Malaysia has banned Bruno for its story line, offensive language, jokes and racy nature, an unnamed official from Malaysia's Film Censorship Board told a local newspaper.
The official said the movie was considered unacceptable. "It's banned because the story is based on gay life... There are a lot of sex scenes," she was quoted as saying in The Star on Tuesday. "It's contrary to our culture."
The report also quoted her as saying that “sex toys, politically incorrect comments and jokes about religion also irked the censors.”
Controversial scenes include Bruno and his boyfriend having sex and couples engaging in sexual acts at a swingers' party.The film features British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen as Bruno, a flamboyant gay fashion journalist from Austria, and is being marketed as a satirical attempt to expose the prejudices and bigotries of people he interviews in the US although some critics disagree.
The movie had come under fire in the US as gay groups warn that the movie may further encourage gay stereotypes than to dispel them. Media watchers are concerned that some jokes might be lost on viewers and will leave the theatres with their homophobia validated.
"Sacha Baron Cohen's well-meaning attempt at satire is problematic in many places and outright offensive in others," Rashad Robinson, senior director of media programs for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) told the New York Times in June.
Gay sex, or "carnal intercourse against the order of nature," is punishable by up to 20 years in jail and whipping in Malaysia.