Fahrenheit 9/11: Encyclopedia II - Fahrenheit 9/11 - Other countries

Fahrenheit 9/11 - Other countries

The film was a major success in most European countries. In certain countries, the film was received as a confirmation of what informed people already knew, but critics still found the film effective because it had managed to cause controversy in the US.

The film has been banned in Kuwait. In Lebanon, some student members of the group Hezbollah have asked if there was any way they could support the film. Gianluca Chacra, managing director of Front Row Entertainment, the Middle East distributor for Fahrenheit 9/11, has stated, “We can't go against these organizations, as they could strongly boycott the film in Lebanon and Syria. Having the support of such an entity in Lebanon is quite significant for that market and not at all controversial. I think it's quite natural." By refusing to condemn his film's use by Hezbollah, an organization that has been implicated in the killing and kidnapping of American civilians abroad and has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States and European Union, Moore has been accused of de facto treason by some.

In Cuba, bootlegged versions of the film were shown in 120 theaters, followed by a prime-time television broadcast by the leading state-run network. It had been widely reported that this might affect its Oscar eligibility. However, soon after that story had been published, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued a statement denying this, saying, "If it was pirated or stolen or unauthorized we would not blame the producer or distributor for that." [12] In addition, Wild Bunch, the film's overseas distributor for Cuba, issued a statement denying a television deal had been struck with Cuban Television.

That issue is moot, anyway, since Moore decided consciously to forego Oscar eligibility in favor of a DVD release of the film — reportedly because he felt that it was more important to spread his message as widely as possible amongst American voters than to win another award. He also gave permission for the film to be downloaded onto personal computers.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Other countries", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki