The original ending for David Fincher's 1999 cult classic film "Fight Club" has been restored in China following a flurry of backlash. It marks a rare censorship reversal.
Earlier this year, Chinese streaming service Tencent Video dramatically altered the film to be more in line with China's usual film censorship system that shows criminals always punished for their crimes onscreen.
"Fight Club" originally ends with the narrator killing off his alter ego, Tyler Durden, and setting off a series of explosions that destroys all bank and credit records, ultimately resetting the economy.
However, the new online release in China ends with a message saying all criminals were apprehended and the authorities triumphed, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"Through the clue provided by Tyler, the police rapidly figured out the whole plan and arrested all criminals, successfully preventing the bomb from exploding," the revised version tells viewers. "After the trial, Tyler was sent to lunatic asylum receiving psychological treatment. He was discharged from the hospital in 2012."
It was not long before news of the cut went viral, with many critics saying the re-edited version was nonsensical. It appears the backlash was enough for Tencent Video to backtrack and restore most of the scenes it has cut, according to The Hollywood Reporter, which noted that of the 12 minutes that were removed from the original 137-minute film, 11 minutes had been restored.
The minute still missing was mostly comprised of nude sex scenes between Pitt’s and Helena Bonham Carter’s characters.
Interestingly, Chuck Palahniuk, the author of the "Fight Club" book, was among the few who did not take issue with China's edited version, which he told TMZ was truer to his original novel.
"The irony is that the way the Chinese have changed it is they’ve aligned the ending almost exactly with the ending of the book, as opposed to Fincher’s ending, which was the more spectacular visual ending," he said. "So in a way, the Chinese brought the movie back to the book a little bit."
Palahniuk also pointed out the irony that while many Americans were angry in response to China's actions, his books are still banned in many locations across the U.S.
"What I find really interesting is that my books are heavily banned throughout the U.S.," he said. "The Texas prison system refuses to carry my books in their libraries. A lot of public schools and most private schools refuse to carry my books. But it’s only an issue once China changes the end of a movie? I’ve been putting up with book banning for a long time."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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