China delays Harry Potter release in favour of Communist party epic The Guardian Weekly 29.07.11
Politics before Potter, please The wizard Harry Potter is being forced to make his farewell as a pirate in Beijing because China is holding back the official version of the concluding episode in the Hogwarts franchise in favour of an epic celebrating the 90-year-old Communist party. The original will not be screened for a fortnight, at least partly due to the priority put on the big-budget political epic Beginning of the Great Revival: The Founding of a Party, which brings together more than 150 Chinese stars, including Hollywood icon Chow Yun-fat, in a two-hour tale of the Communist party's roots. With its depiction of the romances and idealism of a young Mao, the story aims to attract a new audience to the party, which marked its 90th anniversary on 1 July. With enormous political prestige at stake, China's film authorities have gone out of their way to ensure success for the movie, which premiered last month. The biggest potential foreign rivals have reportedly been delayed to allow a clearer run at the box office. Deathly Hallows will be released on 4 August; Transformers: Dark of the Moon on Thursday , three weeks after its release in the US. To protect the domestic film industry, only 20 foreign films are approved for release in China each year. Film industry observers say it is customary for the authorities to give preferential treatment to Chinese revolutionary and historical films. "This practice is long-standing. Unlike the US, films are not treated just as consumer products in China. More importance is given to their role in shaping opinion and educating the public," said Li Hongyu, a film journalist for the South Weekend newspaper. "But the situation is better than it was 10 years ago. At least the Communist party no longer requires its members to go to the cinema for certain movies." Even if official sleight of hand conjures up impressive box office figures for the communist epic, the marketing magic of Harry Potter could yet prevail – at least on the black market. "Harry Potter brand new. Good copies. Just 10 yuan," said an illegal hawker outside Beijing's Silk Market as he pulled out a large bundle of pirated movies, including the latest Pirates of the Caribbean, Cars 2 and The Mechanic. Great Revival was not among them. • Jonathan Watts in Beijing
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CORRECTION Intro: In this article drawn from the Guardian Weekly, a widely-read British quality paper, the journalist humorously points out the importance of politics in China. And more precisely the impact politics can have on the film industry. ● First, I will summarize the gist of the article, ● Then , I will try to explain what the Chinese politicians are aiming at, ● At last, I will comment on the tone of the text. Part 1 The article revolves around the news that the Chinese authorities have held up the release of several blockbusters such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows or the new Pirates of the Carribean to allow for the release of a less exciting production: Great Revival a film made to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party. Part 2 The practice is apparently not a rare thing insofar as the authorities often give preference to the 'good' of the nation: they do not hesitate to encroach in the field of entertainment as well and postpone the release of other films if they could be detrimental to the audience figures of Chinese historical or political films. The purpose of such a practice, which some other industrialised countries refuse to enforce, is to '' educate the public'' and '' shape opinion''. Brainwashing? One could wonder. In any case, one thing is certain, mentalities are evolving and members of the party are not forced to watch certain movies as they used to 10 years ago. A film journalist states that in China, unlike the US, films are not considered as consumers'goods. Part 3 – Title is funny because of the alliteration in 'p' : it is meant to attract the reader's attention to the priority given in China to state interests before personal choice. – The journalist talks about illegal copies of the films, mentioning the absence of the film « Great Revival », implying that way that the film is not very attractive for the audience. But we could also argue that, since the film was released first, there was no demand for it on the black market. Ccl ● article can be considered as anecdotal but it could raise the question of the rôle of art in shaping mentalities. ● Does the state have a rôle to play in educating the masses? Cf early television compared to television today.
