| Kippreport.com

Sex… but not in our city

May 27, 2010 5:11 by kippreport

The new Sex and the City movie is already causing quite a stir, but unfortunately for the film makers, it’s for all the wrong reasons.

The National points out on Thursday that the film, which is mostly “set” in Abu Dhabi, will not be released in the UAE. In fact, the National Media Council said that local distributors of the film did not even bother applying for permission to screen the film here.

A spokesman for the NMC said: “The first Sex and the City movie was not shown in the UAE because the local distributor never applied for it to be shown. As for Sex and the City 2, it [the distributor] has also not asked us for permission for the film to be shown. This is something of the distributor’s own choice.”

Perhaps they knew what the response would be. After all, when the film makers asked for permission to film in the UAE they were refused; hardly surprising, given that Sex in the City-style content runs contrary to deeply-ingrained local values and morals.

Incredibly, rather than simply relocate the film’s action somewhere else, the production team chose to film in Morocco and pretend they were in Abu Dhabi.

Kipp dislikes this duplicity, and is uneasy about a fake Abu Dhabi on screen. But the city and its residents should not get too worked up – the film makers apparent desperation to set the movie there just goes to show that Abu Dhabi is becoming a world player. As the city grows to take its place as a center for business, culture and entertainment, it will surely attract its share of slings, arrows and, yes, even imitators.

The point to remember is this: Sex and the City 2 and its fake Abu Dhabi will soon be forgotten (very soon, if early reviews are accurate), but the real Abu Dhabi will continue to grow in world status, whether Carrie and co holiday there or not.

Tags: Abu Dhabi, cinema, launch, movie, Sex and the City, Sex and the City 2