She admitted she had not seen the film when she made the request and said she did not plan to. A spokesman for the Russian culture ministry said on Thursday that the film complied with Russian law and had been issued a 16+ certificate. He said the certificate applied to the whole of Russia, but added that individual regions had the executive authority to ban the film if they wanted. Uchitel has brushed off the criticism, telling people they should watch the film first before protesting. He has been supported by a number of prominent Russian directors and film stars, who have said calls for a ban are inappropriate.

Source: The Guardian August 10, 2017 17:37 UTC