{"id":205271,"date":"2010-01-20T14:05:37","date_gmt":"2010-01-20T19:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"tag:business.theatlantic.com,2010:\/\/3.33817"},"modified":"2010-01-20T16:53:55","modified_gmt":"2010-01-20T21:53:55","slug":"why-did-china-kill-avatar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/205271","title":{"rendered":"Why Did China Kill ‘Avatar’?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Google isn’t the only American commodity being driven out of
\nChina<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region>. Avatar<\/i>,
\nJames Cameron’s highly successful and critically acclaimed sci-fi epic, will be
\npulled from all 2-D screens in China<\/st1:country-region><\/st1:place>
\nby this weekend, according to Chinese media outlets<\/a>.
<\/o:p>
Although 3-D and IMAX versions of the film will continue,
\nthe majority of Chinese movie theaters are not equipped with 3-D technology. As
\na result, the movie will be pulled from 1,628 movie screens<\/a> across the
\ncountry (compared to only 800 3-D and IMAX cinemas<\/a>). Avatar<\/i> will be replaced with Confucius<\/i><\/a>, a domestically
\nproduced biopic about the renowned Chinese philosopher. Why?<\/o:p>
<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Avatar <\/i>generated
\nrecord-breaking profits in China<\/st1:country-region><\/st1:place>,
\nearning $76 million<\/a> in Chinese ticket sales so far. The film’s financial
\nsuccess, however, may have led to its demise. Several reports from both the mainland<\/a>
\nand U.S.<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region><\/a>
\nindicate that the government wants to promote and protect the domestic film
\nindustry. Currently, only 20 films can be imported per year, in order to reduce
\nforeign competition. These films can only run for 10 days and are often curtailed
\nduring a major holiday, giving domestic films a significant market advantage.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p>Avatar’s <\/i>resonance
\nwith Chinese audiences also may have prompted government intervention. In the
\nfilm, humans attempt to conquer the alien-inhabited world of Pandora, which
\ncontains a mineral that the Earth desperately needs. Many Chinese citizens see
\na close parallel<\/a> to their own lives, as urban developments and projects
\nsuch as the Three Gorges Dam<\/a> force them off their land. Perhaps the government
\nis worried that the ensuing violence on-screen may incite violence off-screen
\nas well.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p>At first glance, the decision to pull Avatar<\/i> is not exceptional. The film has indeed lapsed its 10-day
\nrun and a holiday — the Lunar New Year — is approaching. In addition, foreign films often
\ncontain themes that the government is not fond of. What is exceptional is the
\ntiming. A week after Google threatened to leave China<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region><\/u><\/a>, the Chinese government shows
\nno signs of changing its restrictive censorship policies. I don’t think it is mere
\ncoincidence that Confucius<\/i> — a
\nstate-sanctioned, state-produced movie about one of China’s most beloved and
\npatriotic figures — will replace the controversial Avatar<\/i>. By canning the most successful movie of all time in China<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region>, the
\ngovernment shows little concern for free markets or its consumers. Ignoring
\nChinese consumer demand for Avatar <\/i>and
\nbait-and-switching it with state propaganda may incite the very criticism that
\nthe government seeks to avoid.   <\/span>


\n

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\n\"\"<\/a>
\n\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Google isn’t the only American commodity being driven out of China. Avatar, James Cameron’s highly successful and critically acclaimed sci-fi epic, will be pulled from all 2-D screens in China by this weekend, according to Chinese media outlets.Although 3-D and IMAX versions of the film will continue, the majority of Chinese movie theaters are not equipped […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3672,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-205271","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205271","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3672"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205271"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205271\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205271"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205271"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205271"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}