While the CIA spend their time destroying proof in the form of interrogation video tapes, the MPAA are conducting some censorship of their own: rejecting the poster one sheet for Alex Gibney's documentary Taxi to the Dark Side. Sounds familiar? Roadside Attractions had to go thru the same b.s with The Road to Guantánamo (click on the title to see the original and revised versions of that poster).
TH!NKFilm's Mark Urman stated in Variety, “the change renders the art illogical, without any power or meaning.” Alex Gibney who'll we'll be featuring next month before he heads out to Sundance to preem Gonzo: The Life and Times of Hunter Thompson said “not permitting us to use an image of a hooded man that comes from a documentary photograph is censorship, pure and simple…intentional or not, the MPAA's disapproval of the poster is a political act, undermining legitimate criticism of the Bush administration. I agree that the image is offensive; it's also real.”
Unlike the popular horror films campaigns, when it comes to protecting sensitive young audiences there is nothing worse than protecting them to the point that the truth is covered up: this administration is responsible for many of the world's tragedies and the MPAA need to make sound, well-educated decisions – not political ones.
