S’pore comedy-drama’s cinema release scrapped
Singapore film "Sex.Violence.FamilyValues." will not be premiering in Singapore this week after its M18 classification was revoked by the Media Development Authority on Monday.
The announcement was made in a post on the film's Facebook page in the evening, just days before the film was to start showing at Orchard Cineleisure on Thursday.
"It is of course disappointing to have our certification revoked at the very last minute," The Butter Factory, which backed the film, said in a statement.
It added that it was considering all options, including making an appeal.
According to the Facebook post, those who have purchased tickets will be refunded within the next few days.
The film is described as a collection of "three dirrrty stories from the world's cleanest city" that "pitches political correctness out the window of Singapore mainstream cinema".
The film is directed by Ken Kwek and stars Adrian Pang, Sylvia Ratonel, Osman Sulaiman, Vadi Pvss, Serene Chen, among others.
Citing a statement from MDA, The Straits Times reported that the short story "Porn Masala" in the collection was given a Not Allowed For All rating for "racial references which are demeaning and offensive to Indians".
The move by MDA came amid public fury over offensive remarks on Facebook on Sunday by Amy Cheong, a National Trades Union Congress assistant director for membership, over the holding of Malay weddings at void decks. NTUC sacked her on Monday for her posts.
