Norks Nix Yanks' Pix :: SteynOnline
U.S. Should Make North Korea Pay for Sony Hack - The Daily Beast
'The Interview' Falls Apart: Theater Chains Pull Film, NY Premiere Canceled, Stars Scrap Promotional Duties - Breitbart
Obama: 'My Recommendation Would Be that People Go to the Movies' - Breitbart
Free speech is in retreat around the world. Twenty-five years ago, through all the violent demonstrations and murders of associated figures, The Satanic Verses remained in print and in almost every bookstore. Were it a new book being pitched today, no publisher would take it. I see that, following the disappearance of The Interview, a Texan movie theater replaced it with a screening of Team America. That film wouldn't get made today, either.
Hollywood has spent the 21st century retreating from storytelling into a glossy, expensive CGI playground in which nothing real is at stake. That's all we'll be getting from now on. Oh, and occasional Oscar bait about embattled screenwriters who stood up to the House UnAmerican Activities Committee six decades ago, even as their successors cave to, of all things, Kim's UnKorean Activities Committee. American pop culture - supposedly the most powerful and influential force on the planet - has just surrendered to a one-man psycho-state economic basket-case that starves its own population.
Kim Jong-won.
Hollywood has spent the 21st century retreating from storytelling into a glossy, expensive CGI playground in which nothing real is at stake. That's all we'll be getting from now on. Oh, and occasional Oscar bait about embattled screenwriters who stood up to the House UnAmerican Activities Committee six decades ago, even as their successors cave to, of all things, Kim's UnKorean Activities Committee. American pop culture - supposedly the most powerful and influential force on the planet - has just surrendered to a one-man psycho-state economic basket-case that starves its own population.
Kim Jong-won.
The New York Times today reported that the American intelligence community has determined that the regime of Kim Jong Un was “centrally involved” in the unprecedented hacking campaign against Sony Pictures Entertainment. CNN reports that the Justice Department will announce, perhaps as early as tomorrow, that hackers working for North Korea were behind the attacks, apparently intended to stop the release of The Interview, the Seth Rogen-James Franco comedy about the assassination of the regime’s supremo.
Why would the White House delay an announcement? The administration, the Times reports, “was still debating whether to publicly accuse North Korea of what amounts to a cyberterrorism campaign.” The concern is that a public accusation would result in an escalation.
North Korea, however, will escalate no matter what. If the administration tries to avoid a confrontation, Pyongyang’s leaders will of course be emboldened. They undoubtedly are pleased that they were able to get Sony today to announce the indefinite delay of the opening of the film after theater chains, intimidated by Tuesday’s threats of 9/11-type attacks, refused to show it.
Why would the White House delay an announcement? The administration, the Times reports, “was still debating whether to publicly accuse North Korea of what amounts to a cyberterrorism campaign.” The concern is that a public accusation would result in an escalation.
North Korea, however, will escalate no matter what. If the administration tries to avoid a confrontation, Pyongyang’s leaders will of course be emboldened. They undoubtedly are pleased that they were able to get Sony today to announce the indefinite delay of the opening of the film after theater chains, intimidated by Tuesday’s threats of 9/11-type attacks, refused to show it.
'The Interview' Falls Apart: Theater Chains Pull Film, NY Premiere Canceled, Stars Scrap Promotional Duties - Breitbart
According to TheWrap, both Carmike Cinemas and ArcLight Cinemas have decided to pull the film from their theaters in the wake of a new “9/11-style” terror threat issued by the Guardians of Peace hacker group this week against theaters that have committed to screen the film.
The threat read, in part:
We will clearly show it to you at the very time and places “The Interview” be shown, including the premiere, how bitter fate those who seek fun in terror should be doomed to.
Soon all the world will see what an awful movie Sony Pictures Entertainment has made.
The world will be full of fear.
Remember the 11th of September 2001.
We recommend you to keep yourself distant from the places at that time.
The Hollywood Reporter reported late Tuesday night that due to security concerns, the film’s premiere, originally scheduled for Thursday at Landmark’s Sunshine Cinema in New York, has been canceled. Sony was going to go ahead with its plans for the premiere, but Landmark eventually decided against it, a source told THR. The film is currently slated for wide release on Christmas Day.
The New York premiere’s cancellation comes on the heels of stars Seth Rogen and James Franco canceling all promotional activities for the film on Tuesday and Wednesday. A representative for Rogen told THR that the actors would “reassess Thursday” to decide whether or not to conduct press events as normal.
The threat read, in part:
We will clearly show it to you at the very time and places “The Interview” be shown, including the premiere, how bitter fate those who seek fun in terror should be doomed to.
Soon all the world will see what an awful movie Sony Pictures Entertainment has made.
The world will be full of fear.
Remember the 11th of September 2001.
We recommend you to keep yourself distant from the places at that time.
The Hollywood Reporter reported late Tuesday night that due to security concerns, the film’s premiere, originally scheduled for Thursday at Landmark’s Sunshine Cinema in New York, has been canceled. Sony was going to go ahead with its plans for the premiere, but Landmark eventually decided against it, a source told THR. The film is currently slated for wide release on Christmas Day.
The New York premiere’s cancellation comes on the heels of stars Seth Rogen and James Franco canceling all promotional activities for the film on Tuesday and Wednesday. A representative for Rogen told THR that the actors would “reassess Thursday” to decide whether or not to conduct press events as normal.
Obama: 'My Recommendation Would Be that People Go to the Movies' - Breitbart
Obama explained that the cyber-attack was “serious,” but he encouraged people to go to the movies despite the threats on theaters that would have shown the now-canceled Christmas Day release of the film.
“Well, the cyber-attack is very serious,” Obama said. “We’re investigating it. We’re taking it seriously. You know, we’ll be vigilant. If we see something that we think is serious and credible, then we’ll alert the public, but for now, my recommendation would be that people go to the movies.”
“Well, the cyber-attack is very serious,” Obama said. “We’re investigating it. We’re taking it seriously. You know, we’ll be vigilant. If we see something that we think is serious and credible, then we’ll alert the public, but for now, my recommendation would be that people go to the movies.”
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