In a contrasting scene from years ago, Gulf nationals are now traveling to Saudi Arabia to watch movies in theaters, after this travel movement was in the opposite direction for many years.
And in an indication of the “reversed historical cultural trends”, Saudi Arabia has become a destination for residents of Gulf countries, if they want to bypass the strict restrictions on their cinema, and watch the movie “Barbie”, according to the “Barbie” website.The Hollywood Reporter“.
After the “Barbie” movie was banned in Kuwait, users of social networking sites in the Gulf state published the addresses of nearby cinemas in Saudi Arabia, for people who were willing to travel a two-hour drive.
Details of the 3 nearest cinemas have been published in the cities of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, which can be easily reached by car from Kuwait.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain allowed the screening of the fictional comedy film, starting from August 10. Barbie has grossed more than $1 billion since its July 21 debut, according to Warner Bros. Pictures, a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery.
News Agency: Kuwait bans the screening of Barbie and Talk to Me films
Early Thursday morning, Kuwait News Agency reported that the Film Censorship Committee had decided to ban “Barbie” and “Talk to Me” from showing.
It was the Saudis who traveled to the Gulf countries to watch films in cinemas, especially in Bahrain, which is linked by a bridge with the Kingdom.
In his 2006 documentary “Cinema 500 Kilometers,” Saudi director Abdullah Al-Ayyaf showed how Saudis had to travel just to enter the cinema.
In his film, he explains the story of a man in Riyadh who traveled 500 kilometers to Bahrain to watch only one movie.
In 2012, the then mayor of Riyadh confirmed that about 230,000 tourists from Saudi Arabia traveled to the UAE in the summer of 2010 “just to watch movies.”
More than a decade later, thanks to the repeal of a 35-year ban on cinemas, which was lifted in late 2017, Saudi Arabia now has a thriving cinema industry and boasts the world’s fastest-growing box office.
Saudi Arabia also annually hosts the Red Sea Film Festival, with the presence of elite world stars on the red carpet in Jeddah.
As for the director of “Cinema 500 Kilometers”, Al-Ayyaf, he is currently the head of the Saudi Film Authority.
