West Side Story
is one of the most anticipated releases of this end of the year.
Sixty years after the original, director Steven Spielberg presents his adaptation of the legendary film by Robert Wise, Jerome Robin and Leonard Bernstein.
Like the original 1961 version, from which it draws heavily on, the film tells the story of Maria and Tony's thwarted love against a backdrop of clashes between rival gangs.
A transposition of
Romeo and Juliet
in 1950s New York. Produced by Disney and 20th Century studios, it airs in France from Wednesday.
Read alsoIn the secret filming locations
of Steven Spielberg's
West Side Story
Even before the announcement of its theatrical release, and while the film was already offered around the world, several countries refused to broadcast it.
In the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, where the film has not received a release certificate, or in Qatar and Oman, where Disney has refused to comply with the cuts requested by the broadcasters.
Read alsoThe
West Side Story
of Steven Spielberg: an update of a legendary film
This is not the first time, far from it, that the Gulf States have censored some of the major film releases, to the point of banning them if they do not get cuts from the studios. Swearing, sexuality, blasphemy are among the grounds for censorship. In 2020, several Gulf countries had banned the broadcast of
Onward
Pixar film, because of referring to homosexuality of one of the characters. More recently,
The Eternals,
Marvel's latest production, was not licensed in several states including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait due to the presence of the first openly gay superhero in Captain America's universe. and Spider-Man.
Read also From
West Side Story
to
Into The Woods
, the unforgettable songs of Stephen Sondheim