Edited version to be screened in Japan
TOKYO (AP) – «The Cove» will be shown in Japan starting next month, despite pressure from nationalist groups that led several theaters to cancel screenings. The domestic distributor in Japan, Unplugged, said yesterday that six theaters around the country will start showing the movie on July 3, with 16 more expected to show it later. Initial screenings were canceled early this month, after protests by nationalist groups who say the film is anti-Japanese, distorts the truth and has deep connections with a militant anti-whaling organization. In the version of «The Cove» intended for release in Japan, the faces of most Japanese are blurred out, unlike in the US version. Disclaimers have been added, including one that says that data presented in the movie were gathered by and are the responsibility of the film’s creators. Information cited in the film about mercury levels in dolphins and falsely labeled dolphin meat has been challenged by government officials.
