Gay zombie porn comedy banned at Australian film festival (video)

Melbourne - A Toronto director's film "L.A. Zombie," which is described as a gay zombie porno comedy, is being banned by Australian censors from appearing at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

Toronto filmmaker Bruce LaBruce isn’t upset that Australian censors banned his film from appearing on the silver screen at the Melbourne International Film Festival because his philosophy is: the more people try to suppress a motion picture, the more people want to see it. According to the National Post, “L.A. Zombie” is being banned at the Melbourne festival because it would be refused classification. The film is described as a gay zombie porno film and the basic premise surrounds an alien zombie who walks around Los Angeles attempting to revive life through sexual intercourse. “It's debuting in competition at the Locarno [Switzerland] Film Festival in two weeks,” said LaBruce. “The film obviously has artistic merit or it wouldn't be in competition at an A-list film festival.” The director explains that his previous film, "Up with Dead People," was voted third most popular at the Melbourne festival. "My last film played at Melbourne, and was actually voted third most popular that year. And that film features a scene with one zombie, penetrating a wound in another zombie, with a penis. So I don’t understand why this film has generated such controversy. I don’t understand what their strategy is in trying to suppress this film." The Toronto Star reports that LaBruce has called the ban “hypocritical” because mainstream Hollywood releases many pictures with extreme violence. LaBruce has now started Facebook and Twitter campaigns urging Australians to protest the ban. It has not been confirmed if festival director, Richard Moore, is appealing the decision made by the board. LaBruce says the film will appear at the Visions program in September’s Toronto International Film Festival, reports the Globe and Mail. However, TIFF spokesperson would not confirm the claim because they will announce their official lineup next month.