The next box-office hit is bound to be The Interview. It’s practically impossible to avoid the hype about the film which has caused an international incident. For anyone who has been lucky enough to be ensconced behind a wall of mince pies and not been aware of the whole kerfuffle, The Interview is a comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco as journalists who are to try and assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un after setting up an interview with him.

Having got wind of the plot line, the North Korean government threatened “merciless” action against the US if the film was released.

This, and a series of hacking attacks on the computer systems of Sony Pictures Entertainment – the company responsible for the film – resulted in the delay and then the cancellation of the release of the film screening.

Naturally, this elicited criticism about Sony backing down to threats to freedom of expression. After a great deal of pussyfooting, Sony made the film available online and in a limited release at selected cinemas. And predictably enough, people are flocking to see it. They’re in for a disappointment. The Interview is decidedly unfunny. Franco hams it up unashamedly, there are too many ‘solly’ jokes and the action flounders in a series of lame gags.

This was not news to Sony. Long before the controversy erupted, Sony executives had noted that the film was a “misfire”, “unfunny and repetitive” with “a level of realistic violence that would be shocking in a horror movie”. They also made a very accurate assessment of one: “James Franco proves once again that irritation is his strong suit which is a shame because the character could have been appealing and funny out of his hands.” This was also the reaction of film-goers who found the film to be a bit of a letdown.

You have to wonder if the North Korean authorities aren’t kicking themselves in the foot for making such a fuss about a film which is essentially a dud

You have to wonder if the North Korean authorities aren’t kicking themselves in the foot for making such a fuss about a film which is essentially a dud. Had it not been for the fuss kicked up about the film, it would have probably sunk into oblivion instead of generating the box-office income and viral fame which it clearly doesn’t deserve. Those touchy North Koreans have fallen victim to the Streisand effect, which is to say that you attract more attention to information you are trying to suppress by the very act of suppression or censure.

We’ve seen it in action so many times, most notably with the Da Vinci Code book and film. The book was a run-of-the-mill Holy Grail riff like so many others. It wouldn’t have come anywhere near the bestsellers list had it not been for those silly calls for a boycott and protest marches.

The film featured Tom Hanks having an extremely bad hair day and absolutely no chemistry with his co-star. While the Roman set locations looked fabulous, it was an unremarkable production and definitely not the box-office gold it turned out to be because of the misguided protests by those who claimed it was blasphemous.

The funny thing is that this keeps on happening – free publicity being given to something by those who most object to it. A recent example of this is designer Tom Ford’s range of cross-shaped pendants.

A closer look at the pendants will reveal that they’re a depiction of male genitalia – a fact which has provoked the ire of those claiming the pendants are an offensive rendering of a crucifix.

Cue – a slew of irate comments and protests denouncing Ford as being disrespectful and offensive – and giving him more free publicity in the process. Now if the people taking offence had taken a step back and thought things out a little, they would have realised that Ford’s pendants are (a) not amazing creations (b) bound to have niche appeal as the market for people wanting to wear a willy round their neck is limited and (c) puerile chain-yanking intended to provoke exactly the kind of irate squeals that it did.

A more astute strategy would have been to ignore the whole thing and let people hang Ford’s meat and potatoes round their neck, if they so wished. There wouldn’t have been as many takers, I’m sure, and people would have moved on to wearing more beautiful jewellery.

That could serve as a general rule of thumb when faced with productions or works which are deliberately provocative but which have dubious artistic merit.

Resisting the temptation to call for their banning will ensure that people won’t rush to taste the forbidden fruit and the offending item will fade into obscurity.

cl.bon@nextgen.net.mt