Resumo de The Da Vinci Code?

Clearance and the Code

The decision was right but the process by which it was arrived at was hugely flawed. The Da Vinci Code has been cleared, as it deserves to be, without cuts. But the Information and Broadcasting Ministry made a mockery of procedure by first putting the film on hold and then adopting a bizarre "consultative" process before allowing it to be screened. It was bad enough that the I&B Minister, Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, chose to watch The Da Vinci Code before clearing it ? a decision that in effect usurps the function of the Central Board of Film Certification. Even worse was his decision to invite members of the Christian clergy for a preview; "if anything comes up which affects their sensibilities, we will not allow the movie to be creened," he declared. A government that considers banning a film merely because one community or another might object is one that has failed to recognise its obligation to protect freedom of expression, guaranteed under Article 19(a) of the Constitution. As it turned out, the film was eventually cleared because influential Christian bodies ? such as the Catholic Bishops Conference of India ? did not press for a ban. While it is commendable that they refrained from adopting an intolerant stance, there remains a worrying question. How would Mr. Dasmunsi and the Central Government have reacted had the clergy demanded a ban on The Da Vinci Code? Would religious sentiment have been invoked to order that the film remains in the cans? Freedom of expression is not absolute in India, being subject to reasonable restrictions, and The Cinematograph Act, 1952, specifically permits the censorship of films. However, this does not mean, as the Supreme Court has stated, that freedom of expression can be "held to ransom by an intolerant group of people" or that "convenience or expediency" can become the basis for banning a film, book or a work of art. In 1988, India became the first country to ban Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses after protests from some Muslims. Governments have resisted similar demands in recent years, sometimes at a cost. A few years ago, Hindu fundamentalists demanding a ban on Deepa Mehta's Fire damaged cinema halls showing the film and forcibly prevented the filming of her next venture, Water. In contrast, the clergy's suggestion ? that The Da Vinci Code be screened with a disclaimer stating it is a work of fiction ? accepted by the Censor Board is relatively innocuous and could be the result of anxieties over the enormous impact of the novel on which the film is based. Fictional accounts on Christianity have a long pedigree. D.H. Lawrence explored the story of Christ's resurrection in The Man Who Died, Norman Mailer's novel is told from Christ's point of view in The Gospel According to The Son and N. Kazantzakis dwelt on his human side in The Last Temptation of Christ. There is no basis for the clergy's fears that The Da Vinci Code, or the Dan Brown thriller on which it is based, will shift attitudes to traditional Christianity, damage faith in the church or be regarded as anything other than mere fiction

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