The decision was made a few days ago to not screen Fifty Shades of Grey in the UAE. It is officially banned. I also read it was banned in Kenya, Malaysia and a few other countries.
I scanned social media and responses to local articles about this. And you know what? Not a single comment was negative about this decision. I think for the first time in social media in the UAE, the consensus was unanimous. Now that may not be a true representation of some of the population, but maybe no one who disagreed dared to respond to this one as many book and movie reviews have been quite harsh.
No one took to protesting about rights, or if you don't want to see it, don't go to the cinema attitude. It was all a very positive "way to go".
I have not read the books, although they were sold here. I realize I write this with a lot of hearsay. However, that hearsay all points in the same direction. This movie is not romantic. The characters have serious issues and it paints a very misleading picture about what love is and about how it is okay for an uber wealthy guy to use his power to control and manipulate a young girl.
As the story unfolds, the amount of grey seems to grow according to the articles I've read. In seeking an objective opinion I read conservative and liberal publications. It was interesting to see my Facebook friends of both sides come together with a common opinion in my feed for a change.
Stalking, breaking into your apartment, threatening you, physically harming you... all major red flags in any relationship that say you should run like mad and consider calling the police.
So, now what.
Go see the movie or download it if you are curious. Decide for yourself. I should, but I won't.
If you look up the statistics on how many women are raped and abused by the minute, by the 1,000, its not good. And it doesn't seem to be getting better. From what I read, this film is not going to help improve this by any means.
So, while some things may be controlled here in the UAE, it may not be such a bad thing. Perhaps the film is just all hype and really not abusive. In that case, then the UAE governing body that reviews and controls what is released here has done us a favor and saved us from 125 minutes of bad film.
Either way, we thank you.
