The 1948 film adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, directed by David Lean, was banned by both Egypt and Israel, yet for entirely opposite reasons. In Israel, which had been established only a few years earlier in the shadow of the Holocaust, the government found the portrayal of the character Fagin—played by Alec Guinness—deeply offensive. They viewed the exaggerated makeup, the hooked nose, and the greedy mannerisms as a revival of vicious anti-Semitic stereotypes, and thus banned the film to protect Jewish dignity. At the exact same time, Egypt also banned the film, but for the reverse rationale. The Egyptian authorities feared that Fagin was depicted as too clever, too heroic, and too sympathetic, believing that such a positive portrayal of a Jewish character would inspire Arabs to feel solidarity with Jews and Zionism.
StupidScaredSquirrel on
Middle east trying to not be wildly antisemitic for 3 seconds challenge: impossible
lusinavem on
Banned for being too nice to the villain? Censorship logic at its finest.
Grimmortah on
When you piss off both sides, you know you are writing gold. Same with 1984 being banned in USA and USSR
Tall_Pressure7042 on
Middle Eastern chaos, as always.
VelvettVixennMariaa on
Alec Guinness really achieved the impossible. Creating a character that was simultaneously too offensive to exist and too likable to be allowed. That’s a 100% efficiency rating in the ‘offending everyone’ category.
Carra144 on
I knew it caught flack for being antisemitic, I didn’t also know it caught flack for not being antisemitic enough.
Emotional_Newt_2227 on
Funny how the same film managed to offend two countries for completely opposite reasons. Oliver Twist, directed by David Lean, got banned in Israel because the portrayal of Fagin played by Alec Guinness, was seen as a harmful, exaggerated anti-Semitic caricature. Given the timing right after the Holocaust, that reaction makes sense.
Meanwhile, Egypt banned it for almost the reverse concern. Authorities there felt Fagin came across as too intelligent or even somewhat admirable, worrying that it might create unintended sympathy toward Jews or Zionism.
Same character, same performance completely opposite interpretations.
nowhereman136 on
There was a similar problem with Disney’s Song of the South. White conservative group hated it because it showed white kids looking up to a black man. Civil rights groups hated it because it showed a black man being friends with his former enslave. Disney tried to make a movie that bridged the gap between the two audiences and ended up just pissing off both sides
Realistic_Salt7109 on
Reminds me of that Parks and Rec episode where one person wanted to not include Harry Potter in their towns time capsule for being too religious and another person thought it was too anti-religious.
“Do you guys see the irony here?”
jmdg007 on
If you don’t understand why this movie was considered anti semetic, just google what Fagin looked like in it. And no, Alec Guinness’s nose didn’t just look like that.
Avolto on
Great I’ve got to watch it now and get my own opinion
kansetsupanikku on
The real crime is font inconsistency in this picture
14 Comments
The 1948 film adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, directed by David Lean, was banned by both Egypt and Israel, yet for entirely opposite reasons. In Israel, which had been established only a few years earlier in the shadow of the Holocaust, the government found the portrayal of the character Fagin—played by Alec Guinness—deeply offensive. They viewed the exaggerated makeup, the hooked nose, and the greedy mannerisms as a revival of vicious anti-Semitic stereotypes, and thus banned the film to protect Jewish dignity. At the exact same time, Egypt also banned the film, but for the reverse rationale. The Egyptian authorities feared that Fagin was depicted as too clever, too heroic, and too sympathetic, believing that such a positive portrayal of a Jewish character would inspire Arabs to feel solidarity with Jews and Zionism.
Middle east trying to not be wildly antisemitic for 3 seconds challenge: impossible
Banned for being too nice to the villain? Censorship logic at its finest.
When you piss off both sides, you know you are writing gold. Same with 1984 being banned in USA and USSR
Middle Eastern chaos, as always.
Alec Guinness really achieved the impossible. Creating a character that was simultaneously too offensive to exist and too likable to be allowed. That’s a 100% efficiency rating in the ‘offending everyone’ category.
I knew it caught flack for being antisemitic, I didn’t also know it caught flack for not being antisemitic enough.
Funny how the same film managed to offend two countries for completely opposite reasons. Oliver Twist, directed by David Lean, got banned in Israel because the portrayal of Fagin played by Alec Guinness, was seen as a harmful, exaggerated anti-Semitic caricature. Given the timing right after the Holocaust, that reaction makes sense.
Meanwhile, Egypt banned it for almost the reverse concern. Authorities there felt Fagin came across as too intelligent or even somewhat admirable, worrying that it might create unintended sympathy toward Jews or Zionism.
Same character, same performance completely opposite interpretations.
There was a similar problem with Disney’s Song of the South. White conservative group hated it because it showed white kids looking up to a black man. Civil rights groups hated it because it showed a black man being friends with his former enslave. Disney tried to make a movie that bridged the gap between the two audiences and ended up just pissing off both sides
Reminds me of that Parks and Rec episode where one person wanted to not include Harry Potter in their towns time capsule for being too religious and another person thought it was too anti-religious.
“Do you guys see the irony here?”
If you don’t understand why this movie was considered anti semetic, just google what Fagin looked like in it. And no, Alec Guinness’s nose didn’t just look like that.
Great I’ve got to watch it now and get my own opinion
The real crime is font inconsistency in this picture
Suffering from the Animal Farm problem