Tweeps Add Satirical Flavor to Saudi Arabia’s Cinema Ban Lift

By
Nermeen Salem
-

Twitter feeds saw an outburst of memes carrying satirical movie title suggestions in reaction to Saudi Arabia’s recent decision to lift a three-decade ban on cinemas in light of the Kingdom’s recent liberalizing efforts.

“Prison Break,” posted one tweep using a photo of the famous Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh where the kingdom’s royals are now being held on charges of financial corruption. Others poked fun at the country’s strictly conservative culture, adding an Islamic flavor to famous movie titles. Eat, Pray Five Times, Love; I Know What You Did Last Ramadan; and The Fasting and the Furious were among the top tweets.

The ban lifted on Dec. 11 was enforced in the early 80’s in response to pressure from hardline Islamists who wanted to establish a strictly conservative society that frowns upon arts and entertainment.

Here are the top tweets we found using the hashtags #SaudiMovieTitles and اقترح_اسم_فلم_سعودي# (suggest a Saudi movie title).

English Hashtag #SaudiMovieTitles

https://twitter.com/A_Fallahian/status/941103659357736960

https://twitter.com/Tyfour91/status/941149438654996480

https://twitter.com/jeem_jana/status/940238380125732866

https://twitter.com/Noorsnook/status/940218876989603840

 

Arabic Hashtag #اقترح_اسم_فلم_سعودي

https://twitter.com/aboodii736/status/940365502802784256

https://twitter.com/7i_Dz/status/940294917703815168

https://twitter.com/luluaaa11_lulu/status/940626075364855809

https://twitter.com/rapunzellla/status/940342771306680325

https://twitter.com/TOTYMovies/status/940279484518977536

https://twitter.com/nahawnd989/status/940219503954276352

https://twitter.com/alfaisal_ks/status/940215887000457216