A Not-So-Red Dawn

Michael Warren has a piece in the Life section of today's Washington Times. He details how the 1980s hit film Red Dawn is being remade -- and how the remake is being remade. The movie as filmed has China as our enemy. But producers are now scrubbing all references to the Communist state and are substituting a less controversial villain.

The hope of an open China is a major reason why studios and distributors are wary of productions that could embarrass the communist regime, including any depiction of China’s known atrocities. Besides a handful of movies about Tibet, Hollywood has done a good job of avoiding making things uncomfortable for Beijing. Although there is ample material from recent history, from the Tiananmen Square massacre to the plight of the Falun Gong movement, the studios seem unwilling to rock the proverbial boat, lest China move even further out of reach.

There’s little indication, though, that China is getting any closer to “opening up” in the way that Hollywood hopes.

Read on to see what some Hollywood players think of all this.