British cinema company pulls ‘blasphemous’ movie — Analysis

British cinema company Cineworld has pulled a film about the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, Fatima, following a wave of mass protests and accusations of “blashemy.” The offending movie, ‘The Lady of Heaven’ by director Eli King, was taken off the screen just four days after its release.

“Due to recent incidents related to screenings of ‘The Lady of Heaven’, we have made the decision to cancel upcoming screenings of the film nationwide to ensure the safety of our staff and customers,”In a statement, the company claimed.

Critics described the film as “an excellent movie.” “epic historical drama,”The story of Fatima is told, however it opens with an Iraqi offensive of Islamic State, previously ISIS, and features a brutal murder scene perpetrated in part by the jihadists. The direct depiction of religious figures, however, is prohibited. Although the film’s makers tried to skirt the issue by showing Fatima covered in a dark veil and without a face, the decision was met with outrage.

Multiple theaters across the UK have been picketed by angry Muslims, who accused the cinema company of ‘blasphemy’ and racism and called for a boycott of Cineworld altogether.

Some religious leaders supported the opposition to this movie. Asif Patel (the local Chairman of the Council of Mosques) wrote a letter in Bolton opposing the movie’s release. “blasphemous” “sectarian.”

“You may well be aware of the recently released film ‘Lady of Heaven’ which has caused much distress to Muslims across the globe,”He stated. “It is underpinned with a sectarian ideology and is blasphemous in nature to the Muslim community.”

But the creators of this movie rejected the idea, insisting that protesters were extremists and hardline Islamists. The executive producer of the movie, Malik Shlibak, has branded the chain’s decision to pull the film “unacceptable”Cineworld was to blame “bowing down to radical extremists.”

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