Movies featuring sex scenes and nudity are becoming more popular across Iraq because of the end of Saddam-era censorship, when officials would regularly visit cinemas to make sure they were not showing porn and other banned films, according to a report from the Guerrilla News Network.
But because Sulaimaniyah is free of religious extremists and other militants – who target liquor stores and other “immoral” commercial enterprises in other parts of Iraq – business is even more brisk.
Noori Jameel al-Madfa’i, general manager of the al-Rasheed cinema, told the news service his most popular films are those with sex scenes. He shows these titles three to four days a week, with 150-200 people turning up for each viewing. He said his customers are men between the ages of 17 and 45.
“We can show any film in the hall, as there is no censorship of films from any government parties,” he said.
Mohammed Abood al-Mishadani, owner of Baghdad’s al-Moroog movie importing company, said pornographic films are the most popular requests from cinema owners.“[They] rarely ask for action and romance movies,” he said in the report.
Al-Mishadani said even cinemas in some towns threatened by insurgents show sex films, albeit less graphic examples than those running in the more stable parts of the country.
The story also said that the fashion for pornography often angers other cinema-going audiences.
“Families can not go to the cinemas nowadays because the movies are immoral, and because the audiences are mostly drunk,” said Baghdad resident Kareem al-Nedawi, reflecting a widely held view.
