They didn’t really have a choice, as I understand it; no theaters wanted to play it, for fear of attacks, liability, etc. (and didn’t some post-9-11 insurance guarantee just expire, or will expire... things that make you go hmmmmm... ?!!!)
That being said, I really, really hope it finds it way out. It should, and it must. Because this is completely ridiculous. No foreign power should have a say in our entertainment choices.
And the fact that I can say such a ridiculous statement just proves my point. LOL.
Or maybe I’m just overtired.
Hold on, new tagline coming up...
Big studios that hope to have their products screened and sold abroad will always tailor those films so as not to run afoul of foreign ministries that decide what can be shown domestically. These ministries have the power to embargo certain film production companies, meaning that no films from a given company (Sony for instances) that made a particularly objectionable film can ever be shown in-country. That's why the Sum of All Fears featured neo-Nazis instead of Arabs. It's also why Red Dawn featured North Korean villains instead of the proposed Chinese ones.