only after the Hungarian regime change in 1990 that it could be freely distributed again.[206]
1994
ÁVOs
The 1994 MTV film about the ÁVO (Hungarian State Police State Defense Department) was banned due to a complaint by Mazsihisz (Federation of the Jewish Communities of Hungary), on the grounds that it emphasized the origin of the perpetrators of the murder of Raoul Wallenberg.[207]
1994
Törvénytelen szocializmus ("Illegal Socialism")
The 1994 MTV film about illegal Socialism was banned due to a complaint by Mazsihisz (Federation of the Jewish Communities of Hungary), on the grounds that it exaggerated the origin of the perpetrators.[207]
Banned on the island of Bali, as local politicians worried that the film, which about the 2002 Bali bombings, might promote hatred and intolerance.[214]
Banned due to its sexual content;[217][218] however, Johan Tjasmadi, member of Lembaga Sensor Film (Film Censorship Board), said that the film was never registered to the board.[219]
Banned briefly by the regime of The Shah, due to what was perceived as the film depicting Iran as a rural, culturally backwards society. The film would later be allowed to screen on the condition that the film would begin with a disclaimer explaining to audiences that the film is set several decades ago, and does not reflect a modern Iran.[220]
Pulled from cinemas two weeks after its premiere in Iran due to the film mocking conservative attitudes of the clerics in Iran.[227] In 2020, the uncut film was granted a license for screening by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance.[228]
Secretly recorded and banned from exhibition for its themes criticising the Iranian government's use of capital punishment. The government also temporarily prohibited the film's director Mohammad Rasoulof from making films in the country, imprisoned him, and prohibited him from travel outside Iran.[232]
Banned for indulging in excessive cruelty. The Israeli film censorship board indicated the film depicted Chinese and Russian soldiers as "monsters".[236]
Banned after it was revealed that one of the main actors, Gert Fröbe, had a Nazi past.[237] The film had only run for six weeks in the theaters.[238] It was unbanned a few months later when a man went to the Israeli Embassy in Vienna and told the staff that Fröbe hid him and his mother from the Nazis (which may have saved their lives).[239][240]
Banned by the Israeli Film Ratings Board on the premise that it was libelous and might offend the public; the Supreme Court of Israel later overturned the decision.[243][245] In 2021, the film was banned yet again after a lower court ruled in favor of a plaintiff who had appeared in the film.[246][247]
Banned briefly in 2004, though not for the film itself, but because of the Hebrew dub. A joke about Israeli singer David D'Or's high voice was added, in which one character threaten to emasculate another by saying "Let's do a David D'or on him". This remark prompted the artist to take legal action.[248]
Banned in Japan for its graphic sex scenes.[17] In 1982 the court ruled in director Nagisa Ōshima's favor, but the film is still only available in a censored cut.[254][255]
Banned due to jokingly accusing Kazakhstan of antisemitism and misogyny. However, the film's catchphrase, "Very nice", was later used in an official tourism campaign.[258]
Initially banned due to depictions of homosexuality. However, following public outrage, the film's director, Wanuri Kahiu, sued the Kenya Film Classification Board for banning the film. The court ruled in favour Kuhiu, effectively unbanning the film.[262][263]
Kuwaiti ministry of information's committee on cinematic censorship censored the film because of its "ideas and beliefs that are alien to the Kuwaiti society".[277] Also banned due to "promoting ideas and beliefs that are not in line with the cultures and values".[278][279]
Banned initially after some clerics found it to be "offensive to Iran and Islam." The ban was later revoked after an outcry in Lebanese intellectual and political circles.[282]
The film is banned in Lebanon, with the most harsh critics saying the film depicts a vague and violent time in Lebanon's history. A movement of bloggers, among them the Lebanese Inner Circle, +961 and others have rebelled against the Lebanese government's ban of the film, and have managed to get the film seen by local Lebanese critics, in defiance of their government's request on banning it. The film was privately screened in January 2009 in Beirut in front of 90 people.[283] Since then, many screenings have taken place. Unofficial copies are also available in the country.
2010
Chou sar?
The General Security Department did not state the reason behind banning the documentary, which covered the Lebanese Civil War.[284][285]
This film tackles fears of communities about demographic partition stemming from massacres and displacements perpetrated along sectarian lines during the Lebanese Civil War. It was banned for "stimulating sectarian and partisan zealotries and disturbing civil peace".[293][294]
Produced by an Israeli company and filmed in Israel.[295]
2017
The Beach House
This film by Roy Dib, which tells the story of a late-night dinner party in which two sisters play host to an old friend and his male companion, was banned due to the revelation that the two male characters were lovers.[296]
Banned because it casts the Israeli actress Gal Gadot.[298]
2017
Panoptic
This documentary was banned in Lebanon due to the director Rana Eid refusing to remove a single sentence and any military presence, as well for being critical of the Lebanese military.[299]
No reason was given for the ban, but it may have been because a transgender flag, which had the slogan "Protect Trans Kids" on it, was briefly shown on Gwen's bedroom wall.[43]
This film was banned due to its depiction of Moses, as per Islamic custom, prophets (such as Moses) and messengers of God cannot be portrayed in any medium.[309]
Banned due to the Ministry of Islamic Affairs (then known as the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs) taking offence to the depiction of Moses in the film.[309]
Prime Minister Dom Mintoff personally banned the screening of the film claiming the film promotes violence against an independent nation. Allegedly banned on a personal request from Libyan Leader Muammar Gaddafi.[312]
Based on the 1929 novel by Martín Luis Guzmán, the movie was banned for 30 years due to its portrayal of revolutionary heroes Álvaro Obregón and Plutarco Elías Calles.[315]
This film was initially banned due to a full-scale riot caused by its premiere at the 1968 Acapulco Film Festival breaking out[316]Fando y Lis was shown in New York's 5th Avenue Cinema where it was dubbed, re-edited and cut by 13 minutes. It was shown in London in February 1971, re-titled as Tar Babies, running 98 minutes. It was not released in Mexico until July 1972.[317]
This film starring the legendary wrestler El Santo had two versions shot: one version rated R7, which debuted in 1968; and an 18 rated version known as El vampiro y el sexo, which could not be seen until 2011, screened on a vampire films selected by Guillermo del Toro, during the International Guadalajara International Film Festival.[318][319] However, the premiere of this version was cancelled due to conflicts of rights between the productor's family and wrestler El Hijo Del Santo, who wanted as well to avoid that the film would tarnish his father's image.[320]
Due to its representation of sexuality, violence and social marginalization, the film faced imposed and mandated cuts, as well as restricted distribution.[321]
Banned on its initial release because of a scene where Laurel and Hardy sit on a bed with a woman to whom they were not married. Censors felt this was "indecent". Today the film is not banned.[325]
The uncut version was banned since 25 March 2010 by the court of Alkmaar, which classified several scenes as child pornography.[326][327] The decision therefore means that possession, distribution and knowingly gaining access to the movie is prohibited.[328]
A home video VHS release with cuts made was rated R18 in 1985.[334] An uncut home video release in 1986 was rated "R" and limited to trade screenings only.[335] Another uncut home video release in 1995 with bonus material was also rated "R" and limited to the importer only.[336] The film was "Refused Classification" (not "Objectionable") in 2024 for blu-ray. This is because the submission process was not completed, not because of the content itself.[337] It is an offense in New Zealand for anyone to import, possess or distribute the uncut version of this film, unless granted special permission from the OFLC to do so.
Banned on the grounds that it "tends to promote and support the exploitation of children and young persons for sexual purposes, and to a lesser extent, the use of sexual coercion to compel persons to submit to sexual conduct", and for high-impact violence and cruelty.[338] In 2021 the Office reconsidered the series and classified it R16.[339]
Although an edited VHS version had been classified R18 in 1996, the unedited DVD version was banned in 2005 for "exploit[ing] the nudity of women and present[ing] real and tragic events in a flippant and offensive way."[340]
Banned due to one scene that "fuses an act of extreme violence with sexual gratification". This scene's inclusion led to the film being classified as objectionable under s3(2)(f) of the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act 1993 on the grounds that it "tend[s] to promote and support acts of torture and the infliction of extreme violence and extreme cruelty",[342][343] thus making it illegal for the film to be displayed publicly. Sony Pictures initially refused to remove the scene. However, on 29 January 2008, after the scene was excised, the film was rated R18 for "torture and sadistic violence".[344]
Banned on the grounds of the series' violent and sexual scenes. Due to the reaction from New Zealand film authorities, distributor Madman Entertainment chose not to release the remaining volumes there.[347]
Banned by the government on May 25, 2012, due to "objectionable content" (offensive depictions of sexual violence, pedophilia, extreme violence, necrophilia and/or other content that is offensive and abhorrent) [350]
Banned from theatrical and home video release; the OFLC felt that "the tacit invitation to enjoy cruel and violent behavior through its first-person portrayal and packaging as entertainment is likely to lead to an erosion of empathy for some viewers".[351]
North Korea bans all foreign films, as well as almost all foreign products, including all foreign media, regardless of content.[354][355][356][357]
The British film Bend It Like Beckham was broadcast on North Korean state television on 26 December 2010, to celebrate foreign relations between the two nations; the film contains significant sub-plots about religion and homosexuality, but was edited down to half its original runtime for the broadcast.[358]
Banned due to jokes deemed offensive to religious people. In Sweden the film was allowed for release and even screened with the tagline "The film so funny that it got banned in Norway".[360] In 1980 the Norwegian ban was lifted.[160]
Banned outright by the Norwegian Media Authority due to outrageous, offensive & abhorrent content (Necrophilia, extreme violence, animal cruelty, and/or other material that is disgusting & abhorrent).[citation needed]
Banned due to high impact violence and cruelty. In January 2009, The Norwegian Media Authority classified the film as "Rejected" and banned the film outright in Norway after the government learned of an incident at the Stockholm Film Festival where two people both vomited and fainted while watching the film. The film remains strictly prohibited in Norway.[160]
Banned due to violation of criminal law sections 204a and 382 which deal with the sexual representation of children and extreme violence.[160] An edited version of the film was eventually passed with an 18 rating.[362]
The film was banned from distribution in certain OIC member states which include Egypt, Indonesia, Lebanon, Kuwait, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and few others,[363][364] due to a scene featuring same-sex kiss between Uzo Aduba's female character Alisha Hawthorne and her partner.[365] The People's Republic of China, not an OIC member but a fellow SCO member with Pakistan, also requested that the scene in question be removed.[366] The scene was initially cut from the film in mid-March 2022, but following, Disney CEO Bob Chapek's controversial opposition to Florida's Parental Rights in Education bill and the internal polarizing uproar it caused within Disney, the scene was reinstated.[367][368] Speaking to Variety's Angelique Jackson, Chris Evans had stated about the scene saying: "I've been asked the question a few times — it's nice, and it's wonderful, it makes me happy. It's tough to not be a little frustrated that it even has to be a topic of discussion [...] The goal is that we can get to a point where it is the norm, and that this doesn't have to be some uncharted waters, that eventually this is just the way it is. That representation across the board is how we make films."[369]
Banned by General Zia ul-Haq, after he seized power in a coup de état in 1977, as the film portrays a fictional military coup in an unfavourable light.[370]
Also pulled from the Papua New Guinea Human Rights Film Festival.[375] The film follows Joe Moses as he struggles to save his community from policemen wielding machetes and guns descending on the Paga Hill Settlement in Papua New Guinea to bulldoze their houses to the ground.
This film, an Argentina-Peru coproduction, which revolves around the sufferance of a village in Northern Peru face to a drought had its screening banned in Lima "for including scenes which offended the human dignity, moral values and the Catholic creed".[377]
This film, produced by the National System of Support to Social Mobilization [es], about the struggles of the Cuzco peasants movement against the gamonales and hacendados, seen by the eyes of communal leader Saturnino Huillca [es], showing also the role and violent participation the Armed Forces had during the struggle preceding the Peruvian Agrarian Reform, was censored by the Central Information Office and never got its premiere in Peru. It could only be shown in the alternative and clandestine circuit of trade unions and cineclubs. Despite this, the film won the Silver Dove at the 1973 International Documentary Film Festival in Leipzig.[378][379]
Banned under the Communist government for 18 years for depicting the Stalinist era.[383] Its director, Jerzy Skolimowski, was so outraged he left his country and moved to the West.
Banned under the Communist government because of its political anti-war theme.[384][385]
1973–1981
Opowieść o człowieku, który wykonał 552% normy (A Story of a Man Who Filled 552% of the Quota)
Banned under the Communist government for its depiction of the Stalinist past. It was only released after the director, Wojciech Wiszniewski, died in 1981.[383]
1975–1981
Wanda Gościmska. Włókniarka (Wanda Gościmińska. A Weaver)
Banned under the Communist government for its depiction of the Stalinist past. It was only released after the director, Wojciech Wiszniewski, died in 1981.[383]
Banned under the Communist government for four years because the plot is about a strike.[386][Note 1] The film was finally shown on Polish television for the first time on 19 September 1980. In 1981, The Calm received the Polish Film Festival Special Jury Prize.[388][389]
1976–1981
Elementarz (The Primer)
Banned under the Communist government for its depiction of the Stalinist past. It was only released after the director, Wojciech Wiszniewski, died in 1981.[383]
1977–1981
Indeks. Życie i twórczość Józefa M. (The Index)
Banned under the Communist government for four years, because it depicted the 1968 protests.[390]
Banned under the Communist government for depicting a futuristic society which showed parallels with the political situation of Poland at that time. It remained banned until 1983.[383]
Banned under the Communist government without even being released for its political criticism.[390] It remained banned for five years, until 1987.[395]
Banned under the Communist government for seven years because of its criticism of Communism. Despite the film's controversial initial reception and subsequent banning, it garnered a cult fanbase through the circulation of illegally taped VHS copies, which director Ryszard Bugajski secretly helped to leak out to the general public.[399][400][401]
1983–1988
Niedzielne igraszki (Sunday Pranks)
Banned under the Communist government for five years.[392][402]
2008
Necrobusiness
The movie was banned on request of Łodzian funeral entrepreneurs due to depiction of the "skin hunters" scandal, focusing on Łodzian medics killing patients with pancuronium to get paid by Łodzian funeral agencies. Another supposed reason for the movie's banning was depiction of Poland in a bad light.
Banned under the Marcelo Caetano dictatorship for a scene depicting a character sitting naked in a tree,[323] though the fact that the film satirizes the military may also have been a factor.
No official announcement yet. Likely banned due to undermining public morals, though a strange decision owing to the film's scheduled Middle East release on November 21 in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Classified by the National Cinema Center's rating commission as a film "forbidden to minors under 18 and banned from public screening" due to explicit content.[407] After outrage at decision in mass media and on social networking websites, the commission allowed cinemas to run the film for audiences over 18.[405]
Banned in the Soviet Union for its themes of artistic freedom, religion, political ambiguity, autodidacticism, and the making of art under a repressive regime. Because of this, it was not released domestically for years after it was completed, except for a single 1966 screening in Moscow.[17][better source needed][410]
Released September 1967. Banned for its depictions of Jews. The government saw Jews as a fifth column, covert Zionists and potential traitors to the Soviet Motherland, which became more pronounced after the Six-Day War. Representations of Jews in films were generally suppressed in this era. The ban was lifted in 1987.[411]
The film shows the facts of the Holodomor and mass political repressions against Ukrainians, which the Soviet and later Russian authorities officially deny. The screening in Moscow was interrupted several times by FSB. Therefore, actually, the film is banned in Russia
Released in Russian cinemas for a few days and was soon banned for reasons unclear. The Russian Ministry of Culture stated that the film "contain[ed] information whose dissemination is prohibited by the legislation of the Russian Federation." The director Ali Abbasi believes the ban was related to Iran's military support for Russia in the Russo-Ukrainian War.[420]
Banned outright after church leaders watching a pre-release showing filed a complaint with film censors.[426] (see Censorship in Samoa for details) [25]
Banned, originally without being given a reason.[426] Later, it was explained that the censors deemed it "inappropriate and contradictory to Christian beliefs and Samoan culture": "In the movie itself it is trying to promote the human rights of gays." The sex scenes in particular were considered inappropriate by the Samoan Censor Board.[427] (see Censorship in Samoa for details)
The first Japanese film to be banned due to a scene's explicit nature where Mitsuri Kanroji, Love Hashira, takes a shower in the hot spring. The ban was lifted when Ufotable allows to censor the mentioned scene.[275]
Banned for its presentation of the conflicts between Islamic and Christian religions and ethnic and traditional beliefs.[8][437] According to another account reported in The New York Times in 1978, the banning was not "because of any religious sensitivity, but because Mr. Sembène insists on spelling 'ceddo' with two d's while the Senegalese Government insists it be spelled with one."[438]
Banned because the footage depicted the black boxer Jack Johnson defeating the white boxer James J. Jeffries, which had already inspired race riots in the American South.[8]
Banned under the apartheid regime from screening to black South Africans, because it depicts a Zulu uprising in the 19th century. Whites were allowed to see it in their own segregated cinemas.[440]
Banned for two years and only unbanned in 1997 on appeal with a no-under 16 age restriction.[443]
2013
Of Good Report
Banned in the entire country because it has a storyline where older men abuse young girls, with scenes deemed "child pornography" according to the censors.[444]
Banned under South Korean President Park Chung Hee's regime, the importation of the film was on hold because of its anti-war theme.[446][failed verification]
Banned under the regime of Francisco Franco out of fear of inciting a Communist revolution.[6][148]
1940
El crucero Baleares (The Baleares Cruiser)
This film revolving around the Francoist heavy cruiser Baleares was withheld from being premiered by order of the then Ministry of the Navy due to its poor cinematographic quality, granting only a private screening.[448]
1956
La bandera negra (The Black Flag)
First film of the filmmaker Amando de Ossorio, who later would be specialised in the horror genre. It was a plea against death penalty, which was then legal in Spain, with the performance of only one actor, José María Seoane. It was filmed without official authorisation, which was the reason why the censors fined it and submitted it to several cuts, eventually not making it to being distributed.[449]
This film revolves around a group of people from a forgotten town deciding to fake and represent a miracle, in order to attract tourism to their town. A screenplay by Luis García Berlanga, which resulted into him clashing with the Francoist censors.
Banned under Franco's regime, although the Film Institute of Spain approved the film's submission to the Cannes Film Festival. After the Catholic Church expressed its indignation, the head of the Film Institute was fired and the film was banned for sixteen years.[452]
Directed by Fernando Fernán Gómez, based on an idea from Luis García Berlanga, which was based on a real story of two brothers from Haro, La Rioja. The censorship gave this film the most restrictive rating, which did not even grant the right to debut, delaying approximately 5 years to have a minimal distribution.[453]
Banned under the regime of Francisco Franco.[454] According to director Fred Zinneman, the reason of the ban was due to the film's portrayal of the Spanish Civil Guard as "heavies".[455]
1968
Algo amargo en la boca (Something Bitter Tasting)
One of the first films of the later famed and polemic Eloy de la Iglesia, who saw how censorship provoked some alterations in the result.[456]
Narciso Ibáñez Serrador's cinema debut suffered some cuts in its film imposed by the censors. These affected a sequence where the lesbianism of the characters was implied, as well as some plans taken in the showers scene. This material was not kept, although some still pictures taken during the filming.[457] In a 2002 DVD edition, the film was rated as Not recommended for people under 13 years.[458]
This film by Jesús Franco with a mostly German production crew, was butchered at the time by the Spanish censorship, which reduced it to a version lasting less than 80 minutes.[459]
During the film's theatrical debut, the censorship imposed, a message after the films epilogue, that stated that the characters played by Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw were arrested in Mexico. This tag was removed in later home video versions and televised versions.
1973
Al otro lado del espejo (At the other side of the mirror)
This project by Jesús Franco was initially banned by the Ministry of Information and Tourism, eventually completed four years after.[460] Anyway, it debuted in Spain in an 80-minute-long cut, rendering the development moot,[461] which was something usual in Spain at the time of co-productions and double versions for the domestic market and the exports.
1977
¿Y ahora qué, señor fiscal? (And now what, Mr. Prosecutor?)
This film is an adaptation by León Klimowsky from an original screenplay by Martín Vigil. The censors forced a change to the pre-production title, Orgasmo sobre una muerta (Orgasm over a Dead Woman), opting to retain the book's title.[462]
1977
¡Votad, votad, malditos! (Vote, vote, you goddamn!)
Based on a real fact, the official organs banned the film reiteratingly for its depiction of the Civil Guard. Shown in some film festivals, It was not shown in commercial cinemas in Spain until 1981.[464]
1980–1985
Rocío
This documentary film was the first film to be seized by court order in Spain in 1981, due to the inclusion of testimonies from townsfolk from Almonte pointing José María Reales Carrasco,[465][466] the town's mayor during the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera and founder of the rociera brotherhood in Jerez de la Frontera (established in 1932 against the "contempt of the Virgin of El Rocío committed by the Second Spanish Republic"[467]), as responsible of the repression in the town, which ended with 100 killings (99 men and one woman[465]), which resulted into a lawsuit for libel, insult against the Catholic religion and slander filed by the sons of Reales against the director Fernando Ruiz Vergara. As a result, a trial court from Sevilla banned the showing of the tape on 8 April 1981 in Cádiz, Huelva and Sevilla, with the ban extending two months later. Ruiz Vergara was arrested for two months and had to pay 50.000 pesetas as a fine and a compensation of 10 million pesetas in concept of civil responsibility for serious insult against José María Reales, as well had to cut any scene mentioning him.[465] The film was unbanned in 1985 with said scenes cut.[468]
This film was rated "S" due to extreme violence,[469] this is an action film about revenge whose protagonist is a Vietnam War veteran.
1981
La Petición (The Engagement Party)
Banned initially, but finally released under media pressure to reconsider its artistic merit. The film is about a woman involved in sadistic and ultimately fatal sexual relationships with men.[119]
This film had its age rating suspended and the harmful qualification for the public was declared by the Ministry of Culture under the mandate of the Minister Ángeles González-Sinde and the PSOE government, which bans its screening. On 14 November 2012 came out the ruling through which the pretensions of the Ministry of Culture were unestimated. That same month, the ICAA issued the rating certification and granted the Spanish nationality to the film.
Banned for its critical depiction of the French army during World War I.[183]
1968–1975
Rondo
Banned for its critical look at the Swiss prison system, implying that for the Swiss incarceration as a form of punishment and means of deterrence is more important than integrating released prisoners back into society.[481]
Banned because this documentary about human trafficking and sex slavery in Africa "showed too much sex and nudity" and thus was a "threat to Tanzanian culture."[261]
Taiwan's Ministry of Culture refused to issue the Restricted rating in December 2015, citing article 9 of the 2015 regulations and article 235 of the Criminal Code.[483] After the distributor cut 170 seconds of close-ups on physical intimacy, including sexual intercourse, fingering, ejaculation, fellatio, and similar, the film was released in April 2016.[484]
Banned because of its negative portrayal of Thailand with narcotics smuggling – especially with the views of the Thai judicial system despite parts of the film shot on location by the second unit (the majority of the film was filmed in the Philippines).[486]
Banned because it features the Israeli actress Gal Gadot.
Turkey
Date
Title
Notes
1969
Bir Çirkin Adam (An Ugly Man)
Banned for its revelations of the social conditions in the country.[8]
1979
Yorgun Savaşçı (The Tired Warrior)
Banned because it was written by Kemal Tahir, who opposed the regime, and because the story casts doubt on the uniqueness of Kemal Atatürk's contribution to the struggle for the republic in the 1920s.[8]
1987
Su da Yanar (Water Also Burns)
Banned because it dealt with the banned communist poet Nâzım Hikmet.[8]
Banned due to high level violence and blood and gore. The movie also depicts the suffering and the agony of people who were forced to eat human flesh in Kharkiv during the German attack there in 1943.[499]
Banned because of scenes of brutal gory violence and torture. In the context of the Saw franchise, this is the only part that is banned. Thereby it is illegal to sell or distribute it, since visa is not given.[502]
2010
My iz budushchego 2 (We Are from the Future 2)
This Russian film about four boys, two Russians and two Ukrainians, re-enacting the Lvov–Sandomierz offensive, ending in that timeline, was banned in Ukraine for being Anti-Ukrainian, as it depictied the Ukrainian boys as "radical nationalists fighting only for the German side",[503] as well for its offensive depiction of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.[504]
Banned by Ukraine's Cinema Agency because one of its actresses, Yekaterina Varnava, was blacklisted for five years for visiting Crimea during Russian occupation to attend a comedy show in 2016.[506]
Banned because one of its co-stars, Steven Seagal, visited Crimea during the Russian occupation without permission from the Ukrainian authorities, causing him to be blacklisted from the country.[506]
Banned because of its "objectionable content"; it did not receive a clearance certificate from the UAE Censors Board and was pulled from all UAE cinemas. This is the first Bollywood film to be banned in the UAE.[507]
The first Japanese film to be banned due to a scene's explicit nature where Mitsuri Kanroji, Love Hashira, takes a shower in the hot spring. The ban was lifted when Ufotable allows to censor the mentioned scene.[275]
Generally speaking, the government itself cannot ban a film, since the United States Supreme Court ruled that films are protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution in a landmark 1950s decision. Instead of formal government censorship or bans, the film industry has, largely, policed itself through content-based ratings that are awarded to the vast majority of films that are to be publicly exhibited. Sometimes, a filmmaker may make edits to a film to avoid an 'R-rating' or an 'NC-17' rating, but a modern-day, government ban on a film would likely be struck down by the courts.
Banned for exposing state corruption, as well as accused of being an apology for crime, and the director imprisoned;[513] courts overturned both decisions.[514]
Pulled from cinemas and banned after a family injunction over the representation in the biopic; reportedly the first time a Venezuelan film has been banned in its country in 25 years.[515][516][failed verification] After being banned, the film was selected as Venezuela's representative as Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards, a controversial choice.[517]
Not screened, reportedly for presenting Chavist ideology in a negative light.[518] The production cooperated with the CNAC over 9 months to try and get it shown, but the film was still eventually banned;[519] the CNAC's former chairman called the move censorship.[520] The film's director, Flavio Pedota, lives in exile.[520]
Documentary; Banned from being shown in public and at universities for supposedly inciting hate; director Gustavo Tovar-Arroyo lives in exile from the country.[521]
Banned because its international distributor, Sony Pictures, did not accept the requirement by the Vietnamese National Film Board of cutting out some sensitive scenes.[527]
Banned from cinemas because one of its scenes shows maps allegedly featuring the nine-dash line that is used by the People's Republic of China to lay claim to parts of the South China Sea;[532] the Tien Phong newspaper reported that the map appears multiple times throughout the film.[533][534] The claims were defended by Warner Bros., the film's distributor, who issued a statement saying that the map was a 'child-like crayon drawing' and that it was 'not intended to make any statement' [535]
Banned because of its South African origins. At the time Zimbabwe boycotted South African products because of its apartheid regime.[440]
2010
Lobola
Concerned with the custom of lobola, the film was banned because it "doesn't really portray African custom when it comes to marriage, since one does not get married while drunk." Another objection is a scene where a young couple kisses in front of their parents, as well as the "abrupt ending".[539]
2014
Kumasowe
Banned because it depicts violent clashes between members of an apostolic sect in the country and Zimbabwe Republic police officers.[540]
^Manrupe, Raúl; Portela, María Alejandra (2001). Un diccionario de films argentinos (1930-1995). Buenos Aires: Editorial Corregidor. p. 573. ISBN950-05-0896-6.
^ abManrupe, Raúl; Portela, María Alejandra (2001). Un diccionario de films argentinos (1930-1995). Buenos Aires: Editorial Corregidor. pp. 606–7. ISBN950-05-0896-6.
^Jessica Winter; Lloyd Hughes; Richard Armstrong; Tom Charity (May 2008). The Rough Guide to Film. Rough Guides UK. p. 363. ISBN9781848361256. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
^Bergan, Ronald (March 14, 2014). "Vera Chytilová obituary". Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2015-11-29.
^Sedergren, Jari (2006). Taistelu elokuvasensuurista: valtiollisen elokuvatarkastuksen historia 1946-2006. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. ISBN951-746-812-1. OCLC85017263.
^Corbucci, Sergio (1968). Il Grande silenzio. Archived from the original on 2019-12-05. Retrieved 2020-03-22.
^"Devils, The". Elonet (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 2018-03-12. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
^Milne, Tom (1998). "Jean-Luc Godard and Vivre sa vie". Jean-Luc Godard: Interviews (Interviews With Filmmakers Series). University Press of Mississippi. ISBN1-57806-081-8.
^James G. Ferguson (2002). "Of Mimicry and Membership: Africans and the "New World Society"" (Paper)|format= requires |url= (help). American Anthropological Society.
^White, Abbey (June 15, 2023). "'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse' Blocked From Release in UAE". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 16, 2023. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has been blocked from release in the United Arab Emirates ... apparently fallen foul of the country's censorship laws due in part to the blink-and-you-miss-it protect trans lives poster featured in the background of one frame, according to a source familiar with the situation.
