Now you won’t see ‘The Interview’ at a theater near you

/ December 18, 2014
(From syracusenewtimes.com)

(From syracusenewtimes.com)

The power play between the hackers and SONY Pictures went too far.

The terrorists — and that’s what they made themselves — earlier this week said if the movie “The Interview” were screened today in New York City, bad deeds of 9/11 proportions would result.

And then SONY Pictures had to pull the movie from wide release on Christmas Day when the five major movie chains announced they wouldn’t show the comedy featuring Seth Rogen and James Franco.

I wrote my weekly Movie News blog for the Syracuse New Times site about this development. If you’d like to read my column about the situation, click the link below.

http://www.syracusenewtimes.com/sony-pulls-the-interview/

Rogen and Franco star in “The Interview,” which revolves around their TV anchor and producer charactes’ trip to North Korea and the U.S. government’s request for them to take out controversial leader Kim Jong Un. Yes, the movie is a comedy. It allegedly rankled the North Koreans, because news reports say they are behind the threats to SONY Pictures.

Do you think SONY Pictures should pull the film from release forever or stare down the hackers’ threat as empty and meaningless by planning a strategy to get it out there with independent theaters or with the majors some time down the line? Do you think the subject matter of the movie is in bad taste regardless of the hackers’ threats? Does this news story make you more likely or less likely to buy the DVD, rent the film at Red Box, purchase a pay-per-view or watch it on premium cable?

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107 thoughts on “Now you won’t see ‘The Interview’ at a theater near you”

  1. This wasn’t on my list of “must see movies,” but I think it’s outrageous that a foreign power and/or hackers can dictate what can and cannot be seen in America. Threatening us with a 9/11-type attack. The world really has gone mad.

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  2. Well Mark it so doesn’t surprise m you have over 100 comments on this Post! My2 cents worth?
    As the President said, A Big Mistake By “Sony”. . . Why should we cave to North Korea???? Big Boo Boo!
    *Catherine*

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  3. I think they should pull it and I hate that I think they should pull it, but it scares the crap out of me that we are bring threatened yet again! I hate that there is so much violence going on around the world and so many people who want to result to evil to the proportions of a terrorist nature. And I hate that I’m scared, yet I also hat that some people don’t seem scared enough to mind one way or another.

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  4. I am so mad that the world sometimes is into censoring when the movie only had a piece of a true story, while the ‘bad’ guys get to ‘win’ in this case.
    I really had this movie, “The Interview” on my holiday and post-holiday list of movies to check out. I will still try to see, “Into the Woods,” and will hope the comedy finds its way into theaters, Mark. I don’t understand why the world gets to choose and those who invested money and time have to ‘bite the bullet,’ and not be given their chance to shine in the limelight… My friends at work feel the same way about this movie. They are mad they cannot go to see it!

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  5. Why does it have to be an argument? I respect your point of view…B.T.W. what is it? Didn’t mean to intrude on this think tank poised to address an international dilemma maybe the solution might be found right here. People are being beheaded, nations are at war, people are starving, ebola is ravaging W. Africa but hold on…what about “The Interview”. One concession I will make however is this, you have not censored me as I would not censor you save for vulgarity or profanity for that you have my respect as a gentleman.
    a.g.

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      • This is so true Mark but if we succumb to “fear” they win! What have so many fought and died for in this country, including members of my own family? This is not the way, this concession will only lead to further testing of boundaries in the future. I’ve no wish to argue with you, besides I lived in Syracuse for fourteen years from 88′-2002.
        A.g.,

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      • I understand your stance about giving in to this tyrant and am sympathetic to that viewpoint, A.G., but to me, I’m also worried that copycat idiots would take it upon themselves to wire up a theater if the viewings went on. I’m just so sad and fed up with all of the truly horrible events that are taking place because bad people are booby-trapping public places.

        That’s why in this comment string for other people I’m adamant that law enfocement find the folks making the treats and prosecute them fully, to thow water in this behavior.

        Maybe we knew each other from ’88 to ’02?

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      • Perhaps, I lived on the southside, Dewitt, Liverpool (miss Heid’s), miss Columbus bakery terribly! Dinosaur not so much excellent b.b.q. in the south (Carolina).
        Sorry to have challenged you, you don’t really know someone till you shake their tree a bit or they shake yours…what falls out is the “real fruit” friends?!

        a.g.

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      • Yes, for sure. We had a good back-and-forth because you refused to let me be short. That’s cool. Challenge is good. Thanks for being very respectful with your commenting. You have good manners.

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      • I must be learning then, I am working on that Mark, Praise be to God…finally!
        Thank you.
        a.g.
        (oh, the initials? this is not my blog I post here in partnership with Doug Blair a dear friend and brother. When we comment we identify ourselves)

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      • In any tennis match, handball, volley ball or even racquetball, the ace serve is a dominating power play.
        Spectacular and over quickly but the “volley” extended back and forth evenly matched is a thing to marvel at and respect! Test of endurance being the key:)
        Nice volley!
        a.g.

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  6. i see, had I gone along with the stream of agreement and consensus and not rocked the boat and simply agreed that “fear” is now what rules us as a society then I wouldn’t get the smug send-off dismissal huh?
    It’s a fallen world my friend the devil is very busy and as long as you seek answers in “the world” the only replies received will be “of the world”.

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  7. There was a time not so long ago when something like this situation would just seem laughable. The climate of “fear” is almost palpable and seems to hold sway over even the once formerly most inane of concerns.
    Just damn silly…all of it, from ill conception to follow through to collapse.
    FIZZZZZ….
    a.g.

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    • With all of the real bombing and other incidents of terror that have taken place, nothing that carries a threat to many people in public places can now be considered laughable. That’s the portion of the situation that makes it serious, no matter how insignificant the front end of the situation may be to you, a.g.

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      • Take every death toll statistic worldwide concerning how many people dire in car accidents, from hunger, disease, abortions and compare them to these things you seem to give greater priority to because of the media coverage they are given. And I said “there was a time” 20 years ago any U.S. citizen would have laughed at the insecure narcissistic dictator with a Napoleonic complex hands down and you know it. What makes it “serious” is the undue priority of importance given to the entire situation. If you want to live in fear, be my guest. I refused to allow bullying by a milk-moustached” tyrant that can’t even grow a real moustache..
        a.g.

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  10. Makes me ill!! I will be the first one to see the movie in whatever form it becomes available, in spite of the fact that it was not on my to see list, just to support our freedom of speech and stick it to those responsible!!

    Another possible reason influencing my decision to support Sony may have a little something to do with the fact that they just picked up a script my director brother pitched to them, and will be funding the movie which my brother will direct. 😜

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  11. I feel smarter for having read the comments. If they release it in some/any form I suspect a heck of a lot more people will watch it now because of the hulabaloo than if no one had said a word and it went to the theater for a day or two and then disappeared.

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  12. There are many movies out there that portrays many different public figures of many walks of life. Some good some bad. Kim is a bully and has that Napoleon complex. He wants power and he’s crazy enough to pull the switch. (nuke) Sony is being cautious and I don’t blame them. Sony, regardless of the negative emails that were hacked, has shown they value human life over the money they will lose and didn’t take the threats lightly.

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  13. i, personally, am not a fan of seth rogen or james franco. So the whole idea this movie got a green light is dumbfounding. Like Paul said it is all how other countries perceive the movie and its subjects. As for Sony well maybe they should be more worry about how all this stuff is being hacked. AND really is there an audience for those emails etc. The James Bond script is it really hacked??? or just clever PR????

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  14. this is a strange case of truth being stranger, more bizarre and scarier than fiction. and comedy fiction at that – as for the studio’s decision, i’m sure with so many major chains canceling plans to show the film, they weren’t left with much choice at this point. i think, that with the cash outlay/initial investment they’ve fronted for this film, that they’ll find a way to release it in some manner in the not too distant future. trust me when i tell you, there is a war room meeting at the studio right now, with all sides working on a possible solution to save the film, as well as for the studio to save face.

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  15. Maybe as a second best we should send maroon five to n.korea and they can play “animals” the song that has been polluting the airwaves incessantly ad-nauseum.
    a.g.

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  17. I am absolutely astonished that this ir any American enterprise would cave in like this. The bad guys will hit us again and again with this. Perhaps it was a business decision not a political one as movie producers and theaers would get sued if bad incident occurred. Either way, America has lost.

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  18. Aren’t there other, more civil ways of handling a matter like this, instead of breaking into Sony and threatening the U.S. with another 9-11? Kinda sorta not a smart thing to do, eh? NK may have earned a REAL visit by the CIA and NSA spook squads now…renditions all around! I also think it says something about why the world has issues with said regime.

    Oh- and having the government approve or disapprove of movie scripts…err, no. Scary thought there.

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    • I think North Korea regime, if behind this, is acting just as U.S. politicians would expect it to act. Sad tale, Thorton. And, yes, though I think Paul was saying the filmmakers should have been smart enough on their own accord to not make it.

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      • Oh oh- I’m not referencing Paul…there has been ample talk of Govt. censorship today..should have ran it by the State Dept., should be laws…the usual knee-jerk.

        And agreed. Very sad situation.

        Question: Do you think that the various media outlets practice some level of self restraint, or vie for who can be the most outrageous in order to generate the most publicity (like Madonna, etc.) and monetary gain?

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      • I think the answer to your media question is yes and yes. It’s a sliding scale, a battle between news judgment and the bottom line. Did you watch “The Newsroom,” which just wrapped up its run on HBO? I thought Aaron Sorkin’s take on cable news was frighteningly realistic.

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  19. The movie may in bad taste, but regardless I think that us bowing down to them is not necessarily a good idea. By doing so, we are telling every other nation that if they don’t like something that America is doing, then all they have to do is threaten us and we’ll stop. As a result, we are practically placing the control of this country into their hands.

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  20. seriously–I have nothing to add to this wildly intelligent conversation! Can I just sit here and look pretty? 😉 haha, I just heard about all the hullabaloo this morning and feel very out of it. If it’s not food-related or if Kerbey or you haven’t told me about it, I’m clueless. So I appreciate your posts, Mark. Politics and Hollywood–strange bedfellows indeed but it’s how everything is played.

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  21. What a mess! I can’t believe a movie can drum up such controversy, especially when it was supposed to be a comedy but after reading Paul’s points, I get it. Although I wasn’t going to be heading to the theater to watch this movie anyhow….but pulling its release seems like a drastic measure.

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  22. I hate to sound like the jaded old sceptic by I’m not convinced that this is anything more than a studio PR ploy to get tens of millions of dollars of free publicity for what is probably a very bad, and not very funny movie.
    My guess is their test screenings told them they were going to take a complete bath if they put this turkey out over the holidays.
    Time will tell but I won’t be surprised to see it in general run in theaters by mid-January after all of the legit Holiday Blockbusters have run out of steam.

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  23. I just hate all kind of censorship…and I Think that the dictator in North Korea is sooo crazy.
    However i do understand that its difficult to know what to do with the viewing of the Movie..
    Wouldnt it be interesting if lots of countries decided to air it at the same time on television!!!!

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  24. What a sad world we live in when we can’t even make light of all of these awful things happening in this world. Yes, I am excited to see the film. As a matter of fact, I have plans to release it myself (LOL I wish!!) I heard that there was word that it wouldn’t be releases at all, not even as a rental. I think someone, somehow, will get it out there.

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  25. I was actually excited to see this movie…it’s a damn comedy! ! “Some people” just need to relax.
    What concerns me now is… is this going to become the norm?….If someone has an issue with the content of a film will some overgrown bully start threatening movie makers?

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  26. I probably wouldn’t have bothered with this movie had not this brouhaha broken out. But now, as an act of defiance to that crazy man in charge of that crazy little country, I would go see it if it is ever released in theaters. And, as RMW pointed out, this nonsense has given this movie all kinds of publicity. As they say in Hollywood, “no publicity is bad publicity.”

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  27. I’m conflicted on this. On the one hand I think it’s a blow against freedom of speech – and another way we’re letting the terrorist win. On the other hand, though I wasn’t planning to see this movie, when I saw there were threats against THEATERS showing the movie I decided immediately that I wouldn’t be seeing ANY movies if this was playing in the same theater, because people are wackos and it’s not worth it to me to personally snub terrorists and then get blown up while I’m taking my daughter to see Annie. I think that releasing this movie online – for FREE preferably – would be the biggest F you we could give to NK. Something for free? On the INTERNET? These pesky Americans…

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  28. I wasn’t planning on seeing it in the first place and doubt that I will. I imagine SONY will release it down the road a bit. But as all the major players pulled out, what could they do? I live less than two blocks from Sony Studios and I have to admit the threat made me uneasy, I can’t imagine what it would feel like to have to go to work there at the moment. If this truly is the work of NK, they certainly created a ton of free publicity for the movie. If they had merely shrugged it off as just another bad taste B movie from America, who would even have known the film existed? Not me! And wouldn’t it be a joke if the threat was not from NK but some guy sitting in his garage laughing his head off?

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  29. It probably shouldn’t have been made, but we do have freedom of expression (well, we did) and have made far more offensive movies. I will defer to the Tim Urban article where he says, “It’s a dictatorship of the most extreme kind, a cult of personality beyond anything Stalin or Mao could have imagined, a country as closed off to the world and as secretive as they come, keeping both the outside world and its own people completely in the dark about one another — a true hermit kingdom.” That pretty much says it all to me. That said, I would be fearful of entering a theater that had been threatened with violence for showing it. I’m not about to lose my life for a Seth Rogen movie. #notgoingoutlikethat

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  30. I think that North Korea is over-reacting. Hollywood has “killed” more US Presidents and leaders of virtually all other countries, so many times that I doubt anyone has even counted – the Jack Ryan stories by Tom Clancy being my favorite.

    That being said, it is obvious that the North Korean rulers are very upset by this movie. Having sudied business protocols inAsian countries, it is obvious to me why this is so. The social “rules” and customs are to always present with respect and courtesy. NK’s leaders are especially sensitive to this as they perceive thenselves to be considered a second class nation and the rulers are very proud. That, even in fiction, anyone should describe in detail the termination of their leadership and hence country (the leader and the nation are inseparable in their culture), is equivalent to physically attacking them. That being said, they will claim the right to at least self-defense and likely retribution for even the fictional threat to their leaders.

    Personally, i wouldn’t have authorized the production of this movie – sensitivity to the cultural mores of other nations is sadly lacking in the first world. There are untold numbers of stories that can be made into movies- I don’t find it necessary or desirable to piss off another nation for our entertainment. NK’s leaders are barely mentally stable from what I have observed – no need to poke them with a stick for amusement.

    Here in Canada, the legal definition of harrassment is that which the receiver finds offensive. With a multicultural society it can be no other way and it works well. So it should be on the international playing fieled as it is on the personal.

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  31. As it was evidently a stinker any way I think they should have released it on the web. They would have gotten a lot of free publicity and not looked like such cowards. It pisses me off in this country that we have so little courage.

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  32. I am more inclined to want to watch this movie now, if for no other reason than to let North Korea know that I really don’t care for their scare tactics.

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  33. Reblogged this on galesmind and commented:
    As it was evidently a stinker any way I think they should have released it on the web. They would have gotten a lot of free publicity and not looked like such cowards. It pisses me off in this country that we have so little courage.

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  36. It’s a little more than scary. It’s comedy, but outside of the U.S. it might not seem so funny. I’m not a sympathizer, but I can understand why so many other cultures look negatively at the U.S. Just look at what we splash all over the internet. There’s disrespect at every turn. Then we wonder why there is no respect. I would watch the movie if it were free on netflix or something. There have been movies where our own President was threatened, but again, this is our culture…free speech, and all. Not every culture shares that.

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