This list details banned movies that are not allowed to be shown in cinemas, TV stations, or on the Internet in China because they are accused by the government of the People's Republic of China of violating relevant laws and regulations, or because of other political factors.
Article 24 of China's "Regulations on the Administration of Movies" stipulates that "films that have not been censored by the film censorship agency of the State Council's administrative department of radio, film and television (hereinafter referred to as the film censorship agency) shall not be distributed, shown, imported or exported.
The following is as broad a definition of a prohibited film as possible, and one of the following definitions is considered a prohibited work.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese film industry was reconstructed after the Soviet system, and the film production and distribution system was implemented in a "government-enterprise" manner, producing and distributing films according to administrative directives. After the films were produced, they were censored by the Film Office or a higher state agency, and the films that passed the censorship were acquired by government-run distribution and projection companies for nationwide distribution and screening.[5]
| Title | Time | Director | Actor | Description | Douban Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sorrows of the Forbidden City 清宫秘史 | Released in 1948 (Hong Kong) Released in 1950 (China) Banned in 1950 | Shu Shi, Zhou Xuan, Tang Ruojing, Hong Bo | The film was made by Hong Kong Wing Wah Pictures in December 1948 and started to be screened in Beijing and Shanghai in March 1950, but was banned on May 3, 1950, because Mao Zedong called it a "traitorous film.[6] | 1439106 | ||
| Sun and Man 太阳和人 | Banned in 1981 | Peng Ning | Liu Wenzhi, Huang Meiying | 2200853 | ||
| Wind of early summer 初夏的风 | Banned in 1982 | Wang Mingming, Shen Hong | The film was shot in 1982, but was later banned,[7] the reason for which is still unknown. | 4154640 | ||
| The Blue Kite 蓝风筝 | 1993 at Foreign Film Festival | Filmed in 1992,[8] the film involved several political movements in the early years of the People's Republic of China, and was entered into the 1993 Tokyo Film Festival without passing the censorship. The Chinese film delegation boycotted by withdrawing from the festival.[9] | None | |||
| To Live 活着 | 1994 | The film was banned the same year of its release due to how it portrays events such as the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution.[10] [11] [12] | 1292365 | |||
| The Gate of Heavenly Peace 天安门 | US premiere in October 1995 | Carma Hinton, Richard Gordon | It deals with the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre, which is considered a sensitive topic in China. The documentary was strongly boycotted by Chinese officials, who demanded that the film be withdrawn from the New York Film Festival. When negotiations failed, the Chinese side withdrew their entries and the Chinese directors withdrew from the competition. The documentary was only screened in Hong Kong.[13] | None |
During this period, the "Regulations on the Administration of Movies" began to be implemented. In addition to the fact that the production unit must review itself before submitting it for review, it must also submit it to the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) for the filing. Films that have been shot or imported from foreign countries will all be submitted for review, and only after approval can a "Film Public Screening Permit" be obtained.[1] Chinese films are shown in gray background and ordered chronologically.
| Title | Year | Director | Actor | Status | Banned Description | Douban Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seven Years in Tibet | 1997 | Official ban | The Chinese government believes that it distorts the facts and vilifies the PLA, and has published examples on the China Tibet website: the PLA generals did not fly to Tibet, and there are no Tibetans who died by the end of the film (the total population of Tibet is only 1 million according to local government statistics).[14] | None | |||
| Red Corner | 1997 | Official ban | The Chinese government believes the film degrades the image of Chinese justice. The State Administration of Radio and Television (SARFT) sent a memorandum to Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and sent a letter to major Chinese studios requesting not to cooperate with MGM/United States, which produced Red Corner, arguing that the said film "maliciously attacked China".[15] | None | |||
| 1997 | – | Official ban | The film was banned for depicting China negatively in relation to annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China.[16] The Dalai Lama is considered by China a separatist leader and a threat to Chinese control on the Himalayan region,[17] [18] and officials objected to a positive portrayal of the Dalai Lama.[19] Disney produced and distributed the film despite objections China voiced during production, causing China to issue a temporary ban on all Disney films.[20] The ban ended in 1999 with the release of Mulan, and the studio issued an apology during the early negotiation process to build Shanghai Disney Resort.[21] [22] | None | |||
天浴 | 1998 | Li Xiaolu,Lopsang | Prohibition of filming | The content involves sensitive subjects of the Cultural Revolution and contains nude scenes. Joan Chen was banned from filming for three years for "illegally making films and participating in exhibitions abroad".[23] | None | ||
| Inside the DMZ 北纬38度线 | 2000 | Wei Lian, Shi Wei, etc. | Ding Xiaoyi, Zhang Yiming, etc. | Prohibition of screening | The Korean War film was shot at the August 1st Film Studio.[24] The film was not screened together with the Chinese Central Television's TV drama "Resisting the U.S. in Korea",[25] which was produced in the same year. | 10535442 | |
| Suzhou River 苏州河 | 2000 | Prohibition of screening | On September 7, 2000, the film was released in Hong Kong and won the Golden Tiger Award at the 29th Rotterdam International Film Festival and the Best Film Award at the 15th Paris International Film Festival. The film was banned by the SARFT from being screened in mainland China because it was not submitted for review and joined the foreign film festival.[26] | 1299661 | |||
| Kiss of the Dragon | 2001 | Prohibition of screening | There was information that the film was planned to be released in China,[27] but it was not released allegedly because of the controversial murder scenario.[28] | 1299335 | |||
| Shaolin Soccer 少林足球 | 2001 | Prohibition of screening | The film is a co-production and is prohibited from being shown in mainland China because it was released in Hong Kong before it was approved by the SARFT. The main producers of "Shaolin Soccer" have also suspended the various film businesses of and in the mainland.[29] | 1297747 | |||
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The new version of the Regulations on the Administration of Movies, which came into effect on February 1, 2002, adding prohibited content, and added a detailed and lengthy explanation for this in the Interpretation of the Film Management Regulations.[1] Chinese films are shown in gray background. Sorted chronologically.
| Title | Year | Director | Actor | Status | Banned Description | Douban Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blind Shaft 盲井 | 2003 | Unlicensed and prohibition of screening | Considering that it was impossible to pass the review, the director decided to shoot the film on his own, and was subsequently banned from screening, and the director himself was regarded as an "outcast".[30] [31] | None | |||
| 2003 | Unpassing of review | The reviewer told the media that he thought the film maligned the Chinese people, Chinese culture, and Chinese society.[32] China became the only country in Asia to ban the film.[33] | 1307657 | + | |||
| Memoirs of a Geisha | 2005 | Zhang Ziyi | Prohibition of screening | The film was originally scheduled to be approved in November 2005,[34] but in January 2006, the SARFT failed to issue a screening permit.[35] When asked by the reporter whether the film had passed the censorship process, the person in charge of CMPC said "no comment".[36] After 25 January, Memoirs of a Geisha was banned from screening. Mao Yu, director of the Film Council's publicity department, said the film was "sensitive and complex". The media pointed out Zhang Ziyi's role involving the plot of nude and prostitute, and also a scene in which she bathes with a Japanese man as the reason for the ban, and the fact that it was totally unacceptable in China for a Chinese woman to play a Japanese geisha.[37] [38] | 1309059 | ||
| Summer Palace 颐和园 | 2006 | Guo Xiaodong,Hao Lei,Hu Lingling | Prohibition of filming and of screening | The film was rejected by the Film Office for "technical reasons",[39] and the film's director, Lou Ye, and producer, Nai An, were fined by the Film Office on September 1, 2006, for participating in the 59th Cannes Film Festival without a public release permit, in violation of the Regulations on the Administration of Movies.[40] | None | ||
| Lost in Beijing 苹果 | Passing of review later banned | The film was granted a public release permit and its public release version was an audited version, but its online version, DVD version, and overseas version contained unaudited scenes. The film was accused of violating the Regulations on the Administration of Movies and the Advertising Law, including adding unaudited pornographic clips to the online and DVD versions, using unaudited versions to participate in overseas film festivals, and for advertising reasons.[41] The main penalties include: revocation of the public screening license, confiscation of the unaudited copies of the films and related materials, suspension of their distribution and screening, and cessation of their online distribution; cancellation of Beijing Laureate Film's film production license for two years; and restriction of Laureate Film's legal representative Fang Li from engaging in related film business for two years.[42] | 1966464 | ||||
| Shinjuku Incident 新宿事件 | 2008 | Unpassing of review | The film was a co-production, but due to the gory and violent scenes, the film failed to pass the inspection of the Film Office, and the film makers thought that the modification of these scenes would seriously affect the whole film's plot system, so they gave up the modification and did not send the film for review.[43] | 2209368 | |||
| 2009 | Official ban | The Chinese government considers it to be a documentary film on Tibetan independence.[44] The Chinese director Lu Chuan and others withdrew from the Palm Springs International Film Festival after being informed of the film's participation.[45] | None | ||||
| 2009 | Official ban | The Chinese government accuses Rebiya of being the leader of the "Xinjiang independence" and "East Turkistan" forces in exile. After the July 5 Incident in Urumqi in 2009, the consul of the Cultural Department of the Chinese Consulate General in Melbourne learned that the documentary film would be screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival and made a personal phone call to the festival's director and executive director, Richard Moore, requesting that the film be taken down from the festival, but was refused. A number of Chinese directors, including Jia Zhangke, Tang Xiaobai, and Zhao Liang, announced their departure from the festival after learning of the film's screening.[46] [47] | None | ||||
| 2009 | Bruce Beresford | Prohibition of screening | The film deals with the defection of Li Cunxin, which shocked the Chinese and American authorities in 1981. Due to political sensitivity, it was not allowed to be shown in China.[48] | None | |||
| Piercing I 刺痛我 | 2010 | – | Unlicensed | The film is an animated film. According to the director, Ms. Miriam, he was not aware of the film industry at the time and "did not have the awareness to apply for the 'Dragon Label'", so he did not prepare the film in advance and did not plan to obtain a film public screening permit for the film. The film premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France on June 12, 2010, and later won the Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Animated Feature Film.[49] [50] | 4894072 | ||
| The Ditch 夹边沟 | 2010 | Lu Ye, Xu Cenzi, Cheng Zhengwu, Yang Haoyu | Unlicensed and prohibition of screening | The film participated in the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival, telling the story of more than 3,000 people who were sent to Jiabiangou labor camp in Gansu due to the anti-rightist movement from 1957 to 1960, and more than half of them starved to death. Because of the cruel plot, it did not obtain a public screening license in China, and it circulated in the form of pirated copies.[51] | Deleted | ||
| 2011 | Prohibition of publicity | It was alleged that some of the contents were involved in violations, and the news, footage, and videos of the film were not allowed to be promoted and advertised in any form.[52] | Deleted | ||||
| 2014 | Masatoshi Nagase, Tsao Yu-ning, etc. | Official ban | The movie depicts the story of the Kano baseball team during the Japanese colonial period in Taiwan. A picture was circulated on Sina Weibo showing a notice from the censorship department of Hainan, requesting the province not to speculate on the Taiwanese film KANO and its winning of the 51st Golden Horse Awards, nor to broadcast live video and graphics of the award ceremony that day. The notice was forwarded from an order from the publicity department of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television. A Guangdong TV station told Ming Pao that the Golden Horse Film Festival had a tendency to glorify Japan and did not mention the title of the KANO film.[53] Director Ma Zhixiang claimed that he was not aware that the film had been banned by the Chinese authorities, but also said that it was a Taiwanese story and did not care if it was blocked.[54] | None | |||
| Paradise in Service 軍中樂園 | 2014 | Unpassing of review | The Taiwanese film, which premiered in Taiwan on September 5, 2014, was sent for review in China but failed to pass according to director Niu Chengzhe.[55] [56] | 20515070 | |||
| 2014 | Leon Lee | Prohibition of publicity | The film is a documentary about allegations that the Organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners in China. In 2018, the Chinese Permanent Mission to the United Nations in Geneva held a media conference to refute the false allegations of organ transplantation, saying that the documentary was so absurd as to be "not worth refuting".[57] The content of the documentary has not been reported in major Chinese media and is suspected to be banned.[58] | None | |||
| The Chinese Mayor 大同 | 2015 | – | Prohibition of publicity | The documentary dealt with the sensitive issue of the demolition of the city of Datong, and was subsequently banned by the Chinese government. The actual mayor of Datong, Geng Yanbo, could only be likened in the Chinese media to Li Dakang, the municipal Party Committee Secretary in another related drama film, In the Name of the People.[59] | Deleted | ||
| Under the Dome 穹顶之下 | 2015 | – | Official ban | The film is a documentary about air pollution in China from the perspective of haze. As of March 2, 2015, the total number of views on major video websites in China was about to exceed 200 million, and it was completely blocked by the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party on March 3.[60] [61] [62] The reasons for this are unknown. | Deleted | ||
| Ten Years 十年 | 2015 | Kwok Zune,Wong Fei-pang,Jevons Au,Kiwi Chow,Ng Ka-leung | Liu Kai-chi,Kin-Ping Leung,Catherine Chau,Neo Yau,Ng Siu Hin | Prohibition of publicity | The film was selected as the Best Picture at the 35th Hong Kong Film Awards, which aroused public discontent in China. The Global Times criticized the film as a "prophetic fantasy", "and an extremely pessimistic account of Hong Kong in 2025", and directed it to "promote despair".[63] Afterwards, the SAPPRFT ordered all internet platforms to stop broadcasting the Hong Kong Film Awards.[64] | None | |
| Behemoth 悲兮魔兽 | 2015 | – | Prohibition of screening | The documentary film was featured in the media as a finalist in the main competition of the 72nd Venice Film Festival in 2015.[65] The film was banned by the local government of Inner Mongolia through the national security system due to the exposure of pneumoconiosis in Inner Mongolia mines, making the film only available for small-scale screening in Beijing.[66] [67] | None | ||
| 2016 | Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, etc. | Unpassing of review | The American superhero movie, which was intended to be introduced to China, was not approved because of its realistic violence and nudity.[68] [69] | 3718279 | |||
| Trivisa 樹大招風 | 2016 | Frank Hui,Jevons Au,Vicky Wong | Unpassing of review | The film's scenes were considered to be secretly filmed because the script was not approved and no permit was obtained for filming in mainland China. Critics speculate that the reason for this may be the sensitive topics of corruption and arms dealing in mainland China.[70] [71] | Deleted | ||
| 2016 | Unpassing of review | Warner Brothers had changed the title of the film to "Special Task Force X" to take into account China's situation, but it was soon announced that the film had not been approved. A source familiar with CFGC said "they (SAPPRFT) did not consider the film suitable for distribution in China". The media suggested that the reason behind this may be the regulations of the SAPPRFT, which prohibit the promotion of negative and demoralizing values.[72] [73] | 3569910 | ||||
| 2017 | Jang Hoon | Official ban | The 2017 Korean film tells the story of a German journalist who accidentally takes a taxi driver in Seoul and experiences the Gwangju democracy movement together. The movie has generated a lot of discussion on Douban, as well as associations with the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre due to the characters in the drama. The Beijing's Internet Information Office ordered the deletion of all websites, wikis, and reviews of the film, resulting in the blocking of the entire network.[74] | Deleted | |||
| The Conformist 冰之下 | 2017 | Unpassing of review | The film is about gold prospectors on the China–Russia border, and it was shown at the Shanghai Film Festival. The film was shot by the producer on January 5, 2016 and submitted for review in 2017.[75] It has still not been reviewed on September 16, 2019.[76] The reason for this is unknown. | 26628284 | |||
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After 2018, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) issued the Plan for Deepening the Reform of Party and State Institutions. To reflect the basic characteristics of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the film work of the SAPPRFT was handed over to the Central Propaganda Department for unified management, and the China Film Administration (CFA) was formally established.[1]
| Title | Year | Director | Actor | Status | Banned Description | Douban Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missing Johnny 強尼·凱克 | 2018 | Huang Xi | Prohibition of screening | Because Lawrence Ko was accused of being a pro-Taiwan independence artist, the crew had confirmed to the distributor that the film was prohibited to screen, and the Taiwan Affairs Office also confirmed the news at a press conference.[77] | 26930782 | ||
| Detention 返校 | 2019 | John Hsu (filmmaker) | Gingle Wang and others | Prohibition of publicity | The film touches on white terror politics.[78] | None | |
| Do Not Split 不割席 | 2019 | Prohibition of publicity | The reason for the ban was related to the protests in Hong Kong, and because the documentary was selected for the Academy Awards, the Propaganda Department of the CCP ordered major media to keep a low profile and cancel the live broadcast. The CCTV suspended the live broadcast of the Oscars.[79] | None | |||
| 2020 | Frances McDormand, David Strathairn and others | Passing of review Prohibition on screening | The film was originally planned to be released in China in April 2021.[80] Later, because director Zhao Ting was involved in the scandal of insulting China, Nomad Life was collectively boycotted by the Chinese people, so it was withdrawn before the release.[81] | 30458949 | |||
| Revolution of Our Times 時代革命 | 2021 | Unlicensed | The documentary concerned the Hong Kong Independence position,[82] which was regarded by Beijing as a slogan for Hong Kong independence because of four words in the title revolution of our times.[83] Kiwi Chow already known himself violated the law, so he did not submit it to the for review, nor did any major media in China report it.[84] | None | |||
| 2022 | Rosalie Chiang,Sandra Oh,and others | Prohibition of publicity | Refused classification for its indecent content[85] [86] as China only allows age-appropriate films to be released.[87] | None |
| Title | Time | Director | Starring | Unbanned Introduction | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Life of Wu Xun 武训传 | Released in 1950 Banned in 1951 Unblocked in 2005 | On May 20, 1951, the People's Daily published an editorial entitled "The Discussion of the Film 'The Life of Wu Xun' Should Be Taken Seriously", which criticized the film for promoting bourgeois reformism.[88] Director Sun Yu and actor Zhao Dan both wrote self-critical articles about the film, and dozens of other people also made self-criticisms.[89] In mid-November 2005, at the "Film Retrospective" held at Shanghai Film Art Center in commemoration of the 90th anniversary of Zhao Dan's birth, "The Life of Wu Xun" was publicly screened as an "internal screening", which was considered by the media to be the first appearance of the film since it was banned for many years.[90] On March 15, 2012, the film was released for the first time by Guangdong Da Sheng Culture Communication Co., Ltd. for public sale, but the cover of the box set was deliberately labeled "for research" to avoid the residual political risks.[91] | |||
| In a Twinkling 瞬间 | Produced in 1979 Released in 1980 | Zhao Xinshui | Liang Boluo, Huang Mei-Ying, etc. | The film was produced by Changchun Film Studio in 1979. The script was written by Peng Ning, He Kongzhou and Song Ge. The Ministry of Culture shelved the public screening of the film because the Air Force thought that it vilified the image of the army and might affect the recruitment of the Air Force. In November 1980, to coincide with the public trial of Lin Biao and Jiang Qing, the Ministry of Culture screened "In a Twinkling", but the film was quickly downgraded because the audience was too small. | |
| Boat People 投奔怒海 | Banned in 1980s DVD release in 2008 | Ann Hui | George Lam, Andy Lau, etc. | The film was banned in mainland China due to violence against Vietnamese refugees and its anti-Communist sentiments.[92] It was also banned in Taiwan because it was filmed on Hainan, an island in the People's Republic of China.[93] In 2008, a Hong Kong version of the DVD was introduced in China.[94] | |
| The Emperor's Shadow 秦颂 | Short release in 1996 Unblocked after more than a year[95] | In July 1996, the CMPC decided to release "The Emperor's Shadow" in five cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou and Chengdu, and on the fourth day of its release, the relevant people ordered the film to be disposed of. On the next day, the relevant documents were sent to all the authorities, and all distribution, screening and promotion activities were stopped. The Emperor's Shadow then disappeared from Chinese cinemas and media.[96] A year or so later, the film was released from the ban and was broadcast on China Central Television, and is available on the Internet as a legitimate source.[97] 。 | |||
| Mr. Zhao 赵先生 | Released in 1998 DVD release in 2006 | Jiang Wenli,Shi Jingming,Chen Yinan,Zhang Zhihua | The film was not released in China. The original DVD was published by Guangzhou Audio and Video Publishing House in 2006.[98] | ||
| Beijing Bicycle 十七岁的单车 | Produced in 2000 Approved in 2004 Premiere in 2013 | To participate in the Berlinale, the film went abroad for the competition before receiving the approval, and was banned from theatrical release in China for violating the relevant regulations. The film was renamed "Bicycle" in 2004 and passed the audit, but it was never screened because many people had already seen it on pirated discs, etc. In 2013, as a follow-up to a commemorative event, the film had a special screening at a film center in Beijing.[99] | |||
| Devils on the Doorstep 鬼子来了 | 2000 Overseas participation 2002 Overseas Screening | Jiang Wen,Kagawa Teruyuki,Yuan Ding,Jiang Hongbo | The film was not approved to participate in the Cannes Film Festival, in violation of the relevant regulations. The SAPPRFT found that the film "violated history" and "exaggerated the ignorance, insensitivity and servility of the Chinese people", and that "there was a serious deviation from the basic intent".[100] It was first screened in Japan on April 27, 2002. The film can be viewed on China Central Television's CCTV website and other video sites.[101] [102] | ||
| Short release in 2006 DVD release in 2006 | The film was taken down by the Chinese authorities 20 days after its release, and a spokesman for Shanghai United Cinemas received a notice to stop showing the film, which the BBC reported was boycotted by the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association.[103] The film is now being sold on DVD.[104] | ||||
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