Why the Barbie movie is banned in Vietnam

The new Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling and Issa Rae is set to be released soon.

While many across the world can’t wait for the new Barbie movie’s release, countries like Vietnam has banned the film from being released cinema’s across the country.

According to Vi Kien Thanh; the head of the Department of Cinema, a government body in Vietnam that is in charge of licensing and censoring foreign films, the American Barbie film will be prohibited from releasing.

The reason for this is because the film allegedly contains offensive imagery of the nine-dash-line.

“We do not grant license for the American movie ‘Barbie’ to release in Vietnam because it contains the offending image of the nine-dash line“, The Head of the Department of Cinema said.

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WHAT IS THE ‘NINE-DASH-LINE’?

Throughout history the South China Sea has been contested over and over.

Since the late 1940s China has use it’s nine-dash-line to highlights it’s claims of ownership over the resource-rich sea.

The nine-dash-line also known as the “U-shaped line” or “cows tongue” is made up of nine dashes.

In unofficial Chinese maps the nine-dash-line extends off the Hainan Island and runs through the cost of Vietnam; and deep into the Chinese Sea.

The line is a depiction of territorial claim, and has since resulted in military clashes between China and Vietnam.

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OTHER MOVIES THAT WERE BANNED IN VIETNAM

The Barbie film is not the only film that has been banned in Vietnam, last year the action movie Uncharted starring Tom Holland was also banned from movie theatres because certain scenes illustrated the nine-dash-line.

In 2018 romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians featured a designer bag with a map of the world showing the disputed South China Sea islands under Beijing’s control. Because of this Vietnam removed this scene from the film.

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