While some city Catholics agree with Vatican's stand that Angels & Demons, adapted from a Dan Brown bestseller, is harmless, others rage against film which will hit theatres on May 29
While some city Catholics agree with Vatican's stand that Angels & Demons, adapted from a Dan Brown bestseller, is harmless, others rage against film which will hit theatres on May 29
It's deja vu for Dan Brown-Tom Hanks fans. Director Ron Howard's adaptation of Brown's bestseller Angels & Demons faces a similar fate as his 2006 film The Da Vinci Code protests from the Catholic community and delayed release in India. Interestingly, the community seems divided over the film.
Despite the Vatican giving a go-ahead to the film, some Catholic organisations in the country have continued to protest against it and the film's India release has now been postponed to May 29.
An article in a Catholic Archdiocese newsletter has called for all Catholics to give Angels & Demons a miss.
Accusing the film of propagating 'a lot of untruths and falsehoods regarding the Catholic faith and the Vatican', the review by the Catholic Secular Forum (CSF), a Mumbai-based NGO, in the latest issue of the Examiner, has asked Catholics to not only boycott the movie but also encourage their non-Catholic friends to do so.
"A bad run at the box-office will ensure that such movies are not released in India; better still, such movies should not be made at all," says the article.
Now, CSF is also planning to print 15,000 eight-page booklets detailing why Catholics should boycott the Hanks-starrer.
Movie boycott
Joseph Dias, general secretary, CSF said, "The booklets will be distributed to all Mumbai churches. Outlining passages from the original publication and scenes from the movie, the booklet decries Brown and Howard, and debates the authenticity of many of the claims about the Catholic church."
According to Fr Anthony Charanghat, spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Mumbai, defended the Vatican's stand.
"The Vatican has not called for a ban, as it does not want to sensationalise the matter," he said. However, the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), who were invited for a special screening, have no problems. Our prime concern was how the film will influence those who do not understand the faith. However, we have received assurances from the Censor Board that our concerns with scenes in the movie (see box) will be considered," said Fr Babu Joseph, spokesperson for the CBCI.
A spokesperson from Sony Pictures, which has distributing rights to the films, said that the suggestions had been adhered to. "Four cuts have been made in the film where the Censor Board decided that the scenes were objectionable," he added.
Bones of contention
> Scene showing killing of cardinals on church premises
> Scenes showing abusive language on church premises
> The presumed subtext of the movie where grandeur, power-play and corruption are shown as part of electing the new pope
The Vatican in print
Reviewers at the Vatican's newspaper L'Osservatore Romano passed a judgment on Angels & Demons, finding it commercial and inaccurate, but concluding it is 'harmless' entertainment and not a danger to the church. It also said the movie was 'a gigantic and smart commercial operation' filled with 'stereotyped characters.'
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