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One of this summer's biggest blockbusters, now showing in Bahrain - a sci-fi morality tale about aliens and apartheid - has been banned in parts of Africa because of its portrayal of Nigerians as gangsters and cannibals.
The African nation's information minister Dora Akunyili has asked movie houses in the capital of Abuja to stop screening District 9 because the South Africa-based movie about aliens and discrimination makes Nigerians look bad.
"We have directed that they should stop public screening of the film," she said. "We are not happy about it because it portrays Nigeria in a bad light."
Akunyili said she has asked Sony for an apology and wants them to edit out references to Nigeria and to the name of the main Nigerian gangster Obesandjo, whose name closely resembles that of former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo.
She and other government officials first saw the movie last week during a private screening.
In one scene, Obesandjo tries to cut off and eat the arm of the film's protagonist, in an attempt to gain his supernatural powers. In others, Nigerian prostitutes are seen courting alien customers.
The film's portrayal of Nigerians has also drawn the ire of critics and bloggers, and has spawned a Facebook page called 'Nigerians Offended by District 9'.
District 9 tells the story of an alien ship that mysteriously comes to hover over the South African city of Johannesburg. Its inhabitants are separated from the human population and segregated into a walled area known as District 9. But after nearly 30 years, government officials aim to relocate the extraterrestrials, with disastrous results.
The film is the first feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the script with Terri Tatchell. The film, which features a cast of mostly unknown South African actors, got its big-name backing from producer and Lord of the Rings director, Peter Jackson.
The film brought in $37 million during its US debut weekend in August.
Critics have been full of praise for the movie saying District 9 is a terrific science-fiction film that works as a political commentary, blood-splattering action flick as well as a sneaky-funny comedy.
"It gets you, in its opening seconds, and won't let go until its final moments, when it's transformed into a most unlikely buddy picture. And then you're left hoping for a sequel: "District 10," perhaps," said Matt Soargel.
Blomkamp tells District 9 as a mock documentary, largely through you-are-there news footage, corporate video, black-and-white surveillance tape and talking-head interviews ... and the gimmick works.
"The last 45 minutes or so of District 9 is slam bang, frenetic action that only rarely gets a little wearying. It works because even in the middle of all those body parts splattering everywhere, there is still a recognisable human - and alien for that matter - in the midst of it all," added Soargel.
Showing in: Seef II, Saar & Al Jazeera
